AS&E Statement on Racial Injustice

Monday, June 1, 2020

Dear faculty and staff, 

We write to lend our voices to those seeking an end to racial injustice in the United States. We fully support and echo the sentiments expressed by President Monaco in his message to the community yesterday. 

George Floyd. Nina Pop. Breonna Taylor. Ahmaud Arbery. Tony McDade. These individuals and many more have been lost to violence in just the last few months, including two in the last week alone. 

We recognize the disproportionate impact racial injustice has on the Black community of students, staff, faculty, and alumni. We are confronted with the fact that hate and racism are ever present in our society and it is part of our role as a university community to work to change that. We do so through learning, civic engagement, and dialogue within and outside of our home communities. 

To this end, we will plan a virtual campus gathering in the near future. This meeting will offer the community a space to express grief, concerns and anger, while also building plans for concrete actions we can all take to recognize and fight racism.  

These are challenging times for all of us. We want to remind you of the resources available to you for your wellbeing, including the University Chaplaincy, as well as our Employee Assistance Program.

 

Sincerely yours,

James M. Glaser, Dean, School of Arts and Sciences

Jianmin Qu, Dean, School of Engineering

Nancy Bauer, Dean, School of the Museum of Fine Arts and Dean of Academic Affairs, School of Arts and Sciences

Bárbara M. Brizuela, Dean of Academic Affairs, School of Arts and Sciences

Robert G. Cook, Dean, Graduate School of Arts and Sciences and Dean of Academic Affairs, School of Arts and Sciences

Karen Panetta, Dean, Graduate Studies, School of Engineering

Chris Swan, Dean, Undergraduate Education, School of Engineering

Samuel W. Thomas, Dean of Academic Affairs, School of Arts and Sciences

Nancy Thompson, Dean of Student Affairs and Chief Student Affairs Officer ad interim, Schools of Arts, Sciences, and Engineering