Dean’s Letter: Welcoming our CALES family back for a fall semester like never before

Dear alumni and friends,

When I wrote to you in June, I remarked on how many of us say “CALES is family.” This family is unique in Arizona, because it started higher education in the state and has been a leader ever since. What’s more, it’s a family that grows leaders.

This first week of fall semester 2020, we will continue to lead the UA by showing how to meet head-on the unprecedented challenges of a SARS-COV2 pandemic world, by doing so together.

We’ll all wear masks on campus because we now know that my mask protects you; your mask protects me. Sadly, we won’t handshake, hug, or high five, but we’ll greet one another at a safe distance. This means in-person classes and laboratories will happen along with different online learning modalities.

I love meeting with you individually and at our CALES family reunions, like our Homecoming’s Burrito Breakfast. I am sad that this year our social gatherings must look different so our CALES family stays healthy.

Looking ahead, I am excited, mindful, and grateful, and realistic. I’m excited because of our students, who are eager to learn and grow. I’m mindful of our heritage of leadership that it is now our turn to live up to. I’m grateful, because you will be leading with me as you have every year. And I am realistic that we will have vaccines in the spring, and we will have new challenges and opportunities to lead into the future.

I hope you enjoy the good news stories we are proud to share here with you.

Regards,

Shane