February 5, 2019

Spring Semester Welcome

Dear Campus Community,

Welcome back to a new semester. I invite you all to join me at the Spring Convocation on Wednesday at 10 a.m. as we celebrate the accomplishments of the fall semester and prepare to continue our Race to Excellence.

The fall semester was momentous for our university community, with the increase in our enrollment to 6,320, up more than 2 percent over the previous year. Plans are moving forward for development of the Entrepreneurship Living Learning Community that will increase our housing capacity, and we are seeing continued progress in the installation of new wayfinding signage across the campus. 

Our faculty have returned with renewed energy after a robust Faculty Institute where they learned some new skills using a tool called Strength Finder to focus on individuals’ strengths rather than weaknesses in both classroom and work environments. I shared some additional updates in my session with them that the entire campus community can view as a slide presentation or video link.

More great successes are on the horizon as we move into the spring semester. I am looking forward to seeing many of your faces from all segments of the campus community in attendance at the convocation ceremony on Wednesday as we reflect on our legacy, celebrate accomplishments of the year, and hear from our keynote speaker, Dr. Robert Trent Vinson, to kick off our celebration of Black History Month. Dr. Vinson, a Frances L. and Edwin L. Cummings Associate Professor of History, Africana Studies and International Relations at the College of William and Mary, will share insight into the impact of Black Migrations, the national theme for the month.