As the smoke clears from the recent fires on campus, we want to take this opportunity to acknowledge the work of so many people for their actions and their efforts.

First, we cannot express how much we appreciate the tireless work and support we received from Vice President Mike Lee and his staff from the division of Administration and Business Affairs.

ABA coordinated and facilitated the cleanup, relocation of classes, and the reconstruction of important teaching and office spaces. We appreciate the way members of ABA kept the lines of communication open, and we thank them for working with us directly to minimize the impact of this event on our students, faculty and staff. We are very appreciative for their proactive concern for the health and safety of everyone involved; the safety of the users of the buildings was at all times on the minds of the members of ABA.

We also want to thank faculty, staff and administrators from all three colleges for their willingness to help those impacted by sharing office spaces, finding new classroom spaces and sharing other resources.

This team effort, led by Arts & Letters Associate Dean Nick Burnett, went a long way to minimizing disruptions to classes and other work.

Finally, we want to thank our students, faculty and staff for their unwavering patience, their understanding, and their flexibility during a hectic time, when their normal schedules and activities were disrupted. While everything didn’t work perfectly and there were many challenges along the way, it was our experience that the people most affected by this event performed admirably. This was a shining example of different groups on and off campus working collaboratively together to minimize the impact of the fire, and working to ensure the health and safety of the campus community.

Dean Edward Inch, College of Arts and Letters

Dean Fred Baldini, College of Health and Human Services

Dean Charles Gossett, College of Social Sciences and Interdisciplinary Studies