Video: Message from Provost Michael Alexander
Video Transcript from Provost Michael Alexander
Hi UW-Green Bay students, faculty and staff.
As we resume classes on this Monday, I thought it was important as Provost to greet you. It is innate to the human spirit to want to grow and to learn. Although we are in very difficult times right now we should take solace in the idea that we’re going to continue to behave in the most human way possible — which is to learn. Learn from each other, learn from our mentors and move forward in our aspirations with our education.
To our students… persist. Please persist. If you run into any obstacles, please let us know. Whether it be talking to a faculty or staff member, contacting with the University. Or, frankly, email or call me. We also urge you, if you have any financial difficulties or anything that can impede your ability to continue your education, to email us at GBOSS at gboss@uwgb.edu.
To our faculty… thank you. We’re incredibly grateful to have a faculty that can move an entire university to alternative delivery within 10 days. We know we have the faculty that can do this, and we know the incredible sacrifices our faculty have made to make today possible. We’re appreciative and want to remind everyone to remember the phrase that “perfect is the enemy of good.” Right now our goal is to learn. That learning may look and may feel different than it was intended to feel two weeks ago. We didn’t choose to be in the situation we’re in. All we can do is to choose how we’re going to handle the situation we’re in moving forward. And we’re very grateful to our faculty and the work they’ve done to make it possible for classes to resume today.
Finally, a message for our staff. Our staff have been heroic in every way over the last 10 days. At every obstacle they’ve chosen simply to overcome it. We’re so lucky to have a group of people who are dedicated to keeping the university functioning and moving forward at difficult times. Thank you.
I urge you all to lean on each other, to rely on each other, to communicate with each other and let’s get through this together as a Phoenix family. I also want to say that we should rely at this point on the legend of the Phoenix. The Phoenix will rise, and at some point we will be through a very difficult situation for the world, for the country and for our community. And we’ll be able to move forward and resume, continuing what we do best as a university which is to help our community to be better and to educate our students. Thank you for all you do. Let’s rise together as a phoenix nation.
