Yesterday was a great day of celebration of those who have given so much to our university! It was an honor to recognize 4 individuals who have been at UNL for 50 years and 969 total people in our community for their years of service. Collectively, a total of 15,115 years of service were recognized across our faculty and staff.
This is proving to be an incredibly exciting year for our university.
The latest news reports show wealthy and famous parents walking into courthouses to face fraud charges related to their efforts to get their children admitted into elite colleges. The college admissions scandal has left many Americans wondering if their students even have a chance in a system that appears to be rigged.
As chancellor of one of the nation’s leading land-grant universities, I can confidently state that the system is not rigged.
It has been heartwarming to see our campus community rallying to support our fellow Nebraskans as we begin the long road to recovery from the historic floods and blizzard conditions which have affected the lives, livelihoods, and property of so many people and communities across the state and region.
Many in our UNL community have been directly impacted, and I wanted to highlight specific steps that have been taken to provide assistance.
As you may know, due to the flooding along the Platte River and the stress this has placed on the water supply for the City of Lincoln, the city has issued a Level Two mandatory water restriction. As one of the largest water users in the City, we had already begun taking cooperative steps to reduce water usage following conversations with city leaders over the weekend and are implementing additional actions today.
This year we are celebrating how far we’ve come as a university in our first 150 years since our charter on February 15, 1869. Admittedly as a student of history in general and our university’s in particular, I am enthralled by the opportunity to examine our proud and ambitious past. Even so, I am doubly invigorated by our vision for the future.
Due to the national significance of the passing of President George H.W. Bush, the University of Nebraska will be honoring the National Day of Mourning on Wednesday, December 5. This day will be a paid holiday for all non-essential University employees and classes will be canceled.
I recognize this is the final scheduled week of classes as we work to complete this semester. I am confident that faculty will work directly with their students to ensure they are able to successfully complete their work for the term.
November 8 is National First Gen College Celebration Day, and the University of Nebraska–Lincoln is joining campuses across the country to recognize first-generation students.
As a former first gen college student myself, I’m especially proud to lead our university because we open our doors and our arms to welcome and support students facing the challenges of being the first in their family to attend college.
This past week, in the killings in Pittsburgh and Louisville and the pipe bombs sent around the country, we saw once again the tragic outcome of hate, intolerance and bigotry.
We all mourn the horrific loss of life. Our flags fly at half-staff far too often.
