Appointment of a Committee to Consider the Name of Our Mascot
July 1, 2020 Dear Friends, As part of our ongoing conversations about racism and the way it manifests itself in society and on campus, a number of you have pointed out that our mascot’s nickname, “Rhett,” pays tribute to a fictional character associated with the Confederacy, slavery, and sexual assault, and that has prompted important […]
Update on the Finances of Boston University
June 29, 2020 Dear Colleagues, As June draws to a close and we get ready to begin Fiscal Year 2021 (FY2021), I am writing to give you an update on the finances of the University. We have recently addressed the critically important issues around the health of our community and our plans for public health […]
Establishment of Community Safety Advisory Group
June 23, 2020 Dear Boston University Community, The heinous murders of Ahmaud Arbery, Breonna Taylor, and George Floyd have rightly focused our attention on the role of police departments in our country, the role that racism plays in the unequal and unjust application of laws that are supposed to protect human life and keep people […]
Community Health for Return to Campus in the Fall
June 17, 2020 Dear Colleagues, As you know, we have publicly announced our intention to resume in-person teaching and learning and to repopulate our residential campus in the fall. Since mid-April, our recovery teams have been working nonstop toward these goals with the primary objective of providing a safe and healthy environment for our students, […]
Day of Collective Engagement: Racism and Antiracism, Our Realities and Our Roles
June 16, 2020 Dear Boston University Community, We are currently experiencing one of the most significant human rights moments of our lifetimes, as people in all 50 states and around the world have mobilized in horror in response to the killing of yet another unarmed Black person by the police. This movement was sparked most […]
Update on Commencement Plans for the Class of 2020
June 12, 2020 Dear Members of the Boston University Class of 2020 and Families, I am writing to update you on our plans to hold an appropriately festive, in-person commencement for Boston University’s 2020 graduates. Ever since we announced the painful decision to postpone our May 2020 celebrations, we have monitored the trend of the […]
Welcome Letter to College of General Studies Students on Learn from Anywhere
June 9, 2020 Dear Boston University Students and Families, I hope this email finds you and your family safe and well during these unsettling times. I am writing to welcome you to the Boston University academic family and the College of General Studies. At Boston University, one of the leading private universities in the world, […]
Welcome Letter to Incoming Students on Learn from Anywhere
June 9, 2020 Dear Boston University Students and Families, I hope this email finds you and your family safe and well during these unsettling times. I am writing to welcome you to the Boston University academic family. At Boston University, one of the leading private universities in the world, we are focused on providing an […]
Letter to Returning Students on Learn from Anywhere
June 9, 2020 Dear Boston University Students and Families, I hope this email finds you and your family safe and well during these unsettling times. I very much appreciate all the effort you put into the completion of the spring semester with the unprecedented disruption caused by moving all of Boston University’s classes to remote […]
Following up on Monday’s Letter to the Community
June 3, 2020 Dear Friends, On Monday, I sent a letter to the BU community to express my horror at the killings of Ahmaud Arbery, Breonna Taylor, and George Floyd at the hands of police officers and others motivated by their hatred of Black people. I tried to express my condemnation of a racist system […]