Dear Orange Friends:
Welcome to one of the most inspiring weeks of the year at Syracuse University. Thousands of first-year and transfer students will arrive on campus this week. Everything is new. Everything is about possibility. Each of our students brings a story, a biography, that is absolutely unique.
Dear Orange Friends:
Earlier this summer I was on a flight and the middle-aged woman next to me spent most of the time lamenting “young people these days.” I don’t talk much on planes, and I spent the flight trying to come up with a rejoinder that would not simply prolong the complaint. I wish I could have seen into the future and told her about two experiences I had just this week.
Dear Orange Friends:
The 21st century emphasis at Syracuse University is on connectivity. A fast-changing world brings us closer together all the time. How we respond is the measure of how we will succeed—on campus, in the larger community and around the globe.
Dear Orange Friends:
Most of us think of a joyous celebration when we hear fireworks on July 4th. But many of our nation’s veterans, who fought for independence, hear those same sounds and think of explosions and firefights that wounded or even killed their friends. That’s what Post Traumatic Stress Disorder (PTSD) is all about…even years and decades after the actual event. And it is why our veterans deserve our attention. What they experienced is unique and how we meet their needs today and into the future must be equally unique.
Dear Orange Friends:
In Syracuse, these are the weeks of overpacked days. Every day on campus, for almost everyone here, it feels like twice as much is happening in half the time: examinations, capstones, performances, papers, year-end meetings, elections, and transitions. Or meaningful things done for the last time.
Dear Orange Friends:
Extraordinary things are happening every day at Syracuse University. This last week was no exception. In recent days, students, faculty, and staff were recognized for a variety of achievements. We are blessed with so many great teachers and great students:
Dear Orange Friends:
It has been 30 months since I became a member of the Syracuse University community. During that time, I’ve had the privilege of seeing the heart and selfless effort of so many of our students. I’ve seen it in their academic work, social lives, and their community outreach. I have also seen the same traits in our student-athletes, who pour the same energy into their respective teams. Sometimes the result is a championship. More often, the result is simply the exhausted satisfaction of a communal effort. In every case, these young men and women proudly represent our university and community.
Dear Orange Friends:
Yesterday, both the women’s and men’s basketball teams advanced to the NCAA Final Four. It is only the 12th time any university has sent teams to both Final Fours in the same year.
Dear Orange Friends:
Syracuse University has big goals and aspirations. All of us are collectively working hard to make it the best place it can be.
Dear Orange Friends:
People ask me a lot what it means to be a great research university. Today I have a new answer: it is when faculty, students, and staff collaborate to help give the whole world a new way to understand the universe.
