A Message from the Department Head
This spring, I am welcoming you with a picture of myself in my virtual world on Zoom, the meeting platform UNCG has adopted for online conferencing. Zoom lets us choose a background and my favorite is the UNCG campus wetlands in the Peabody Park recreation area. It is no secret that since the last newsletter we have undergone some major changes. I would like to let you know how our department has handled the transition to moving off campus and teaching online. First though, I want to tell you that on behalf of our department, we hope you are healthy and adjusting to the major changes that the novel coronavirus has inflicted on us. Many of you are on the front lines, and you are all armed with the knowledge to help or explain to others how to think about this pandemic. We want you to know that we are very proud of you and wish you all the very best. You are in our hearts and on our minds.
How did our department handle this rapid change? I am proud to tell you that our faculty, staff, and students handled it with grace and professionalism. Just as you experienced while you were a student or employee in the department, we acted as a tight community: working together to move off campus, move the remainder of the semester’s courses online, and shut down research labs to the bare minimum. A few essential faculty, staff, and students remain working in near isolation for a small number of hours each week to keep animals, plants, bacteria, and cell cultures alive, and the equipment and building operations functioning. However, the vast majority of us are working from home, teaching on the Canvas Learning Management System and using Zoom and Webex to connect with each other and colleagues across the world.
I am glad to report that as stressful as this event was for everyone--including students--we have indeed adapted. I will be honest: the move is hard, most of us are working much longer hours than is typical under stressful conditions, and we are concerned about our research program, teaching, and our family and friends’ health. Indeed, we are very much looking forward to a return to normalcy. However, our team is resilient, and we are approaching this as a community and in good spirits; for that I am grateful.
So what else has been happening in the Department of Biology? The answer is: a lot. I urge you to read this newsletter to see some of the major accomplishments of our faculty and students that are highlighted in the following pages. Indeed, there is a great deal to celebrate!
As always, I want to thank you very much for those of you who have made generous financial contributions to the department. They help a great deal with student research, travel, conference participation, and research supplies. I wish you the very best.
