Presidential Perspective - March 26, 2020

Baylor Students, Faculty and Staff:

I am glad to be writing again to you on a Thursday afternoon for our weekly Presidential Perspective. Like me, I hope you see this as a sign of a return to normalcy, although it is indeed a new normal for Baylor. I know that everyone has been inundated with information related to and in response to the coronavirus (COVID-19). Space doesn’t allow me to repeat all of our many recent announcements – you can find updated information and FAQs at baylor.edu/coronavirus – but I did want to bring your attention to three important items: 

1. Social distancing. The First Gent and I shot a fun video earlier this week that illustrates just how far 6 feet is. Take a look and please prioritize the health and well-being of others by not gathering in groups.
2. Academic calendar. As part of Provost Brickhouse’s announcement Tuesday on the pass/fail option for students for the spring semester, several updates were made to key dates – including registration for the summer and fall semesters – that you need to review. We can’t wait to have you back at Baylor!
3. Available assistance. Baylor provides a host of resources during periods of crisis for students, faculty and staff. We understand that these are challenging times for so many within the Baylor Family.

   For Students: Both the Baylor Counseling Center and the University Chaplain continue to work directly with students via remote technology during online course instruction. And my heart continues to be warmed by stories of our faculty who are going above and beyond to assist our students.

   Students experiencing education-related financial hardships due to COVID-19 can apply for a student emergency award through the President’s Excellence Fund. These applications will be reviewed by our Office of Student Financial Aid, and awards will be made as quickly as possible in hopes of helping ease some financial burdens. If you need assistance, you may learn more about requesting an emergency award as well as access an online request form.

   For Faculty and Staff: Baylor provides an Employee Assistance Program to all employees and their household family members. This program is a confidential resource that provides counseling, legal and financial consultation, work-life assistance and crisis intervention services. You can call 888-628-4844 or access the link above to utilize this resource.

   If you wish to help Baylor students: Many in the Baylor Family have asked how they can help our students. Gifts made to the President’s Excellence Fund will be directed to help those who are facing great hurdles due to COVID-19. Should you or someone you know be interested in making a gift to support our students, gifts can be made online.

Some non-coronavirus information to share with you this week:

• I am so pleased to see Baylor’s excellence in graduate education recognized nationally in the 2021 U.S. News Best Graduate Schools rankings. Among the highlights: Baylor Law at No. 50, with its trial advocacy specialty at No. 2; the Hankamer School of Business at No. 56, with its graduate entrepreneurship program on the rise to No. 15; the Louise Herrington School of Nursing with top DNP programs in anesthesia nursing at No. 8 and nurse-midwifery at No. 21; the U.S. Army-Baylor doctor of physical therapy program in Robbins College of Health and Human Sciences at No. 13; and the School of Education’s graduate program in curriculum and instruction debuting at No. 29 nationally. Congratulations to these and other outstanding Baylor graduate and professional programs.

• I am excited to share this fascinating study by an international research team led by geosciences doctoral candidate Megan Jacobs that has identified three new species of pterosaur, a huge flying reptile that lived 100 million years ago. Their fossils were found in Morocco, and the discovery will shed new light on the little known evolutionary history of Africa. The study was published in the journal Cretaceous Research. A dinosaur hunt might be a fun science lesson for all those future Bears schooling from home!

• We must not forget our civic duty to ensure that we all are accurately counted in the 2020 U.S. Census. Knowing that our students have returned home, we are asking those who lived in off-campus housing to complete the Census using the address they would have traditionally been staying at on April 1. Please spend five minutes to visit the Census website, my2020census.gov, and enter your household information. Census data affects many things that college and university students rely on – including financial aid – with more than $800 billion in overall federal funding to be distributed annually for the next 10 years. More information is available at whyicountwaco.org.

I suspect many of you are like me, having turned to the Scriptures over the past few weeks for strength, guidance and inspiration. Today I want to leave Psalm 46:1 with you: “He is our refuge and strength, a very present help in times of trouble.” I pray that you find refuge and strength today in our Lord and Savior.

Sincerely,

Linda A. Livingstone, Ph.D.
President