MyLU Insider

Mackenzie Huber

Author: Mackenzie Huber

Anti-racism presentations and discussions hosted by Lawrence’s Anti-Racist White Affinity Group (ARWAG)

ARWAG is a group of white staff and faculty at Lawrence committed to understanding and challenging racism. Recognizing that the burden of anti-racist work falls disproportionately on people of color, ARWAG provides a setting for white people to take responsibility for educating themselves. This group functions in consultation with Lawrence’s Office of Diversity and Inclusion.

Anti-racism 101 presentations:

A presentation over Zoom about key concepts and practices of anti-racism for white faculty and staff. Participants will get practical ideas and information that can be applied immediately, as well as recommended readings, podcasts, and social media follows for continued development.  Includes opportunities for Q & A.

The presentation will be offered on the following dates:

Mon. July 13, 3:00-4:00 p.m.            

or, Wed. July 22, 9:00-10:00 a.m.    

or, Mon. July 27, 1:00-2:00 p.m.

RSVP to Cindy Pickart at cindy.j.pickart@lawrence.edu to receive the Zoom link. Please indicate which date you plan to join.

3-session discussion series:

Participants will join a 3-session discussion series over Zoom. The series will meet one hour per week for three weeks. Prior to each of the three sessions, participants watch a film, listen to a podcast, or read essays and excerpts.

The first session will focus on racism and mass incarceration with discussion of the film 13th (free on Netflix; no subscription needed.) The second session will focus on racial inequities in medical care and health outcomes, with discussions based on a podcast and short article. The third session will address practical allyship via discussion of several short articles and excerpts.

We’re offering several rounds of this discussion series (though the discussion will be on the same material for each round.) Two co-hosts will facilitate discussions, and we will strive to keep discussion groups small. Ideally, the same co-hosts and participants will meet together for the entire sequence.

This 3-session discussion series is offered:

Tues. July 14, July 21, and July 28 from 9:00-10:00 a.m.       RSVP by Noon on July 13
or, Wed. July 29, Aug. 5, and Aug. 12 from 4:00-5:00 p.m.RSVP by July 24
or, Thurs. Aug. 20, Aug. 27, and Sept. 3 from 1:00-2:00 p.m. RSVP by Aug 17

RSVP to Cindy Pickart at cindy.j.pickart@lawrence.edu to receive the Zoom link and access to the podcast/readings for discussions #2 and #3.  Please indicate whether you will join the series that begins on July 14 or on July 29 or on Aug. 20.

Were You A First-Generation Student?

At Lawrence, we consider students whose parents/guardians do not have a four-year degree to be part of our cohort of first-generation students. Being a first-generation student myself, I can speak first-hand about navigating college unable to rely on the people I normally would for advice: my parents. As we work to support all of our students of varying identities that they hold, we are continuing to look at the best ways to support First-Generation Students. One way is to keep a running list of first-generation faculty and staff — these faculty and staff may choose to put up a door sign by their offices to help students easily identify that the person working there may be a person who understands their perspective of navigating the college experience, or wear a pin to different occasions on campus to identify themselves as first gen.  

If you haven’t identified yourself as a First-Generation faculty/staff member yet, please fill out the First-Generation Faculty and Staff Form with a  few questions that includes your choice of being contacted about anything involving the topic of first generation students. If you HAVE already identified yourself in the past, but need to indicate that you need a door sign, pin, or want to be added/taken off of a mailing list, please head to the form!

Facility Use Request Team

As we venture forward, a small team has been established to make decisions for facilities’ requests from internal campus colleagues (students, faculty, and staff) and external constituents (alumni, Appleton community members, etc.). We will rely on this team to determine who, what, and where activities can occur as we phase in facilities’ usage.

Currently several colleagues across campus are receiving these requests and understandably forwarding them to members of the LPPT or Cabinet for decision. To ensure we are handling these equitably in both access and decision, we want all to know the team exists and the membership – Jon Meyer (from the facilities, custodial, and security aspects), Erin Buenzli (from the health group of LPPT), Matt Baumler (from the Outside In visitors group of LPPT), and Mary Alma Noonan (coordinating the requests for consistency and equity).

Please feel free to reach out to any member of the team with any request you have or has been directed to you.

Construction Closures Monday

Due to the construction project of a new exterior staircase on the west side of Buchanan-Kiewit Wellness Center, a section of the upper and lower roads, in this construction area, will be closed off for approximately 3 hours on Monday, June 29.  There will be a crane in use to place the pre-built sections of stairs.

Thank you!

Facility Services

Grocery Shopping Program

SWC has provided an alternative to the shopping shuttle for the students on campus this term, in an effort to minimize potential expose to COVID-19.

The Faculty/staff and student shopping program Is for students that have the monetary means to buy groceries, but no safe way to get to the store to buy them. It is serving as a replacement to the shopping shuttle. While the Student Food Pantry remains a resource for low income students staying on campus, we would also like to extend support to students who are able to afford to purchase food and supplies but are unable to get off campus. The idea behind this is to prevent an unnecessary strain on the Student Pantry from students who don’t NEED the resource, while still providing a relatively safe alternative.

Students will be matched with a faculty/staff member based on the survey results as best as we can match them up. Though we request information, the final details of payment method and when the shopping will take place. Students should not be shopping with the faculty/staff member, and instead should be providing them with a list of items in some form (details to be worked out by the individual student and faculty/staff member).

Find more information and sign up here: https://www.lawrence.edu/students/activities/lucc/committees/standing-committees/swc/covid-19-resources

This program will be run by the Student Welfare Committee. Responses will only be shared with the Lead SWC Shopping Shuttle Driver (Elliott Marsh), Dean of the Sophomore Class/Associate Dean of Students and Advisor to Student Welfare Committee (Rose Wasielewski), and the SWC Chair (Sterling Clarke Ambrosius).

Senior Commencement Information

Seniors,

Don’t forget to submit you photo slides for the virtual Commencement ceremony by June 1. Instructions for submitting your slide can be found on the Commencement Information for Seniors page.

If you choose to decorate your mortar board, please consider submitting a photo of it by emailing it to commencement@lawrence.edu.

Blue box in front of Main Hall with confetti.
P.S. Your Grad Boxes are in the mail on the way to you. Expect them soon! Watch an unboxing from Michele here.

Congratulate our Grads

Help us celebrate our 2020 grads by getting your team together on Zoom and recording a short message of congratulations. These clips will be used during the virtual Commencement ceremony and possibly on social media.

Please submit all clips by June 1.

Instructions:

  1. Get your team, office, department, etc. together on a Zoom meeting using gallery mode so all faces can be seen
  2. Have the host of the meeting click “record” and wait a few seconds
  3. Begin your message. Make it creative, personal, authentic, and show our graduates how proud you are of them. Ideal length could be anywhere from 3-15 seconds. (Tip: If you’re using signs in your message, make sure to turn off video mirroring so they can be read.)
  4. Stop recording
  5. When the meeting ends, the recorded video clip will be saved on the host’s computer
  6. Upload that mp4 file to this form

Note: Video clips recorded in ways other than Zoom are also welcome.

Email communications@lawrence.edu with any questions or for help.

Upload video here

Tip: To sign into the form, use your shortened LU email address (last name + first initial + @lawrence.edu) and your network password.

Submit a Clip for the “In 30 Seconds” challenge

Help us bring together the community virtually by participating in the “In 30 Seconds” challenge. Every other week, we are asking Lawrentians to respond to a Lawrence-related prompt to keep the spirit of Lawrence strong, even as we are spread around the world. 

This week, submit a video clip (or photo, drawing, or other creative display) telling us what you love most about Lawrence… in 30 seconds or less.

Submit your clip here (sign in with your shortened email – last name + first initial + @lawrence.edu – and LU password) and we’ll post our favorites on our Instagram Story!

Submit clip here

Email huberm@lawrence.edu with any questions.

Social Media 101

Do you manage a social media account on behalf of a LU department, office, organization, etc.? Would you like to brush up on your social media knowledge, strategy, or skills?

Mackenzie Huber, Web Content and Social Media Specialist in the LU Office of Communications, will be holding hour-long “Social Media 101” sessions via Zoom on two dates:

  • Wednesday, May 13 at 2PM
  • Tuesday, May 19 at 9AM

If interested, please fill out this quick survey to RSVP, get the Zoom link, and express your social media interests/questions in advance of the session.

Social media 101 survey

Now that social media is our outlet for more of our communication than ever, please consider taking part in one of these sessions. We can learn from each other and strengthen our social media game together.

Even if you’re not interested in the sessions, please request to join this Lawrence University Social Media Managers Facebook Group to join a learning community of folks engaged in similar efforts around campus.

LU Social Managers Facebook Group

Changes in the President’s Cabinet

Dear Colleagues,

I am pleased to announce a few changes in the President’s Cabinet. 

As many of you know, Jake Woodford, former Secretary to the Board and Assistant to the President was elected Mayor of Appleton.  I am deeply grateful for Jake’s service to his alma mater.  We will host a campus reception for our new Mayor as soon as we can, to give us all a chance to thank Jake for the enormous impact he has had on Lawrence and to wish him well in guiding Appleton’s future. 

Since the beginning of the mayoral campaign last fall, Christyn Abaray has served as interim Secretary to the Board and Assistant to the President.  I am thrilled that she will now pick up this position permanently.  In addition to supervising the Athletics Department, Christyn will permanently assume all the other roles Jake performed: primary contact for the Board of Trustees; lead liaison to the Fox Cities, State and Federal agencies; managing real estate transactions here and in Door Country.  As part of this transition, the President’s Cabinet will diminish in size by one.  This change will help us reach our goal of lowering operating costs by $3.5 million.  Christyn will announce today a new full-time Athletics Director.

Jeff Clark, Professor of Geosciences will also complete his three-year term as Special Assistant to the President at the end of this academic year.  I want to thank Jeff for the leadership and enthusiasm he brought to this role.  His work to deepen Lawrence’s sustainability efforts, to revitalize our 3-2 program relationships, and to establish a connection with the Center for Professional and Executive Development at University of Madison’s Business School, among other initiatives, has moved Lawrence forward in many important ways.  

I am pleased that Jason Brozek, the Stephen Edward Scarff Professor of International Affairs and Associate Professor of Government will be the next Special Assistant to the President.  Jason will work with Provost Kodat and me on our strategic priority of Deepening the Academic Program.  In this regard, I have also asked Elizabeth De Stasio, Raymond J. Herzog Professor of Science and Professor of Biology, to join Jason in this effort in her role as Chair of the Pre-Health Advising Committee.  I want to thank both Jason and Beth for finding time for this important work. The University’s sustainability efforts will continue to be led by Kelsey McCormick, our Sustainability Coordinator, and the Sustainability Steering Committee which is comprised of student, faculty, and staff representatives.  Kelsey will report to Christyn for this and other responsibilities. 

After over 25 years of service, Nancy Truesdell will also retire from her role as Special Assistant to the President in June.  I want to thank Nancy for her “third career” at Lawrence serving as interim Registrar and leading a number of different initiatives over the past three years.  We have counted on her dedication to the University and to learning, time and time again in her multiple roles at Lawrence.  I am thankful that she will continue to serve the higher education community as a peer reviewer for the Higher Learning Commission.  Her position as special assistant will not be replaced.  I know you will join me in wishing Nancy the best of luck.

Yours, 

Mark

Mark Burstein

President