Message from the Chancellor-COVID-19 (March 19, 2020, 5:47 p.m.)

Staff shifting gears for social distancing

Dear Texas Woman’s Community:

I hope this message finds you well after last night’s thunderstorms, at least in North Texas. Houston, I hear yours are coming this evening.

I am grateful for the stories you have shared with me. Some of the staff who have begun to telecommute with kids at home are expressing a growing admiration for what teachers deal with every day, and some are finding all the family time has them eager never to telecommute again. Others are lonely. Still, others are reminded of the lessons from Fulghum’s All I Really Need to Know I Learned in Kindergarten: Uncommon Thoughts on Common Things, specifically those chapters on sharing and also on washing hands.

The family computer time is being split between kids’ homework and mommy’s work, while also, one woman shared, saving a sliver for a “friendly bout on League of Legends”—I have no idea what that is, but it sounded sci-fi, and my Trekkie roots are all about that. I hear from staff who are recalibrating their work, shifting some of the tasks usually completed later in the year to this virtual workspace. Some are even excited about the opportunity to build systems or develop programming they always imagined would benefit our student body. Student counseling, as well as counseling practicums in Family Sciences, are all still able to meet with clients through HIPAA-compliant virtual means.

Some of our graphic designers and students have put together puzzles and coloring-book pages that you might find useful to relieve stress and anxiety while social distancing.

We are in a brave new world, but I am afraid we will have to be braver yet before we regain some normalcy. Please keep sharing, and I will do my best to respond. Though we are social distancing, we can maintain some feeling that we are still together. As that lyric from An American Tail goes: “It helps to think we’re sleeping underneath the same big sky.”

With Pioneer Pride,

Carine M. Feyten, Ph.D.
Chancellor and President

P.S. See the coronavirus page with FAQs for the latest and a new tips about working from home page for timely and useful ideas.

Page last updated 10:08 AM, June 23, 2023