Message From the Chancellor (COVID-19 March 25, 2020 6:01 p.m.)

Research and service work…in the time of coronavirus (March 26, 2020 at 6:01 p.m.)

Dear TWU Community,

I hope this message finds you well as I share a glimpse of today’s activities in our Texas Woman’s community.

Last night, I heard that 499 people attended a recent virtual yoga class led by a student-yoga teacher and produced by Fit and Rec—keeping our student workers employed even at home. With those numbers, we are clearly hungry for connection. After academic leaders met in their regular videoconference, one of the librarians led some chair yoga for those who wanted to stick around on the call.

Jacob M. Blosser, a professor in History & Political Science and president of Phi Alpha Theta—one of the nation’s oldest and largest honor societies—launched a daily “moments for history.” He hopes to offer followers (Ig, Fb, YouTube) a momentary break from the somber realities of this COVID-19 pandemic while also building community among the honor society’s 400,000 members. Like Dr. Blosser’s, some service work and research projects have creatively shifted online, but others have had to put plans on hold until they can return to their labs. As someone who did a lot of my education research in the K-12 classroom, I am empathetic to these delays.

My leadership team continues to meet each morning, looking for ways to help. Our first duty is to the Texas Woman’s community, but we also have an eye fixed on the needs around us and our place in the broader community. I will have more to share about some external efforts soon. As the group makes decisions for the day, we have our gaze steadfastly focused on the future and are ready to lead beyond the challenging realities of today.

With a pioneering spirit,

Carine M. Feyten
Chancellor Feyten, Ph.D.

P.S. For the latest information, check out TWU COVID-19 webpage.

Page last updated 8:43 AM, March 26, 2020