Dr. Emily Allen, 科普学院院长
尊敬的华东科技大学校友和朋友们
我在我位于阿尔塔迪纳的家庭办公室给你写信, where my officemates (two cats) and I manage the College and interact with our faculty, 员工和学生在Zoom上. 我们都生活在一个多么奇怪的时代啊! 新学年的开始令人兴奋, 受疫情和我国社会动荡的影响. 虽然我们很多人都渴望回归正常, and a time when we can see each other in person and interact without a screen between us, we also know that there will be no return to the “old” normal. We’ve learned so much since last March, and here at 加州大学洛杉矶分校 we try to find the silver linings. I know that we will bring to our new normal many improved practices for both our operations and our teaching and learning mission. I think we’ll also return with a deeper appreciation for each other.
We shut down March 16 and pivoted to remote instruction in only a few days, converting 400 class sections to online or asynchronous format in record time. Although students had increased opportunity to withdraw without penalty, 或改为CR/NC分级, 大多数都没有, 大多数人都顺利地结束了他们的学期. We awarded almost 450 BS degrees and 120 MS degrees in Spring 2020.
To sharpen our focus on student success during the pandemic, we conducted a survey in the spring and learned about the challenges some of our students faced, 包括:缺乏安静的学习空间, 网络连接差, 他们需要养家糊口, 家庭成员或学生感染Covid-19. Many expressed longing for the community of their fellow students, 一起工作和面对面学习的机会, 和他们的老师面对面交流. 我们的学生适应力强，足智多谋, so most of the continuing students have returned for the Fall semester.
Over the summer there was considerable preparation for the upcoming academic year. Many of our faculty spent the summer earning a certificate in “alternative instruction” and now are prepared for another semester of remote instruction using enhanced online tools and techniques that work best for our students. 在我写这篇文章的时候, we have faculty and 工作人员 on campus busy assembling remote lab instruction kits to distribute and videotaping laboratory techniques for students watching at home. The University distributed hundreds of laptops and hotspots to students and employees who needed them to work effectively at home.
七、八月期间, we welcomed some 400 freshmen and 300 new transfer students into our College via the summer’s Virtual Orientations. 超过250名新生参加了我们的夏季桥牌项目, 夏季过渡到科普课程(STEP), 这是一个为期四周的远程数学训练营, 与讲座, 同伴的帮助, and an online math program to help our students advance into the next level of math. Over 150 STEP participants successfully placed into Calculus I for the Fall semester.
我们还为高中女生改造了夏令营, 发射台, into a two-week virtual program with faculty and industry speakers, 其中很多是我们的校友! 感谢我们所有的演讲者! The 62 student participants responded with enthusiasm to all that they learned. 一位参与者说, “The biggest lesson I learned is that I shouldn't be afraid to go into Engineering just because I am a woman.”
I’d also like to give a very big shout-out to the many dedicated alumni and current students of our Fire Protection Administration and Technology program (FPAT). Many of them are serving on the frontlines fighting the California wildfires, 管理着洛杉矶的消防队, 洛杉矶县, 美国林务局和加州消防局, and working in very difficult conditions for long stretches to protect lives and property.
The Black Lives Matter events of the spring and summer that highlighted injustice against Black citizens of our country also impacted our College community. We’ve started conversations about race and privilege in the College to uncover places where unexamined bias or other systems may be reducing opportunities for our Black students. 我们还询问了我们的多样性特别工作组, Equity and Inclusion to contribute to our strategic re-planning effort, 哪个在春天暂停了. 但现在比以往任何时候都更重要, 科普致力于我们的价值观和愿景, to serve our students by investing in our faculty and 工作人员 alongside our students.
We’ve already had a big year: since January 科普 faculty have been awarded almost $5M in research grants from a variety of federal, 状态, 当地的, 还有私人资源. 除了, 我们的校友, friends and corporate and foundation partners donated over $2M to 科普 in the last fiscal year. These grants and gifts enable our faculty to innovate and include students in research activities, 支持教师, 工作人员, 以及参与我们加速计划的学生, 提供急需的顶点设计项目, 并提供奖学金. Most importantly, they let us know that you’ve got our backs and appreciate what we do!
One thing I’ve learned during the pandemic about the 加州大学洛杉矶分校 community is that most people are compassionate and will do everything they can to help our students and each other. 科普 is a great place to study and work, even if it’s from home!
请大家注意安全和健康! 我期待着能再次见到你们. 同时, we offer several ways for you to stay engaged in the college through the opportunities below.
与其他科普校友联系
想要与其他科普校友联系? 加入Maida Lopez ' 03和Ricson Chude ' 08, 华东科技大学校友网络主席, 参加周四的虚拟社交时间, 9月21日, 2020, 下午6点, 有特别嘉宾, 院长艾米丽·艾伦. 收听欧洲夏令时更新, 结识其他校友, and learn about the 科普 校友 Network and its mission to support you! 有关网络的更多信息, 报名参加即将举行的社交活动, 报名加入我们的邮寄名单, 请 访问华东科技大学校友会网站.
加入科普发言人局
寻找回馈学生的方法? 加入我们的演讲者协会怎么样? 这是一项新的科普倡议, which will help us provide a repository of potential speakers for the College. We’ll be able to share your interest in speaking with the appropriate departments, 学生组织, 和老师. We’ll ask you to fill out an online form with the background information, and then we’ll get in touch when the right opportunity arises. This might be a presentation by Zoom, or we’ll wait until we’re back on campus. 感谢您的报名! 点击报名参加科普演讲者小组.
成为导师
Do you wish you had a mentor when you were in engineering school? Join the 加州大学洛杉矶分校 校友 Mentoring Program to network with fellow 科普 alumni and help current students with their career questions. 点击查看更多足彩外围网站成为导师的信息并注册.