Dear Members,
By now, you have seen Doug’s official announcement that he will be retiring as dean by the end of the 2020-2021 academic year. This is bittersweet news, but I am grateful that we as a council still have more than a year to help him realize his goals for the college.
For more than a decade, Doug has worked tirelessly to expand the College of Fine Arts and build an arts college of the 21st century. However, he would remind us that there is still plenty of work to be done. As he told us at the fall meeting, the college must never stop evolving to meet the demands of an ever-changing world.
In light of this news, I hope you will make a particular point to attend the spring regional meeting in your area and the fall 2020 meeting, for which we hope to have the date secured very soon. I hope you will answer the phone when Sondra or one of the gift officers calls you to discuss your financial support, and I hope you will continue to share with your friends, family, communities the important work that the college is doing and encourage them to get involved.
Finally, a little bit of housekeeping: New member nominations are due to Natalie by December 20, and if you have not yet paid your annual dues and would like your gift to qualify for the 2019 tax year, you can give online until 11:30 p.m. on December 31. See below for more details.
I wish you all the very best this holiday season and a happy new year. See you in 2020!
Cheers,
Sara Hallam
Chair
