Dear Advisory Council members,
I write with two important updates to the council’s schedule for the 2020-2021 academic year.
First, to protect the health and safety of you, our members, as well as our students, faculty, and staff, we will not be gathering in person for our usual on-campus meeting this fall. Instead, we will host a series of short virtual meetings, similar to our popular sessions this summer. Please mark your calendars for the first virtual Advisory Council meeting on Friday, September 25.
This decision is in compliance with the policies announced last week by UT’s Interim President Jay Hartzell as part of the new Protect Texas Together initiative, in which university officials are advising against large in-person gatherings in favor of online events.
However, we do expect to see you in person in the spring! Please save the date for a special, spring meeting as we gather together on campus on Friday, March 5, 2021. This meeting will be in conjunction with several other special university events, and we will have more information about those spring festivities in the coming months. We will also hold our usual regional meetings next spring to give you the opportunity to celebrate and say farewell to Doug before he retires.
This is not what we had planned for the coming year, but I hope you will take inspiration from Doug’s message at last year’s fall meeting. As he stated, “change is the new normal,” and so we move forward ready to respond to the ever-changing COVID-19 realities with creativity and innovation.
If you have ideas about what you’d like to discuss or learn more about COFA this fall, or if you have any feedback regarding the Advisory Council virtual meetings, please email Natalie.
Please continue to take care of yourselves and your loved ones during these uncertain times, and I look forward to seeing you online again soon.
Warm regards,
Sondra Lomax
Executive Director of Development