Inside WFU – news for faculty and staff

Normal operations for Reynolda Campus, Wake Downtown on Friday, Jan. 21

January 20, 2022

Reynolda Campus and Wake Downtown expects to hold in-person classes and continue normal campus operations on Friday, Jan. 21.

The anticipated threat of inclement weather for Friday has dissipated, and campus operations are not expected to be impacted.

The University will continue to update the campus community on any major operational changes. Directions to sign up for text alerts are available here.

Update on Naming and Honorifics from Vice President for Diversity and Inclusion José Villalba

January 20, 2022

This message is shared on behalf of Vice President for Diversity and Inclusion José Villalba.

As was announced in September 2021, the Office of Diversity and Inclusion (ODI) led efforts in fall 2021 to engage with the campus community around naming and honorifics. To facilitate this process, ODI organized the Honorifics Planning Group to assist in information sharing and data gathering activities. Community-wide involvement in the topic of naming and honorifics took place last term through seminars and forums, small group discussions with stakeholders, and an end-of-term survey emailed to students, staff, faculty, and alumni.

Regarding the survey, a total of 481 completed surveys were received by ODI. About 70 percent of respondents identified as alums, while student, staff, and faculty respondents represented roughly 10 percent each of the total. The survey asked recipients to provide feedback on themes and concepts the university could honor, names or groups of individuals to honor, and locations and methods for doing so. A review of responses can be summarized as follows:

• A broad range of methods for honoring and remembering were suggested, including names on buildings and roadways, named professorships, scholarship opportunities for students, artistic creations that depict important themes and events in our University’s history, and the use of new technologies such as digital media to convey a more inclusive history of our institution.
• Numerous individual names were suggested, including current and former faculty, staff and students, and historical figures with direct and indirect ties to the University. Several respondents recognized groups of individuals directly and indirectly connected to Wake Forest.
• Respondents identified overarching themes and concepts reflective of Wake Forest’s aspirational commitment to Pro Humanitate, particularly around belonging, dignity, remembering, hard work, honesty, character, altruism, and humility.

These widespread efforts, grounded in our Guiding Principles on Naming, have generated the beginnings of a dynamic repository of ideas for how Wake Forest will honor and remember. This repository will continue to grow as we welcome new members to our campus community, and reconnect with those individuals that personify our institutional values. In the coming weeks, ODI will continue to update the campus community on honorific efforts, as well as broader and substantive initiatives to promote inclusion and belonging across Wake Forest University.

José Villalba
Vice President for Diversity and Inclusion

Normal operations for Reynolda Campus, Wake Downtown on Thursday, Jan. 20

January 19, 2022

Reynolda Campus and Wake Downtown will return to in-person classes and normal campus operations on Thursday, Jan. 20.

Forsyth County and surrounding areas may experience additional inclement weather Thursday evening through Saturday morning. This may impact campus operations starting on Thursday night, and faculty, staff and students should check websites to confirm night-time operating hours.

Colleagues whose work may be performed remotely are encouraged to prepare for the possibility of shifting work modalities on Friday. Employees who are unable to perform their work due to extenuating circumstances should use Paid Time Off.

The University will continue to update the campus community on any major operational changes. Directions to sign up for text alerts are available here.

Staff Advisory Council Meeting Thursday, Jan. 20

January 19, 2022

The next Staff Advisory Council (SAC) meeting will be held Thursday, Jan. 20, from 3 to 4:30 p.m. An email with a Save to Calendar and Zoom link was emailed to staff on Friday, Jan. 14. Email Elizabeth Dam-Regier (damregej@nullwfu.edu) if you need assistance on how to join the meeting.

Topics and speakers

On-Campus COVID-19 Update
Cecil Price, Director of Student Health Service
Jessica St. John, Clinical Director of Student Health Service

Meet the New Leader of Campus Life
Shea Kidd Brown, Vice President for Campus Life

Black History Month
Shannon Ashford, Senior Associate Director of the Intercultural Center

Wellbeing Resources
Tim Auman, University Chaplain
Marian Trattner, Assistant Director of Wellbeing, Health Promotion
Ashley Hawkins Parham, Wellbeing Program Manager and Wellbeing Coach

Vice Provost Kami Chavis heading to William & Mary

January 19, 2022

Vice Provost Kami Chavis, a nationally known criminal justice expert and a professor on the School of Law faculty, has been named the R. Hugh and Nolie Haynes Professor of Law at William & Mary in Williamsburg, Virginia.

Chavis, who has worked at Wake Forest for 15 years, will serve as the founder and director of the Center for Criminal Justice Policy and Reform. The Center will focus on issues including democratic policing, prosecutorial ethics, and law enforcement and technology.

She will remain at Wake Forest until July 1, when she begins working at William & Mary.

“I have enjoyed working at Wake Forest, unequivocally one of the best institutions in the nation,” Chavis said. “During my tenure at Wake, I have had the joy of teaching alongside distinguished colleagues in the law school,  developing initiatives for the criminal justice program and, as vice provost, working with other leaders across campus on important issues. 

“Yet what will remain most dear to me about my career at Wake Forest are the wonderful friendships I have made,” Chavis continued. “While I am excited about what lies ahead at William & Mary, I will carry in my heart a deep affinity for Wake Forest University.”

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