Issue 26|October 21, 2021 |
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A Message from the Vice Chancellor
Hi, Student Affairs Team!
We are more than halfway through the fall semester, and I can't say enough about the tremendous resilience and strength you have demonstrated over the course of the last two months. You inspire me every day… and I hope you feel the same way about each other.
I expect we’re all still processing and grieving the recent loss of our students and know how important it is to do this. At the same time, I know that our wide-ranging emotions don’t exist independently from one another—and that feelings of sorrow can also enhance our appreciation of joyful, hopeful moments. Perhaps because I have a son who is still relatively young, at our house we were talking recently about the Pixar film “Inside Out,” in which a key theme of the movie is the ability to rediscover joy after a painful experience. It addresses the idea that our various emotions are linked and become more nuanced as we get older, which may allow us to understand, reflect on, and appreciate even the challenging times in increasingly complex ways. I recently found a Washington Post article about this, and several of the article’s ideas/themes resonated with me, so I share it with you here.
As you know, what is happening at Carolina reflects a national mental health crisis. This is a difficult time for everyone, especially as we try to support and assist members of our community.
I encourage you to allow yourself to feel sorrow and joy (and everything in-between), as well as hope. Even though our recent Class of 2020 commencement celebration was a day of mixed emotions, it was wonderful to share in the sense of optimism and hope in the air. This theme of hope and resilience was also the focus of our University Day celebration last week, which was yet another opportunity to for reflection and recognition of the extraordinary work of many Carolina colleagues and alumni.
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And speaking of recognizing amazing work, tomorrow is Employee Appreciation Day. Although we’re not hosting an in-person event this year in the interest of everyone’s safety and comfort, I wanted to remind you how important you are to our mission of educating the next generation of leaders at Carolina. I am incredibly grateful for you and all you do.
Please continue to take care of yourselves and allow time to honor feelings of loss, sadness, joy, and hope. And let’s continue to find a source of inspiration and hope in each other—and in our students. As always, go Heels!
Best,
Amy
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Carolina People
Meet Jaki
Jaki Bonilla is the Social Innovation Initiatives Coordinator in the Campus Y, where she has worked for seven years. In her role, she supports students who are looking to make a more significant impact around the world and students wishing to launch social justice initiatives.
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Student Affairs Communications
Share Your Halloween Events
Many Student Affairs departments, along with student orgs, are planning fun Halloween events this year. You can find them all on Heel Life at go.unc.edu/Halloween In addition, our residence halls will be hosting events Sunday night for our on-campus students as an alternative to going out to Franklin Street. If your team hasn't already, please make sure you add your event to Heel Life and check the category for "Halloween" so we can more easily promote everything. In addition, our residence halls will be hosting events Sunday night for our on-campus students as an alternative to going out to Franklin Street.
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New Phishing Reporting Button
Microsoft has made it easier to report phishing messages. In Outlook, look in the top right for the “Report Message” button.
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University Career Services |
October & November Virtual Fairs and Career Education Workshops
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At this stage, anger and frustration are natural, understandable and often painful emotions to experience. A UNC Health clinical psychologist offers tips on coping.
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UNC HR: You have the opportunity to enroll in or make changes for the UNC-Chapel Hill 2022 benefit year until Friday, Oct. 29, 2021. The elections you make during this period are effective Jan. 1, 2022 through Dec. 31, 2022. Once you have selected your benefit plans, you may not switch plans until the next Open Enrollment period, unless you have a qualifying life event (e.g., getting married or the birth of a child).
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The Well: Help celebrate the 225th birthday of the College of Arts & Sciences’ English and comparative literature department by registering for the virtual Oct. 27 keynote address “Are we literate yet? Adventures in education, politics and culture,” by Trudier Harris, professor emerita, who taught in the department for 27 years.
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Carolina Center for Public Service: The University offers staff and faculty community service leave as an employee benefit that allows you to take paid time off with supervisor approval to volunteer for civic, charitable or humanitarian reasons. Get inspired to volunteer by reading about how some employees used community service leave.
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Want to send a special thank you to a staff member who went above and beyond? Send your Kudos to studentaffairs@unc.edu.
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Friday, Oct. 22
Cheers to Peers messages will be published on the Employee Appreciation Day webpage. You will be able to view and search all messages — the ones you’ve sent and the ones you’ve received!
Fall Break
Classes will resume Monday, Oct. 25.
Virtual Yoga Session
Monday, Oct. 25 | 12-12:30 p.m.
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Please email your newsletter submissions to studentaffairs@unc.edu by 5 p.m. on Tuesdays to be included in that week's newsletter
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