Dean Anil Deolalikar
COVID-19 has not stopped our work here at UCR, but instead has simply altered the way we all function -- students have all moved from in-person to online classes, faculty have had to adjust to online instruction, and staff have made the switch to working remotely from home. The SPP Student Affairs, Business Operations, and Dean’s Offices remain operational and continue to be available during office hours via email. The situation is definitely new territory for all of us here, but I commend everyone for adapting and rising to the challenge.
Here are some highlights from this past Winter quarter:
Our SPP Seminar Series brought in many great speakers, including Fontana Mayor Acquanetta Warren, who spoke about her life experience in civic engagement; Al Zelinka, who offered his insights on what it means to be a city manager of Riverside; and Councilwoman Gaby Plascencia, who shared her story on the challenges and triumphs of being first Latina elected to the Riverside City Council.
Additionally, the SPP was asked to make a presentation at the UCR Foundation’s Board of Trustees meeting, where we did a deep-dive online town hall demo of Professor Kevin Esterling’s civic engagement platform. The interactive session was then followed by a panel discussion among several public policy students who talked about the outreach work they are doing beyond their studies at UCR on such topics as increasing voter registration among students across the UC system, promoting public health initiatives, and educating the public about the importance of taking part in this year’s Census 2020.
For this Spring quarter (which began two weeks ago), SPP is offering new virtual engagement opportunities -- e.g., the SPP Webinar Series, the newly-launched podcast series, and video interviews with current SPP Advisory Board members. For more information please visit our newest website: SPP COVID-19 Policy Dialogues.
I want to take this opportunity to applaud all of our students, faculty and staff, who have really risen to the challenge of COVID-19 and continued to do what they always do. I particularly want to single out this year’s graduating seniors who are working diligently towards graduating on time despite all the challenges arising from COVID-19. Even though their last quarter on campus is rolling out in a way they had never imagined, they still remain committed to completing the school year and their undergraduate education at UCR. In times like these, they inspire us all.