Welcome to a new semester and a new year. I hope you all had a restful break with a chance to renew with family and loved ones. I would also like to extend a warm welcome to our new class of ABSN students who are arriving on campus this week.
As we close the chapter on 2017, we can look back at a year filled with contrasts. Nationally, we experienced some of the most horrific tragedies seen in our times including national disasters and mass shootings. Locally, we are making significant contributions to improving the lives of residents in the communities in which we live and work. Here at the Institute, ours is a story of service.
In the rush to finish the work of last semester, some of you might not have seen an article from the Office of Communications about the many activities the Institute was engaged in just during the holiday season in service to the community. These activities by students, staff, and faculty included selling pies to raise money to feed ill and homebound individuals in eastern Massachusetts and packing up food boxes for residents of Cambridge who were unable to reach the food pantry.
These dozen activities is just a small sample of what the Institute contributed during 2017, a visible display of our values of service and commitment to help those in need whenever we have the capacity do so. Thank you to all who contributed their time, talent, and resources, and I look forward to 2018 as we continue working to improve the lives of our Charlestown and Greater Boston neighbors.
On a separate topic, there have been suggestions over the last few months that we revise and renew the online process of sending ideas to me. The new Institute Input form that any member of the IHP or Partners community can use to reach me is now live on the website and on the President’s page on the Intranet. The messages can be anonymous or the sender can include their name and email address. I will read every message and respond to the sender if the e-mail address is included. When appropriate, I will refer it to a member of the senior administrative team for action. Messages can be as simple as letting us know that you are pleased with a certain initiative or more complex such as reporting a situation in which a member of our community did not feel safe or respected.
Of course, this does not replace our Title IX reporting process for students, faculty, and staff. Our Title IX compliance officers are Sarah Welch for faculty and staff and Dr. Jack Gormley for students. The process for reporting Title IX complaints can be found on the compliance page. I hope this renewed effort at improving communication will create new avenues to share ideas, challenges, and opportunities.
I wish you a peaceful, productive, and healthy 2018.
Paula