Dean's Community Message

May 1, 2020

Dear College of Engineering Community,

Nine weeks ago today, an email from Provost Jones to the entire Penn State community outlined the initial steps the University was taking in response to the COVID-19 pandemic. Fast forward only 63 days to today — the final day of the spring semester — and it is nearly impossible to overstate how much has changed since that message.

In the College of Engineering, as is the case across Penn State, the ways in which we learn, teach, research, deliver support services, conduct meetings, build community, solve problems, and simply connect with each other have all been transformed in ways both big and small. Simultaneously, our personal lives have also been reordered and socially distanced, adding still more layers of complexity.

In the midst of all of this, you have adjusted and persevered as a community of students, faculty, staff, and administrators, and responded in truly inspirational ways even as circumstances changed, uncertainties continued, guidance evolved, and the weeks turned into months. Since becoming Dean in 2017, it has been my honor to be part of this Penn State community and to help guide engineering forward. I have never been more thankful than now for that opportunity and more proud of the college I have the privilege of serving.

As I reflect on these last nine weeks, I hope that our students have managed to learn and grow as engineers despite the sudden transition to remote learning, the lack of a peer in a neighboring seat, and a live in-person instructor. I hope our faculty have adjusted to the complexities of teaching with new modalities from home while with their families young and old, big and small, around them. I hope our staff have innovated new ways to support our mission while also managing the complexities of personal and family lives (our staff truly have gone above and beyond the call). I hope you all feel as much — or more — a part of the Penn State family than ever before. From the bottom of my heart, thank you! I know that what we have accomplished so far is simply extraordinary.

This is, without a doubt, the semester we will all remember for the rest of our lives. I would be surprised if it were not the most memorable for all of you — and as we look to the future, I hope it remains so! Through all of this, I suspect we have all learned a lot about ourselves; I know I have learned a lot about myself — things I never would have considered in normal times. For example:

• Normally I have a 10-15 minute commute to and from my office in Hammond. I never appreciated how important that transition is to my mental transition from work to home. I will admit that at the end of the work day, the walk upstairs from my office in the basement to the main floor of our house did not provide the same mental transition, and at times I struggled with the work/home balance as a result.
• I learned just how much I value the casual hallway conversations with our staff and the opportunities I get to simply say hello to students studying in Kunkle Lounge.
• I really enjoy my frequent walks across our beautiful University Park campus, from Hammond to Old Main or the HUB or Millennium Science Complex — even if it’s rainy or cold.
• In normal times I try to swim twice a week, and usually I head to the pool feeling a bit like, “this is something I have to do, not something I want to do” … but now I find I miss swimming at White or the Nat.
• I have learned that overcommunicating is difficult to do, but accuracy is essential.
• I have learned that keeping about 12,000 people feeling connected sounds difficult, or even overwhelming, but when you have a tremendous team supporting you, it becomes a lot easier. And when you succeed, the community responds.
• I have been inspired and at times overwhelmed by the feedback from so many of you — by email or LinkedIn, and I look forward to the inspirational quotes and stories so many of you have provided day after day. More than ever before I want to meet all of you in person and thank you for your perseverance and strength through these nine weeks. I have learned a lot about Penn State as a University and as a community.

So let me end this rather lengthy message with a quote, submitted by me, from Harriet Tubman, who knew a thing or two about overcoming adversity:

“If you hear the dogs, keep going. If you see the torches in the woods, keep going. If there’s shouting after you, keep going. Don’t ever stop. Keep going. If you want a taste of freedom, keep going.”

While the context is, of course very different, the fundamental message — “keep going” — is so important for all of us today. I’ve heard many people say recently, “we’re all in the same boat,” but I think that’s fundamentally untrue. We’re all in the same storm, but in a wide variety of boats. But we all need to keep moving forward, and to do so must remember that it’s okay to ask for a tow-cable if your boat needs help, and we should all be on the look-out for those who may need such a rope. We don’t know what’s next in the battle against COVID-19 and for the world’s economy, but we will keep going.

Have a wonderful weekend, and best of luck with finals!

Justin Schwartz
Harold and Inge Marcus Dean, College of Engineering