Dean's Community Message

January 7, 2020

Dear College of Engineering Community,

Yesterday was a sad and disturbing day as people intent on disrupting and destroying the democratic process breached the United States Capitol. Thankfully, after a six-hour delay, our duly elected leaders resumed the Constitutionally mandated process and upheld democracy by verifying the election results.

Nonetheless, the shocking events remain with us, and many are sharing a sense of loss and mourning across the nation. While I share in these feelings, I also know that our democratic principles and our Constitution are robust and resilient. I know that this election cycle has been turbulent and difficult, I also know that across the U.S. we had a record number of voters express their will and our processes for counting (and in some cases recounting) and certifying votes have proceeded, and challenges have been heard and adjudicated using established processes. Across the nation, duly elected local, state, and federal officials have been sworn in and have begun their terms in office.

In no uncertain terms, I — and the University — condemn yesterday’s violent actions. As President Barron said, “The violence and lawlessness that occurred at the United States Capitol Wednesday afternoon are an affront to the values of our country and another distressing result of the erosion of civil discourse — the civil discourse that is a hallmark of the United States’ democracy.”

Virulent discord in our society is damaging institutions and norms that were once thought to be sacrosanct. Yet acts of violence will not deter our democratic republic from moving forward. At this time of such disheartening strife, I urge every member of our engineering community to be a force for good. That begins with a relatively simple act of considering each other in the same regard with which you wish to be considered. Be kind. Be considerate. Hold yourselves and each other to a higher standard.

And of course, we cannot forget that all of this is happening during a global pandemic. A test for our community is imminent. Classes will start remotely on Tuesday, Jan. 19, and will transition to their previously scheduled mode (in-person, remote, hybrid) on Feb. 15. All students returning to the campus community before Feb. 15 or who remained in the community over winter break MUST complete COVID-19 testing. This requirement helps promote the health and safety of our community. More testing information for students returning on or after Feb. 15 will be available soon.

“Act as if what you do makes a difference. It does.”
—William James, philosopher

Below are today’s updates. Please note that I will plan to send an additional community message next week before we return to our twice weekly schedule the week of Jan. 18.

Contingency Planning for Labs-at-Home

Penn State Environmental Health and Safety (EHS) would like to remind all faculty who are considering requiring that students complete hands-on laboratory experiments/projects at home must submit protocols to EHS for a risk review and approval. More information and a form for submitting your proposed labs-at-home are here and here. Note that labs that are entirely virtual/on-line do not need to be submitted for approval. Also, electronics labs using ROHS-compliant low-volts/low-power kits (Arduino, Raspberry Pi, etc.) are also approved as a category. To submit a lab for review, please fill out this form. Labs that are already approved are listed here.

Wellness Days

Spring wellness days, non-instructional days during which no classes will be held, are scheduled for Feb. 9, March 11, and April 7. More information will be forthcoming here.

Teaching Tip #66 – Using TopHat for Increased Student Engagement

As a reminder, join the Office for Digital Learning to learn more about a new teaching tool, TopHat, which can help increase in-class engagement in both in-person and remote classes. Register here for our workshop to be held on January 12, 1:30-2:30.

Be well!

Justin Schwartz
Harold and Inge Marcus Dean, College of Engineering