Dear Members of the Campus Community,

The spring semester begins!

We have much ahead of us as a campus community in the coming months, including a visit by this spring’s distinguished Pierce lecturer Robert Gates, former U.S. secretary of defense; preparations for the Race and Pedagogy National Conference in the fall; a full slate of lectures, performances, exhibits, and athletic contests; and, of course, the significant work we are undertaking as a campus community to create and advance a forward-looking strategic plan for Puget Sound.

For those of you who have been away from campus, I wish you safe journeys as you return to us for classes beginning on Tuesday. Meanwhile, I hope that everyone will have an opportunity to engage over the long weekend in service and reflection as we prepare to observe the Martin Luther King Jr. holiday. I look forward on Monday to attending the city of Tacoma’s celebration at the Greater Tacoma Convention Center, during which our own Dexter Gordon will receive the Martin Luther King Jr. Community Service Award in recognition of his exemplary accomplishments as an educator, scholar, mentor, community advocate, and leader of Puget Sound’s Race and Pedagogy Institute.

The celebration will continue here on campus on Tuesday, Jan. 16, at 7 p.m., as we gather as a campus community for our first major event of the spring semester—our annual MLK Celebration, sponsored by the Center for Intercultural and Civic Engagement.

Please plan to join us in Kilworth Memorial Chapel for a celebration that will include an address by Eddie Moore Jr., an inspirational scholar dedicated to social and institutional change, and the presentation of our annual Keep Living the Dream award to a member of our university community. I can think of no better way to begin a new semester than by joining together to affirm our vision and values as a campus dedicated to bringing about a more just and equitable world.

I am grateful for the privilege of working with and supporting you in all of our endeavors here at Puget Sound. Please accept my very best wishes for a good and productive spring semester.

Isiaah
Isiaah Craawford, Ph.D. | President