From the Desk of Ian: Fall 2020
Author: Ian Allen
Posted on Nov 25, 2020
Category: News and Events
I hope you all enjoy the first Blog Edition of the CEL E-News.
It seems the time is moving so fast. It feels like we just welcomed new students back to campus, and now fall is almost over, and we are about to embark on a very different holiday season.
2020 has been a challenging year. Every day I am amazed at the collective resiliency and dedication of CEL staff. Even though this is a stressful time, our staff members remain upbeat and willing to help in any way they can.
As an institution, UNB did a fantastic job of reacting quickly in the wake of COVID-19. As a unit, CEL went above and beyond using both online and alternative delivery methods to help the university finish off the winter term, get through the summer, and ease into the fall term. I've heard many positive comments from senior leadership about how CEL staff were able to pitch in and truly make this situation as successful as possible. For that, I'm incredibly proud of all of you.
We have lots of activities happening at CEL and many success stories to share.
We have been instrumental in facilitating the research and selection of an e-proctoring solution for the entire university. A limited trial of Respondus will launch during Fall exams. A massive shout out to Kelly, Krystle, Christine, Brock, Kim, and Colleen for leading the charge on this project. I know it has been a tremendous amount of work, and I genuinely appreciate the effort that it has taken to get us to this point.
I am pleased to see increased synergies between the marketing and business development units. As a result of the ongoing pandemic, we had to pivot from our strategy and as such we have had tremendous success with virtual information sessions and webinars. Working together, marketing and business development have enriched partnerships with key associations and enhanced business processes to provide better tracking and on-demand customer service.
Earlier this fall, Business Development launched its first Community Partnership Initiative with the City of Lethbridge, who plan to provide wellness training for up to 1800 employees over the next two years.
When I think of the UNB Art Centre and the Centre for Musical Arts, not to mention the English Language Programme unit the first word that comes to mind is innovation. These programming areas have had to think outside of the box to adjust their programming to online or virtual formats. Once again, I am so proud of our accomplishments during the most challenging time in our history.
The Autism and Behavioural Intervention team hosted the second annual Atlantic Provinces Autism Conference online with over 150 delegates. A huge thank you to the planning committee Michael Palmer, Francyne Jutras, Christine Roy, and Pam Goodfellow for all your hard work.
On behalf of our staff, we send our best wishes to Ann Smith in her new HR role at Saint Thomas University. We miss her and hope she's enjoying her new endeavour. Sheila Burt has also left us, but only temporarily as she has accepted a one-year secondment as Acting Associate Director of the Muriel McQueen Ferguson Centre. We wish her well and hope her year will be fulfilling and enjoyable.
As I write this, Fredericton is in public health alert level yellow, and we hope to maintain this as we move closer to the holidays. My wish for you and yours is to stay healthy and safe.
A sincere thank you to everyone for your many contributions over the past year.