April 3, 2020

McGovern College Students:

Here's an update for Friday, April 3:

We continue to be very aware of the toll of the pandemic on students and on your mental, professional, financial, and academic well-being. If you should find yourself in need of assistance, of any kind, please do not hesitate to reach out to your faculty mentors, your directors, me, or to anyone in the University of Houston Campus community. Remember that the University's Counseling and Psychological Services continues to provide services at this time, even if those services are delivered remotely. We want to know how you're doing, and we want to help those in need.

Financial and other resources

We have compiled a list of essential financial and other resources that should be helpful to you during the crisis. Many of these are financial resources, for those of you who find that sources of income and employment are temporarily unavailable. Many of these are informational resources, as it is important that we all continue to make decisions using the best data and resources that are available.

Announcement on summer instruction

The President announced this afternoon that summer instruction will continue to be entirely online. This decision was made in accordance with the latest public health advisories and with all of your and your faculty's best public health interests in mind. We must continue to do our part to stem the spread of the virus; no level of unnecessary risk is acceptable. As from the beginning of the crisis, we will continue to deliver the instruction that you need, in the time that you need it. We will continue to keep you informed throughout the rest of the spring semester as plans for remote summer instruction evolve.

Update on pending questions

Many of you have asked about refunds of course fees, lab fees, and similar items. I can tell you that at tis time, these topics remain in discussion at the highest levels of the administration, and that I expect more information on these questions perhaps as early as late next week.

Many have asked questions about campus housing and its status. Campus residence halls are open. Please continue to monitor the Housing COVID-19 FAQ page for further information.

McGovern College "arts online" initiatives

I hope you are have seen #MyArtMyStory, our call for videos on what the arts mean to you at a time of crisis. Please consider contributing and let the world hear our message on why we are artists and why we make art. Post your video on social media and tag it with #MyArtMyStory. We will feature a selection of these videos every Friday on college social media channels.

Please also visit the Moores School of Music's "Moores Music @ Home," a temporay pandemic-period replacement of the initiative known as "Moores Music in the City." Streaming classical music content from the Moores School archives will be posted every Friday in April.

Finally, please keep in touch. Let me know how you are doing, even if it's a quick email just to check in. We want to hear from you. 

Best wishes for a good weekend.

Andrew Davis
Dean