Dear Colleagues:
We continue to be concerned about your safety and well-being. I have heard from many faculty and staff and, as you would expect, the individual circumstances vary greatly. Some of our colleagues are still without power as of yesterday, some have had water in their residences, and, unfortunately, a few that we know of have had major damage to their homes.
We are attempting to collect information on our employees and especially those colleagues who have significant damage to their homes. Please e-mail Nichole Eslinger in UHCL's Office of Human Resources at eslinger@uhcl.edu so we can have one central point for collecting this information.
As for UHCL, power has been restored to all of our buildings as of mid-day Friday. The Clear Lake City Water Authority has lifted the requirement to boil water so the water on campus is safe to use. Our Facilities, Management and Construction staff have done and are doing a great job in cleaning debris from the campus, including our roadways and parking lots. They also cleaned out refrigerators which had spoiled food and other items. Our air conditioning and computer services are working.
Because of the condition of our campus, UHCL will open on Monday, September 22, for classes. Faculty and staff who want to use their offices prior to Monday are able to do so today and tomorrow. Please use entrance #1 if going to campus this weekend.
This coming week will not be business as usual even with the start of classes at UHCL. We must reach out to our faculty and staff colleagues who have been through difficult times this past week. We must show compassion and concern for our students who, like us, are trying to get back to normal. UHCL's Office of Career and Counseling Services will be available for any needed counseling for students, faculty and staff. Please go out of your way to touch base with our colleagues and our students.
When you have the opportunity, please thank members of the UHCL Police Department and the staff of Facilities, Management and Construction for doing an outstanding job in securing our campus during the storm and preparing our campus for our opening next Monday. I thank all of them and especially the ride-out crew which remained in the Bayou Building throughout the hurricane.
I look forward to seeing you on campus this coming week. I hope you and your loved ones are doing well.
Take care.
William A. Staples
President
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