CHAIR’S WEEKLY MESSAGE
Contents
I cannot believe it’s already August. Can you? The first day of classes, August 24, seems to be rushing down the rails at us like a freight train. And, like standing in the path of a freight train, many of us are anxious and worried about what is going to happen next. This is not because we’re afraid of teaching – as far as I am concerned, all of you are Teaching Avengers. No, what we’re afraid of is the spread of COVID-19 inside the campus community and what that will do to human health, and then consequentially to our education and research missions.
SMU has been tracking cases of COVID-19 reported in individuals who have been on campus. If you crunch the numbers, it’s not encouraging for the fall. In June, there was an average of 0.97 cases/day of COVID-19 in an individual on-campus. This was despite Summer I classes being remote and the campus being lightly staffed in June! In July, when the Summer II term included many on-campus students, case numbers ticked up (the data are still not complete for July, given the timeline of case emergence and tracking). The average in July was 1.03 cases/day. While the numbers are small, and the counting uncertainty covers the spread in the difference, there is no biological reason to think that transmission didn’t, in fact, actually tick upward in July as more people were on campus, even with social distancing and PPE. We’ll soon know, as most students return to campus under fairly typical housing conditions, what will be the result of yet again increasing the population density on our campus.
Our collective work should, as always, to draw on the strength of our community to maintain and advance our educational and research missions. People will get sick, and we must do everything in our power to encourage their good choices (e.g. mask up; don’t come to class if you are ill) while also protecting each other and delivering on our teaching mission.
For the faculty, this means having a teaching backup plan (link available to faculty only). Primary instructors should follow the link to that plan and add links to their course material for their backup instructors. For the department, this means having policies in place to properly utilize space that allows us to work while also respecting social distancing. Please review the department re-opening plan, developed over the past few weeks with an eye toward best practices and medical guidance. Things of major note:
- kitchen and copy room usage will be limited to food storage in the refrigerator, use of the microwave, and use of the copying/printing machine.
- No public coffee machines, utensils and cups, food, etc. will be available for this semester. We will revisit this in January 2021 for the spring term.
- The Undergraduate Research Lab (FOSC 101) is closed for the fall term, and to be used only at the discretion of the Main Office Staff for support of additional main office activities.
- The graduate offices have a rotational usage plan, which has been shared with the students.
- The Main Office can support, at any time, only two non-staff personnel, socially distanced (wearing masks) in spaces that will be marked on the carpet. Utilization of any other part of the main office outside the markings is at the discretion of the office staff. Please honor signage and respect an etiquette of knocking first, and if no one responds, finding a digital way to communicate (Microsoft Teams or Email) or just coming back later if it’s not urgent. I have empowered the office staff to control the Main Office; entry and usage is at their discretion, especially if the room is already occupied by 2 non-staff individuals. Please respect their wishes, and each other, when in that space.
Below, you will find more information to help all of us – Faculty, Staff, and Students – to remain informed about each other’s work, about next steps for teaching and research in the fall, and about upcoming issues and deadlines.
Sincerely,
 Stephen Jacob Sekula Chair, Department of Physics |
FACULTY ISSUES
A reminder from Lacey: please turn in summer grades for all research and academic courses.
Hamilton Scholar applications for AY20-21 are due on Friday, August 14. Please review the original call for applications for details on applying. Note that Karisa Cloward, Associate Professor of Political Science, assumed the position of Director of the Dedman College Interdisciplinary Institute on August 1. Specific questions on an application can be directed to her at kcloward@smu.edu.
Travel Continues to Be Restricted – But There Is A Way: The University continues, during the unfolding COVID-19 pandemic, to restrict official travel. However, it’s recognized that you may have unavoidable and essential work to do outside the university for your program. If you need to travel, all you need to do is fill out an additional form and obtain the appropriate signature(s) to receive permission to travel. This completed form is then attached to your Concur Travel Authorization Request. Our department coordinators will monitor travel requests and remind you of this requirement going forward.
The administration has emphasized that class grading policies, for this semester, should note that, as always, participation and/or attendance in class (in-person or virtually) is still expected of students, but that this should not be tied to the grade, most especially for in-person classes. Faculty should use their judgement in constructing such policies – they know their class best – but err on the side of avoiding incentivizing students to come to class while sick or contagious. If the class is all-virtual, make sure that you follow-up quickly with students who miss class. Do not fall back on automatically dropping students until you have established the “why” of their missing class. If they do not respond within a reasonable time window, immediately file a Caring Community Connections report to pass the problem up the chain to the Dean of Student Life. Feel free also to notify the Chair, as well as the relevant Assistant or Associate Chair (Simon Dalley for undergraduates, Fred Olness for graduate students).
The administration has also asked us to remind you that for in-person classes, students have been divided into two cohorts based on the evenness or oddness of the last digit of the SMU ID. These “red” and “blue” cohorts will be permitted to physically come to a classroom on designated and alternating days. Their cohort membership will eventually (apparently) be indicated in My.SMU. Please remind students for in-person classes that if they are not in the cohort permitted to attend that day, they must leave the classroom. Gentle reminders during the first week of class should be sufficient to establish expectations.
The Teaching Hack-a-Thons proved very useful this past week (over half the department faculty participated on one of the days). Lessons from these are available on a dedicated web page. These will continue next week – the schedule will be emailed over the weekend. Thanks to everyone who is making these an engaging, lively, and practical educational process.
I know that many of you have expressed concern about what to do if a student comes to an in-person class and refuses to wear a mask, even after being offered one by you from the classroom supply. There is now a clear policy at the University level which has been communicated in email. Please review that and let the Chair know if you have questions or concerns.
Finally, it’s important that the faculty share with the whole department information about their work. This facilitates knowledge about our department community. Think of this as if you were “sending a postcard” back to all of us in the department, telling everyone about your summer 2020 activities. Please send the Chair a short summary (not more than a paragraph) of your summer activities and accomplishments that can be put in a future edition of this newsletter. No activity or accomplishment is too small. The close date for receiving these is next Thursday, August 13, at 5pm.
STAFF ISSUES
The in-office staff schedule for the week of August 10 is as follows:
- Monday: Lacey
- Tuesday: Michele
- Wednesday: Michele
- Thursday: Lacey
- Friday: Michele
Of course, both are always available on Microsoft Teams, by Email, or by phone.
Please express congratulations to Michele Hill for being selected to serve on the executive board of the SMU Staff Association (SMUSA)! The SMUSA plays a vital role not only in bringing the staff together and recognizing their accomplishments, but in this time of pandemic is a voice for the many staff who feel that they are on the front lines of the pandemic when it comes to policies and decisions made in academia regarding opening campuses. Michele will be a great force in this organization for the important work of the SMUSA, and especially a voice for the staff themselves. (Thanks to Guillermo Vasquez for the portrait accompanying this story)
STUDENT ISSUES
The leadership of the SMU Society of Physics Students leadership team has begun meeting to discuss the programming and ideas for the coming year. Social distancing and virtual events will present some interesting challenges, and opportunities, for the organization. Randy Scalise continues to serve in the role of Faculty Adviser to the organization, and we should express our gratitude for his continued effort in this role.
New first-year students who have expressed an interest in either physics or biophysical science have been welcomed with a letter fro the Chair. The letter advertised our department through a “Department Virtual Tour Video” that was produced over the summer. It showcases the department’s research and teaching activities, consistent with this year’s theme of “Excellence in Research. Excellence in Teaching.” The storytelling device was a tour of the department via a tour of the history and structure of the cosmos. The video’s main content is 17 minutes long.
Graduate Students were notified of the change in the Director of Graduate Studies/Associate Chair for Graduate Studies role, now filled by Fred Olness. Fred is already working to setup a departmental orientation for the new students, and establish mentors from the faculty and graduate student body for the first-year graduate students. We appreciate the support the new mentoring program has already received, and look forward to finalizing it!
Graduate Students should make sure they are enrolled in all the courses (academic and research) needed to achieve their educational goals while maintaining full-time student status. Please respond to messages from Lacey Breaux about this, and take quick action. If there is a problem registering for courses, please notify Lacey as soon as you discover it so that we are aware of the problem and can help.
LAST CALL
There was a lot to cover this week. We can hope for much shorter communications in the future. The size of this newsletter represents the sheer amount of information flying through the vacuum right now. Stay well and stay safe, everyone!
