I hope everyone enjoyed the summer and long weekend! I had a chance to relax with family and friends, and look forward to embracing the busier new academic year.
Today, we welcome students back on campus, and we are seeing them in full force. Main Mall is alive with Imagine UBC events, Safety & Risk Services have set up a booth for emergency preparedness, and the campus is bustling. We also have the Welcome Back Staff BBQ next week. The lively energy on campus feels amazing!
I encourage you all to take a moment to reflect on your contributions and the impact you have in creating this space for students, faculty, and staff. This is why we are here, and this is our purpose. Every day, we provide and sustain the physical environment for teaching, learning, and research for over 58,000 students and over 6,000 faculty members.
What we do matters in making the campus a better place and allowing UBC to have a positive impact on the world. I recognize that our work comes with challenges, and I want you to keep our purpose in mind when dealing with day-to-day challenges and frustrations, including having to patiently wait for students to cross the street at class change!
Please remember to keep a careful eye out for distracted students when driving and working on campus. We all have a responsibility to keep each other and our campus safe. Thank you for your continued dedication and working together as a team. Have a wonderful start to the week.
Thanks,
John Metras
Associate Vice-President, Facilities