Dear Students, Faculty and Staff:

We’re just days away from our 145th Commencement. Work is already underway to prepare Memorial Stadium for the celebration and Alma’s cap and gown are being steamed and pressed. That means the end of another year at Illinois is coming up fast.

Congratulations to all of you who will earn an Illinois degree next week. You’ve worked hard for this recognition and wherever your path leads you, I hope you will always consider this place “home.”

To our students who aren’t as far along in your academic journeys – I want to wish you good luck with your final exams and projects. I know this can be a stressful and hectic couple of days. I encourage you to step back and take a deep breath when you can and to remember that the summer break is just around the corner.

If you are feeling overwhelmed, please reach out to one of the many campus resources available to help. The Counseling Center (333-3704), the Student Assistance Center (333-0050) and the Emergency Dean (24 hours a day, 333-0050) are great places to start. We want you to be successful. But most of all, we want you to be safe and we want to see you back here and reenergized in the fall.

To our faculty and staff, all I can say is thank you. In a year of unexpected leadership transitions and unprecedented financial challenges, you have remained unwaveringly committed to delivering the comprehensive excellence in the teaching, research and engagement that the world has come to expect from the University of Illinois at Urbana-Champaign.

The day after I took this position last August I sent a note to the entire campus community. In it, I asked all of you to help ensure that this was a year of momentum and forward progress for Illinois. Despite all the challenges along the way where we could have chosen paths that would divide us – we’ve come through it together. I hope you agree that we have made progress!

Thank you all for a great year.

Best,

Barb Wilson
Interim Chancellor