Opening Convocation 2021

Dear Members of the University of Dubuque Community,

Opening Convocation will be held at 10:45 a.m. Thursday, September 9, 2021, in John and Alice Butler Hall, Heritage Center. As a community, eager to ensure a great start to the academic year, we will plan for in-person participation while determining what mitigation steps might be prudent as we closely monitor COVID-19. This year we are pleased to welcome as our guest participants the Reverends Brian (C'13, MDiv'15) and Amanda (C'12, MDiv'14) Beverly, with Brian providing the convocation address. As graduates of UD and UDTS, they return to campus to provide wisdom and encouragement to our learning community as we begin the year.

All University offices, including the Charles C. Myers Library and Chlapaty Recreation and Wellness Center, will be closed during this time so faculty, staff, students - as one community - may attend. Grounded in our Mission, faculty and staff commit to the education and formation of well-rounded students capable of engaging the world. Students, too, commit to a meaningful educational experience. In this worship service, with God's help, we dedicate ourselves to one another and the year ahead.

Faculty
Please cancel classes or other student activities scheduled between 10:30 a.m. to noon on Thursday, September 9. Although WVS I students are required to participate as part of the course as directed by their instructors, please encourage all of your students to participate in Opening Convocation. Classes scheduled to begin at 12:15 p.m. will be held.

Full-time faculty members are required to participate in the procession in academic regalia (without caps). Please assemble by 10:30 a.m. in the Straatmeyer Rehearsal Room, Heritage Center. The academic procession, led by bagpiper Derek Grant, will begin the ceremony promptly at 10:45 a.m.

May all members of our University community observe this important beginning to the new academic year. For those who cannot attend in-person, Opening Convocation will be streamed live on our Facebook page and YouTube channel. Indeed, for such a time as this, we can best meet the challenges before us by remembering and honoring our Reformed heritage, our Christian commitment as a faith-based institution, the diversity of our community, and the pursuit of academic excellence.

Mancherlei Gaben Und Ein Geist (Various Gifts and One Spirit),

Jeffrey F. Bullock, PhD
President of the University