Messages from the President

Letter to the U.S. Department of Education

Charge to the Class of 2025, College of Arts and Sciences

President Christopher F. Roellke, PhD, was joined by the Stetson University office of Grants, Sponsored Research and Strategic Initiatives, Dean Elizabeth Skomp, PhD, Dean of the College of Arts and Sciences, Professor of World Languages and Cultures (Russian), Melinda Hall, Associate Professor of Philosophy & Dept. Chair, Department of Philosophy and Brown Center Faculty Fellow for Scholarship and Publication, and the Faculty team making up the Principal Investigators for a $1 million National Science Foundation grant to discuss the many ways recent grants are helping to fuel faculty research opportunities.

Thursday, Jan. 21

If you have problems playing the video, you can directly visit the video's webpage for access.

Transcript of webinar.

President Christopher F. Roellke held a political roundtable following the events of Jan. 6 on Capitol Hill, impeachment proceedings, and Wednesday's inauguration and its impact on perceptions of political leaders, parties and politics in general.

National Politics

While the first few days of 2021 did not begin any less tumultuous than the past 10 months, I remain optimistic for our future. As members of this learning community, we can forge paths toward unity and recognition of our shared humanity that seems to elude us at a national level. In alignment with our mission and values, we are called to face these issues with open hearts and minds and address divergent views with civility as fully engaged citizens of our campus, communities and world.

The university leadership has closely followed the social media and news reports surrounding the events in Washington, D.C., on Jan. 6, and afterward. Given an FBI warning regarding potential attacks on state capital buildings on Sunday, Jan. 17, and the uncertainty surrounding Inauguration Day on Wednesday, Jan. 20, I want to let you know how Stetson University is responding.

Chief Cisco Ortiz, director of Public Safety, met with local law enforcement and strategized ways to increase patrols and collaborate to keep our campus safe over the next week. Emergency Management Teams at both campuses will monitor the situation and be present on campus.

The next few days' events may be filled with political speeches and commentary, but also with opportunities to witness history as it unfolds. As an educational institution, we take seriously our mission to “encourage the development of informed convictions, independent judgment, and lifelong commitments to learning that are characteristic features of the enlightened citizen” and therefore offer the following opportunities to engage in learning and constructive dialogue.

Leading up to this weekend and next Wednesday's inauguration, Stetson Votes is holding its Weekly Wrap-Up discussion and a watch party for the Inauguration Day speech. Details below.

The evening of Wednesday, Jan. 20, 6:30 p.m., Stetson's Cross-Cultural Center is hosting the virtual Martin Luther King Junior Life and Legacy event. The theme for this year is Recovering the Dream, and members of the Stetson community and DeLand will offer their resolutions to recognize and honor the legacy of Dr. Martin Luther King, Jr. I encourage the community to take part, and participants should register for the event at the link above.

Two Final Notes

First, remember to use Report It for concerns. Our on-call, Public Safety and BEST teams are prepared and on alert as always.

Second, as some may be aware, we have community members in the National Guard and have been deployed to Washington, D.C. Our thoughts are with them during the coming days as they protect our government and this country's citizens. We thank them for their service and are eager for their safe return to the Stetson campus.

In community,

Christopher F. Roellke, PhD

President

Professor of American Studies and Education

Updated Message to the Stetson Community

At the opening of his Welcome Back Webinar on Thursday, Jan. 7, at 4 p.m., President Roellke updated his message to the Stetson community on the riots that broke out in our nation's capital. The video above is limited to his message, and the text of the message is posted below. 

Text Version

Earlier today, I sent a brief message to the Stetson University community reflecting on our current national context and I would like to expand just a bit on those remarks prior to getting into the primary topic for today—updating you on public health information and our plans for the Spring 2021 semester.

Today, I join other leaders in American higher education and all members of the Stetson community in condemning the violent actions in our nation's capital. I do applaud Senate and House members, from both political parties, for returning to "the people's business" just a few short hours after a very harrowing experience for all. Early this morning the House and Senate completed that work, and in less than two weeks there will be a transfer of power and we all deserve and should expect a peaceful transition. No matter where you stand on the political spectrum or how you may feel about the outcome of our 2020 elections, I am certain that you share my view that there is no place for violence when we seek to settle disputes, whether they be large or small.

I join you as well in looking forward to a better, brighter, kinder and more humane 2021. All of us at Stetson and our fellow Americans will take up the work of restoring confidence in our government and reaffirming our commitment to democracy and our commitment to each other.

As I have said throughout the fall semester and will continue to assert as we enter the Spring 2021 semester, there is no better place to tackle these critical issues than here at Stetson University. In my six months or so as your president, I have found Hatter Nation to be both collaborative and resilient and we remain committed to applying the very best forms of education to improve the human condition. Our emphasis on the whole student, values and citizenship at the undergraduate and graduate level and at the College of Law, positions Stetson to prepare our students and future leaders for the hard work we will face to heal the wounds of our country. Of course, we do not always agree on the socio-political context within which we live. In fact, as an educator, I hope we will not always agree as the sharing of divergent perspectives --and conducting this sharing in a collegial and productive manner – makes all of us better.

In my view, what happened yesterday is both tragic and unacceptable and we collectively mourn the loss of life and hope for the speediest and fullest of recoveries for those injured. We also hope that, as we move forward as a nation and as a community, we can do so peacefully to find common ground.

As an academic and residential learning community, we will be part of the work to build a more equitable and just world. We will also strive at Stetson to be a model of productively engaging in dialogue that encompasses divergent perspectives and world views. I am also certain that all of us are all feeling a mixture of emotions during this time. I ask that we take time to care for ourselves and our loved ones.

If you are struggling after the events in Washington, D.C., yesterday, the Stetson Hatter family is here for you. Whether you are scared, angry, hurt or confused, your feelings are valid and you deserve support. We hope you take comfort with family and friends and connect with other campus resources as needed.

Last semester, as we embraced themes of kindness, empathy and agency to navigate racial unrest and a global pandemic — a pandemic that is regretfully still with us- we demonstrated as a community that we are much stronger together than we are divided. We also demonstrated that we are both a resilient and collaborative community that has the ability to plow through challenges judiciously, with care and with good judgment. As we enter the Spring 2021 semester, these challenges are still with us — but again, I believe that there is no better place to be to address these challenges than in higher education more broadly and at Stetson University specifically.

I remain at the ready, as your president, as a member of our faculty and as a member of our community. I remain ready to listen, to engage, to collectively problem solve, to collaborate and to act judiciously as we move the essential enterprise of education forward. 

Let me conclude by quoting my mother, who just turned 90 years old a few short weeks ago and asserted at my wedding: omnia vincit amor, omnia vincit amor.

Love conquers all things.

In community,

Christopher F. Roellke, PhD

President and Professor of American Studies and Education

Convocation has a rich and long history at Stetson University. It's a time when the university comes together to celebrate the beginning of the new academic year, and this will clearly be a time of firsts. This is the first Convocation at Stetson for President Roellke, and for the class of 2024, perhaps it is an appropriate start of their university life. Raised in the shadow of 9/11 and the great recession of 2008, many of them have known and overcome hardships and obstacles to be here.

Just as Convocation started, one of Florida's well-known evening thunderstorms hit the DeLand area, causing a few technical difficulties for students, faculty and staff participating in the event. For those who have not had a chance to see the entire event, here is the full video with all of the welcomes and commentary from Stetson's leadership. For those who want to read a copy of President Roellke's remarks, The Importance of Kindness, a full copy is available here.

Convocation Presenters

• President Christopher F. Roellke, PhD: Welcome
• Pastor Demetris Pressley, Executive Pastor at Tabernacle of Praise and University Chaplain: Invocation
• Chair of the Board of Trustees Maureen Breakiron-Evans '76: Board of Trustees welcome
• Student Government Association President George Alderman '21: Address to Class of 2024, Litany for the Community, Hatter Community Pledge
• Executive Vice President and Provost Noel Painter, PhD: New Academic Year, New Realities
• College of Law Dean Michèle Alexandre, JD: Welcome
• School of Business Administration Dean Neal Mero, PhD: Welcome
• du-Pont Ball Library and Learning Technologies Dean Sue Ryan, MLS: Welcome
• School of Music Dean Tim Peter, DMA: Welcome
• College of Arts and Sciences Dean Elizabeth Skomp, PhD: Welcome
• Associate Professor of Music Craig Maddox, DM, 2018-2019 McEniry Award: Announcement of 2019-2020 McEniry Award winner
• Stetson Honors Council President Isabelle Ghofrani '21: Honor Pledge
• President Christopher F. Roellke, PhD: Importance of Kindness
• Pastor Demetris Pressley, Executive Pastor at Tabernacle of Praise and University Chaplain: Benediction
• Alma Mater