November 23, 2020

Dear UD Community,

I know this has been a trying year for us all, and I wanted to take a moment — particularly during this week as we celebrate Thanksgiving — to express my heartfelt appreciation to the University of Delaware community. In the face of the coronavirus pandemic and so many other challenges surrounding the health, economy, and general well-being of our society, you have persevered.

All of you have gone to great lengths to face these challenges head on as we began a semester unlike any other with a positive attitude to not only endure, but prevail. Our students have been impressively resilient, exhibiting great patience, flexibility and focus to learn, grow and achieve. Our faculty and scholars have innovatively transformed teaching and research to adapt to safety protocols and remote learning. Our staff have been both creative and collaborative in supporting the UD community with planning and resources to ensure operational continuity.

Now, during this Thanksgiving holiday, in spite of so much uncertainty surrounding us in the world, we celebrate a time-honored tradition of thanks. We are thankful for our families and friends; thankful for health and healing; thankful for our safety and security; thankful for freedoms and possibilities; thankful for our UD education; thankful for each other. At the same time, through our perseverance and reflection we must remember that many of those around us are experiencing unimagined challenges in their lives. For this reason, the importance of community — supporting and connecting with each other in whatever way possible — matters more than ever.

We are all very eager to be back together on campus, and we will be soon. As medical science continues to advance, hope’s place on the horizon is becoming brighter each day. All of us at the University of Delaware are grateful for your creative resilience, sacrifice and strength of character, making us all so very proud of our Blue Hen community today ... and forever. My wife, Eleni, and I send you our warmest wishes for a happy Thanksgiving holiday, and please remember to safeguard your health and that of your loved ones.

With gratitude,

Dennis Assanis President