End of Year Chair's Message

Mon, 22 May 2023 12:22:43 -0400

Dear AAAFSC Community,

Before we leave for our well-deserved summer, I would like to express my gratitude and appreciation of your engagement with AAAFSC this year. To rebuild our community that was interrupted by the pandemic, we had monthly events throughout the year to provide multiple opportunities for members to interact. I was glad to meet so many new colleagues who joined UMBC in the past three years and reconnect with lots of friends I have known for years. Your engagement has made a huge big difference. Thank you very much for sharing your thoughts and ideas with me. I will incorporate them into our future events.

I am happy to report that we had significant increases in membership this year. As of today, we have 10 staff members and 76 faculty members. All faculty and staff members who identify with AAAFSC are welcome to join. Please spread the words about our group. I expect another big increase in the Fall semester as we welcome new faculty to UMBC.

Each year, we receive $3,000 from the Provost's Office for community-building efforts and public programming. This year's financial report can be found here (access restricted to UMBC users only). If you have any questions about the report, please do not hesitate to contact me. We will receive the fund for 2023-2024 on July 1, 2023. Ideas about using the fund are welcome and highly appreciated.

I invited President Valerie Sheares Ashby to our Fall 2023 opening event and will work with her office to identify a date over the summer. I look forward to seeing everyone in the Fall!

Finally, I would like to thank AAAFSC executive board members for their time and efforts to fulfill the mission of AAAFSC. Lots of appreciation to Autumn Reed and Sarah Wong for their excellent administrative support.

However you choose to spend your time in the next three months, I hope you have the opportunity to relax, recharge, and reconnect with your family, friends, and communities.

Have a great summer!

Best,

Shuyan