Dear Acadia Community,

 

Spring is a time of new beginnings. The seasons are changing, and we see signs of new life everywhere. With this time of year's excitement, I encourage you to reflect on the journey that has led us to this point.

 

It has been a year of adaptability, difficult at times but also one of renewed optimism as we move away from the pandemic. As always, your hard work, determination, and support for one another and our students have been above and beyond.

 

When we reflect on Acadia's strategic plan, Acadia 2025, much of the work that has taken place in recent weeks has focused on the Strategic Direction: Caring for our students and employees. The Vice-Presidents and Director of Human Resources continue working through the recommendations and priorities shared in the Employee Engagement Working Group's Report submitted in late 2022. I was pleased to see the successful completion of negotiations between the University and SEIU with the signing of a new Collective Agreement. I was also pleased that this allowed us to address compensation increases for all non-unionized employees. Furthermore, an information needs-based assessment is being carried out in order to provide better support for the data and information needs of the Academic sector and utilize the full potential of our new Colleague system.

 

With spring comes our most celebrated annual event - Convocation. Convocation is the culmination of our students' journeys, and I am looking forward to celebrating the Class of 2023 as they cross the stage in May. This will be my last convocation as President of Acadia, and I am pleased that the Class of 2023 has been able to complete their final academic year without disruption.

 

Acadia students consistently demonstrate strength and resilience, but never more so than in the past few years. I am so proud of how they have navigated through the additional stresses and strains the pandemic added to everyone's lives.

 

Celebrating our students' success should be a community experience. So I encourage all Acadia community members to participate in our formal ceremonies, including the Baccalaureate Service and the three convocation ceremonies.

 

Please visit Acadia's Convocation webpage for more information, and reach out to the convocation team if you are interested in volunteering: convocation@acadiau.ca.

 

I wish you all the very best as you enter this final phase of the 2022-2023 academic year.

 

Sincerely,

 

Peter

 

Dr. Peter Ricketts

President and Vice-Chancellor