Last Updated: Monday, September 30, 3:00pm
Dear Faculty, Staff, and Students:
In the aftermath of Hurricane Helene, I wish to express my concern and compassion to the College of Pharmacy family. Certainly, this has been an overwhelming and unexpected experience. Overall, Athens, Albany, and the Gwinnett campuses fared well through the storm, although a few of the PharmDawgs in these areas have been or remain without power and/or encountered flooding. However, Savannah and especially Augusta were hard hit and continue to experience power outages, flooding, lack of water supplies, damage to homes, lack of internet or cellular connections, and a host of other true challenges. We understand that it may be a week or more before these vital utilities are restored.
I experienced first-hand these challenges when I was in Statesboro with my mother for the first few days following Helene. We are fortunate that we were able to evacuate to Athens last night. Finding gas, navigating blocked roads, avoiding downed power lines, and even locating facilities along what is normally a short three-hour journey were difficult. More difficult is knowing that what we experienced pales in comparison to the challenges so many of our colleagues are faced with for many days ahead. For them, even finding cellular access to read messages such as this is nearly impossible.
Please know that our hearts go out to those of you who are in the thick of this or have family and friends who are deeply affected across Georgia and the Southeast.
Throughout this challenging situation, members of our leadership team have been hard at work assuring that teaching and learning will continue at our College – with the least number of interruptions as possible. Here are some examples of the activities that have taken place.
- PharmD students at each of the campuses have been contacted with specific plans and instructions for classes. Graduate students in Augusta have been in communication with their mentors and primary faculty.
- At this point, two P3 classes (PHRM 5880 and PHRM 5650) were cancelled on Monday (9/30), and all P3 exams for this week have been postponed until further notice.
- Augusta and Savannah will operate remotely through next Sunday (10/6). P3s will return to class on Monday (10/7), should operations be restored on theses campuses as currently projected. P4 students in the Augusta and Savannah regions have been advised directly by Dr. Welch of the options available to them. Again, graduate students in Augusta are in touch with their mentors and primary faculty.
- The campuses in Albany, Athens, and Gwinnett are open and operational.
- Faculty and staff in Athens, Albany, and Gwinnett returned to work on Monday as scheduled. In Augusta and Savannah, faculty and staff should follow the same protocol of their students. Faculty and staff should contact their supervisors, as soon as they are able, to indicate their status, especially if they choose to work remotely.
- Supervisors of affected employees will receive more guidance from Jason Jones regarding basic considerations (e.g., time sheets).
- Our IIT Department has worked diligently to assure that connectivity will be operational and functional – as power and internet resources allow – on all campuses in this interim teaching and learning environment. All students who will attend classes remotely have received their Zoom connections.
- We are not aware of any damages to our facilities because of the storm. We will continue to monitor this as employees return to work and classes resume at each site.
In the meantime, if you are a student requiring assistance or support, please reach out to Dr. Duc Do. Faculty and staff, please contact your supervisor if you have any questions, concerns, or require special accommodations. Again, your welfare and wellbeing are paramount as we navigate this situation. As always, I am proud that the spirit of the PharmDawg Nation prevails. This is one more example of our resiliency and tenacity.
Sincerely,
Kelly
