As I sit isolated in my home office running the business of the Faculty remotely, I would like to reflect on the events of the past few weeks and what lies ahead.
The COVID-19 pandemic has fundamentally touched all facets of daily lives. The world’s experience with COVID-19 is new and unprecedented in every way. The pandemic is rapidly evolving; there is a great deal of uncertainties associated with it and all around the globe, the response has been to pivot quickly and face a new set of challenges on a daily basis.
I must say, I am so proud of UWindsor and the Faculty of Engineering community, which — in the face of monumental adversity and daunting challenges — have come together and stepped up to the plate! I am impressed and thankful to our students who have endured this rapidly changing set of circumstances with maturity, poise and calmness. This calamity has shown me how collaborative, resilient and compassionate the UWindsor community really is and that makes me proud to be a member of this tight-knit community.
Engineers are problem solvers and societal challenges provide them with opportunities to innovate and respond to people’s needs. A number of our Faculty and students have been working (and in certain cases with industrial partners), to provide personal protective equipment (PPE) or portable ventilators to our community health care workers or hospitals and I thank them for their efforts.
We started the winter semester like any other semester in the past, but to protect the health and safety of everyone in our Faculty, University, and the community; we are finishing the term unlike any other term in the history of the Engineering Faculty. Amid all the uncertainties, we are now planning to deliver all of our summer term courses in a virtual/remote mode of delivery and to the extent possible, research is being performed outside the labs and remotely as well. And with much regret, the spring convocation has been postponed to fall. We have asked our dedicated faculty and staff members, as well as our students, to be adaptive and change course on what at times seems like a moment’s notice. And so far, they have delivered!
I would like to underscore that these are tremendously stressful times for all, but especially for our students. The current crisis has left many of them facing a great deal of financial challenges and an uncertain future. They can surely use the support of Faculty’s alumni, friends, and partners in the community to help them get through this trying phase in their life and education. I would ask you to once again open your hearts and consider donating to the newly created UWindsor Student Relief Fund.
In closing, I believe that the current crisis will have lasting effects and has taught us a number of lessons, the most important one of which is that regardless of race, wealth, religion, borders, etc., we are all connected across the globe and that we all are in this together. It has taught us how to have more compassion for one another; how to look after the frail and vulnerable amongst us; how to work together towards a common objective; how to be more understanding and selfless; how to care for our planet and environment; and how to love one another.
The temporary nature of human condition has been underscored in the works of the great Persian Sufi poets such as Rumi, Sanai, and Attar, who have thought us that “this too shall pass. The dark night of the soul shall pass. Trials and tribulations will pass. A dawn will arise and that dawn too shall pass.” And “what we are called to do through it all is to love and protect one another.”
To tackle the many challenges that lie ahead, now more than ever we need to stay connected even though we are separated by distance. So, please stay engaged and connected to the Faculty. And please, keep well and stay physically and mentally healthy.
With best wishes,
Dr. Mehrdad Saif, PEng, FCAE, FIET
Dean, Faculty of Engineering
Professor, Electrical and Computer Engineering