• Late last night, the university sent out a campus safety advisory about two serious crimes involving UO students that happened recently in neighborhoods near campus within the Eugene Police Department’s (EPD) jurisdiction. We sent this information to campus as soon as we were able to confirm these incidents with EPD. These assaults follow a series of armed robberies and other crimes in recent weeks near campus that have shaken our collective sense of safety and security. They are of serious concern to us, as we know they are to our students, their families, faculty, staff, and neighbors.
• n the last week, a rash of five armed robberies near the university has disrupted our collective sense of safety. One of my primary concerns at all times is the safety and security of our students, faculty and staff, and the proximity of these crimes to campus is distressing to us all. I have asked Police Chief Matt Carmichael to do everything within University of Oregon Police Department’s power to both help solve the crimes and increase efforts to protect members of the UO community from these types of incidents.
• Last Friday, Provost Jayanth Banavar received the 2018–19 tuition and fee recommendation from the Tuition and Fee Advisory Board (TFAB). In response, he opened a public comment period for campus stakeholders and held a public forum that allowed him to hear directly from students. He and I greatly appreciated hearing from students at the forum, and thank everyone who invested time in this important process and shared their points of view.
• As I write this Open Mike, I feel the earth move under my feet. Before you get concerned that I am singing Carole King songs or having a nightmare about the Cascadia Subduction Zone, you should understand that just outside my office massive trucks and bulldozers are busy breaking ground for the new Willie and Donald Tykeson Hall, the college and careers building.
• We should all be concerned about tax reform efforts being considered by Congress. Simply put, many of the legislative proposals could substantially impede the ability of universities such as the University of Oregon to deliver an excellent, affordable education to our students.
• Announcing Robert E. Guldberg, a prominent expert in bioengineering and celebrated scientific entrepreneur, as the executive director of the Phil and Penny Knight Campus for Accelerating Scientific Impact.
• President Trump this week is expected to make changes to the Deferred Action for Childhood Arrivals immigration policy, also known as DACA. I join hundreds of university leaders as well as local, state, federal, and business leaders in strongly urging President Trump to continue this program. I also write to let our students know that we support them, and to provide information about where our students and their families can go for assistance, should the need arise.
• President Schill's end-of-year message acknowledges the closure of a terrific academic year, thanks everyone for their contributions to the University of Oregon, and warmly congratulates all the graduates. As we close the book on 2016–17, he is filled with gratitude, awe, and a sense of accomplishment for all that has been achieved together this year.
• The Higher Education Coordinating Commission’s decision yesterday to reject the University of Oregon’s tuition plan is disappointing and creates uncertainty on our campus. If it stands, we will be forced to make even deeper cuts at the UO than are already anticipated, including cuts that will likely affect student support services, academic programs, and jobs.
