Dean’s message

The events of the past several months have truly tested the assumptions and values we all hold in our day-to-day lives and our long-term aspirations.

In March, when the novel coronavirus was declared a global health pandemic, Brock University moved quickly to cancel in-person delivery of classes and transitioned thousands of employees to a remote working environment. Within one week, Goodman faculty members moved nearly 300 business courses online so 3,000 of our students could successfully complete the winter term — a feat that would have been considered inconceivable only weeks earlier.

Staff members scrambled to secure co-op placements for our students and assisted in the safe return of more than 100 students studying abroad through Goodman international exchanges and double degree programs.

Employees and departments across campus responded to healthcare workers’ urgent need for personal protective equipment by creating and donating supplies, including face shields, masks, lab coats and gloves.

Events were cancelled, including Spring Open House, Brock’s premier recruiting event; Monster Pitch, Goodman’s annual student pitch competition; and the DECA International Career Development Conference, a business case competition in which our students have historically done well. Instead of crossing the Convocation stage, thousands of Brock students celebrated their graduation through a personalized virtual experience.

At the same time, this spring presented disparaging scenes of racial injustice coming out of the United States, leading to protests there as well as here in Canada and other parts of the world. We observed Blackout Tuesday on our Twitter feeds and President Gervan Fearon posted a message on The Brock News, which was re-posted on the AACSB website, asking us to find a way to shape a better future. While we work together to end the global disruption caused by COVID-19, we must also work together towards the global disruption of racism and hatred. Now more than ever, our University’s commitment to fostering a culture of inclusivity, accessibility, reconciliation and decolonization must resonate in us as we guide our students towards their personal and professional fulfilment.

As we plan for a fall term in which business courses will be delivered exclusively online and the recruiting season is limited by travel restrictions and physical distancing, we will rethink our programming. Faculty members will collaborate with learning partners and each other to design high-quality online course offerings, and our student engagement team will create new digital methods for prospective, incoming and returning students to connect with the school community.

Among all these pivots, we also had to adjust how we produced this issue of Goodman: The Magazine. Physical distancing and stay-athome recommendations limited photographs to those supplied to us or already on file, and the ever-changing circumstances surrounding the pandemic has placed a limited shelf life on some of the content within the articles.

While this issue celebrates innovative research, student achievements and a significant program milestone, it also addresses the reality of an empty university campus, alumni facing challenges brought on by the pandemic, and the struggle for human rights and connection in a digital environment. Our Goodman values are being tested, and our students, staff and faculty are demonstrating an ongoing and inspirational level of passion, professionalism, and above all, perseverance.

Please feel free to reach out to share your experiences, comments or feedback.

I wish you good health, wellness and peace,

Andrew Gaudes, PhD, ICD.D

Dean, Goodman School of Business