COVID-19 RESPONSE
By Carol Olechowski
Three UAlbany deans joined forces to address the University’s needs – and those of the larger community – during the pandemic.
ven before the coronavirus arrived in the U.S., College of Emergency Preparedness, Homeland Security and Cybersecurity (CEHC) Dean Robert Griffin was following the threat and becoming “concerned about elements of its spread.”
to strengthen our relationships, and also reflect on what is important now and in the future.”
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David Holtgrave, dean of UAlbany’s School of Public Health (SPH), had begun to think of the looming pandemic as “a hurricane watch” that would soon make landfall. School of Education (SOE) Dean Jason Lane was also on high alert, weighing the impacts of a potential lockdown, school closures, and K-12 readiness for remote education. In its 176-year history, observes Lane, SOE and the University at Albany have survived “a civil war, two world wars, the 1918 flu pandemic, and other world-changing events. Such events require a collective community effort and are a time
Robert Griffin, Dean of the College of Emergency Preparedness, Homeland Security and Cybersecurity
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UAlbany Magazine Fall 2020
It made sense, therefore, for SOE, SPH, and CEHC to “join in leveraging our expertise and resources to support the community and its people. We have worked together over the last couple of years on various initiatives, so this was a natural opportunity for us to come together to support the University and the broader community,” says Lane.
