Dear UCCS community,

Welcome to Fall 2022! For all those who are new to UCCS, we are so glad you have joined our Mountain Lion community. And for all those who are returning for the new year: welcome to your new year! 

Last week, I joined many of our faculty and staff for one of the best moments marking the new academic year. After finishing PlayFair and taking their class photo, nearly a thousand first-year students walked through campus while we waved streamers and cheered them on.

Every year, this moment brings me so much joy. And every year, it reminds me of the power of the UCCS community. To know that every person around you is rooting for you and cheering for your success is powerful — something you can carry with you, even on difficult days. I am grateful to be part of this phenomenal community.

I am also reminded to be thankful for the opportunity to be on campus together. We are working hard to make UCCS a place where we are glad to gather, so we can learn better, live well, work hard and grow as individuals.

I hope students will enjoy our newly updated game room, called the Lion's Byte, where you can gather to play video games, board games, card games and more. We are also proud of programming offered by MOSAIC and the LGBTQ+ Resource Center, which helps to bring us together as a community. As always, students can enjoy free tickets to all Theatreworks events, explore the outdoors through Recreation and Wellness Center programming, and join more than 250 student clubs and organizations. There is always more to discover at UCCS, and I hope you will take advantage of it all.

For faculty and staff, I am also proud of many of the workplace initiatives that have grown from our Future of Work Task Force, including six flexible work arrangements and meeting-free times at the start and end of each week. We also chose to use one-time funding from the CU System to assist UCCS employees with parking, and are investing in new benefits and perks for employees. I encourage you to visit the Human Resources website to learn more about these benefits, including discounted lift tickets and museum memberships.

We have a great deal to celebrate at UCCS. In just a few days, we will formally break ground on the site for the new Anschutz Engineering Center, which will create a space for learning, collaboration and innovation in engineering for decades to come.

We welcomed new leaders to UCCS over the summer, including our new Provost, Nancy Marchand-Martella, and Henrietta Williams Pichon, our new Dean of the College of Education. We are also searching for dynamic new leaders to help guide UCCS into the next decade of success. This includes a brand-new position, the Vice Chancellor of Enrollment Management, the finalists for which are on campus this week and next. I hope you will take time to get to know them during their visits.

Our continued success is made possible thanks to our commitment to realizing the goals of our 2030 Strategic Plan. Since the plan launched in 2020, we have made great strides towards our goals. We have strengthened our distinctive programs, including those housed in the William J. Hybl Sports Medicine and Performance Center, Ent Center for the Arts, Lyda Hill Institute for Human Resilience, and more. We are investing in learning, engagement, and inclusive belonging for every member of our campus. And as we collaborate on the UCCS Facilities Master Plan, we are envisioning what the next decades could bring to our beautiful campus.

These achievements would not be possible without the voices of our Mountain Lion community. Thank you for all that you do to make UCCS extraordinary. 

I hope this semester is filled with new discoveries, new connections, health – both mentally and physically – and happiness. I look forward to seeing you across campus and sharing in your exciting year. 

Wishing you all the very best. Go Mountain Lions!  

Respectfully,

Venkat Reddy
UCCS Chancellor