A Letter from Kevin Burke, S.J.
Dear Members of the Regis University Community,
Happy New Year! I hope you have had a wonderful Christmas holiday.
I am writing this note having just completed my brief service as Acting President and happily resuming my role as Vice President of University Mission. Dr. Salvador Aceves has officially begun his term as our twenty-seventh President. Congratulations, Salvador, and once again, thank you for your willingness to assume this important position of institutional and communal leadership. I think I can speak for the entire Regis community when I say that we look forward to working with you in the days and months ahead. In the meantime, we will look for a time to host a Regis community reception for Salvador in the coming weeks, and planning has begun for the official inauguration later this spring.
Speaking of new leaders, most of you will have heard that our provost, Karen Riley, has been named the new President of Slippery Rock University in Pennsylvania. Congratulations, Karen! We look forward to working with you this coming semester as you conclude your time at Regis, and we wish you great success in your new position. You can read Karen’s letter to the community here.
PIPE REPAIRS
Our campus was quiet during these recent weeks, but we were not lacking in drama or heroic action by members of our community. During the frigid weather just before Christmas, we experienced water pipes breaking in several buildings, including the St. John Francis Regis Chapel (specifically the small side chapel which sustained damage to the ceiling), Claver Hall, and the Main Hall basement. Due to the rapid and timely response by Mike Redmond, Lance Jones, and the teams from Physical Plant and Campus Safety, the damage has been kept to a minimum. Claver Hall is back to normal, and the Chapel and Main have been cleaned up and repairs are under way.
EMERGENCY HOUSING
A different type of emergency also caught our attention during the “Gift of Time,” as Colorado Governor Jared Polis, and Denver Mayor Michael Hancock reached out to Regis for emergency shelters to assist the large number of asylum seekers who have arrived in Denver in recent weeks. I joined a Zoom call with Gov. Polis and over 100 religious leaders in Colorado on Dec. 15. Regis is exploring possible ways that we might provide up to six months of housing for one or more families recently arrived from Venezuela. In the meantime, Mayor Hancock’s office may ask Regis to provide emergency housing for some 45 recent arrivals later this week. I want to especially thank Salvador Aceves, Barbara Wilcots, Dave Law, and Eli Gonzalez who met with me on Dec. 30th to develop plans for meeting these requests. We will share more information as we have it, and we will reach out to our community to assist with this crisis as needed.
A final thank you to the University Ministry team for planning and hosting our beautiful liturgies on Christmas Eve and New Year’s Day in the chapel. It is always a joy to celebrate with so many members of our faculty, staff, students, neighbors, and friends of the university.
Many blessings to all,
Kevin F. Burke, S.J.
Vice President for University Mission
Regis University