A Letter from Dr. Jake Bucher

“May Flowers”

Closing out my second year at Regis, someone was sharing how it is nice to do things the “second time” compared to your initial year when everything is the first time. While certainly true, this year was so unique that there were not only more firsts for me in my time at Regis, but many firsts in my career in higher education. I’m going to force a second time by using a repeat theme for my May 2024 newsletter – gratitude, utilizing the sentiment of “giving people their flowers” (giving compliments and showing respect).

Thank you for your continued commitment to students. There is not a meeting I am in or a conversation I have about our work where colleagues do not bring the focus back to students. This commitment is also powerfully evident in my conversations with students. It is perhaps my favorite thing that when I talk to students and I get to hear about this faculty member, or that staff member, who is individually having the transformative impact on the student. This year brought new challenges and uncertainty to our students, and despite facing our own challenges and uncertainties – faculty and staff continued to center care for the student. This is more broadly indicative of the commitment to our mission and imbedded values. I am so impressed by, and grateful for, the accountability each person takes in embodying and living the mission in their work.

Thank you for your resilience and compassion. I made the mistake of thinking that last year was an anomaly of obstacles and threats – thinking to myself that “surely it can’t get more difficult than this”, only to have new and frankly unimaginable difficulties insist to be navigated. I’ll save my reiteration of hope and confidence for the “proceeding thoughts”, and rather just commend and thank you all for the resilience, adaptability, and compassion as we got ourselves and each other through the year.

Thank you for your collaboration. Be it the conversations around shared governance, structural operations, or University direction – or the increase I’ve seen in cross-college and cross-campus innovation, engagement, and production – everyone deserves credit for the de-siloing, and I hope everyone feels the value and benefits in it.

Finally, thank you for YOU. The Regis community is filled with faculty and staff with immense talents, impactful productivity, innovative ideas, resourcefulness, a wonderful balance of humble selflessness and thoughtful self-advocacy, and a beautiful blend of personalities, backgrounds and personal contexts, interests, perspectives, and contributions. Regis is Regis because of you all and your strong and high-quality work and engagement. I am thankful to know you and proud to work with you, and you deserve all the flowers!