Dear UCI Students,

Yesterday was an emotional and draining day for our students, faculty and staff as we watched the attack on our democracy in Washington D.C. Most appalling was the visual double standard as the U.S. Capitol building was being assaulted by white supremacy and the politics of fear, intimidation and privilege.

For many in our community, this is still an unnerving incident that has many of us processing our emotions and feelings. I want to encourage our students to take advantage of the resources offered from many of our support centers listed here at Student Life & Leadership: https://studentlife.uci.edu

In addition, for those needing any counseling support, the Counseling Center resources can be found here at: https://counseling.uci.edu/resources

This latest incident underscores the importance of education over ignorance. As Anteaters, I hope that we all can continue the work needed to invest in our shared humanity, break down the walls of systemic racism and recommit to our campus values of educational equity, pursuit of knowledge and interventions to help improve the conditions in our society and our world.

We remain committed to supporting our Anteater students during this time. Please be safe and healthy and be sure to take time for self-care.

Sincerely,

Rameen Talesh, Ed.D.
Assistant Vice Chancellor, Student Life & Leadership
Dean of Students