<div dir="ltr"><div class="gmail_default" style="font-family:tahoma,sans-serif"><span id="m_4565234001403949096m_-4291254206500513054gmail-docs-internal-guid-68f798f8-7fff-6a21-d9ac-bafdba08e6bd"><p dir="ltr" style="line-height:1.38;margin-top:0pt;margin-bottom:0pt"><span style="font-size:11pt;font-family:Arial,sans-serif;color:rgb(0,0,0);background-color:transparent;font-weight:400;font-style:normal;font-variant:normal;text-decoration:none;vertical-align:baseline;white-space:pre-wrap">Colleagues,</span></p><p dir="ltr" style="line-height:1.38;margin-top:0pt;margin-bottom:0pt"><span style="font-size:11pt;font-family:Arial,sans-serif;color:rgb(0,0,0);background-color:transparent;font-weight:400;font-style:normal;font-variant:normal;text-decoration:none;vertical-align:baseline;white-space:pre-wrap">As Fall Semester approaches and we anticipate the arrival of our students, I wanted </span><span style="background-color:transparent;color:rgb(0,0,0);font-family:Arial,sans-serif;font-size:11pt">to take the opportunity to introduce myself and to express appreciation for all that you </span><span style="background-color:transparent;color:rgb(0,0,0);font-family:Arial,sans-serif;font-size:11pt">do. I’ve only been in Plattsburgh for ten days and it’s already clear to me that this </span><span style="background-color:transparent;color:rgb(0,0,0);font-family:Arial,sans-serif;font-size:11pt">university is full of wonderful people possessed of all the various skills and acumen </span><span style="background-color:transparent;color:rgb(0,0,0);font-family:Arial,sans-serif;font-size:11pt">required to truly effect inclusive student success.

</span></p><p dir="ltr" style="line-height:1.38;margin-top:0pt;margin-bottom:0pt"><span style="font-size:11pt;font-family:Arial,sans-serif;color:rgb(0,0,0);background-color:transparent;font-weight:400;font-style:normal;font-variant:normal;text-decoration:none;vertical-align:baseline;white-space:pre-wrap">My name is Brent Carbajal, and I have the honor of serving you this year as Interim </span><span style="background-color:transparent;color:rgb(0,0,0);font-family:Arial,sans-serif;font-size:11pt">Provost and Senior Vice President for Academic Affairs. I retired last year at this time </span><span style="background-color:transparent;color:rgb(0,0,0);font-family:Arial,sans-serif;font-size:11pt">from Western Washington University after a 25-year career there, the last nine years as </span><span style="background-color:transparent;color:rgb(0,0,0);font-family:Arial,sans-serif;font-size:11pt">Provost. When I retired, I knew that I wanted to remain active in higher education and </span><span style="background-color:transparent;color:rgb(0,0,0);font-family:Arial,sans-serif;font-size:11pt">perhaps assist other institutions with their important work, just not in a “permanent” </span><span style="background-color:transparent;color:rgb(0,0,0);font-family:Arial,sans-serif;font-size:11pt">position. When the opportunity here at Plattsburgh was called to my attention, I was </span><span style="background-color:transparent;color:rgb(0,0,0);font-family:Arial,sans-serif;font-size:11pt">impressed by your mission, vision, and values – they very much align with mine. So, </span><span style="background-color:transparent;color:rgb(0,0,0);font-family:Arial,sans-serif;font-size:11pt">suffice it to say that I’m excited to meet you and to get started!

</span></p><p dir="ltr" style="line-height:1.38;margin-top:0pt;margin-bottom:0pt"><span style="font-size:11pt;font-family:Arial,sans-serif;color:rgb(0,0,0);background-color:transparent;font-weight:400;font-style:normal;font-variant:normal;text-decoration:none;vertical-align:baseline;white-space:pre-wrap">I never cease to marvel at the sense of anticipation, the feeling of rejuvenation, and </span><span style="background-color:transparent;color:rgb(0,0,0);font-family:Arial,sans-serif;font-size:11pt">the remarkable enthusiasm that </span>characterize<span style="background-color:transparent;color:rgb(0,0,0);font-family:Arial,sans-serif;font-size:11pt"> the return to campus in the fall. The </span><span style="background-color:transparent;color:rgb(0,0,0);font-family:Arial,sans-serif;font-size:11pt">traditional inquiries as to how summer months have been spent, the standard response </span><span style="background-color:transparent;color:rgb(0,0,0);font-family:Arial,sans-serif;font-size:11pt">about the speed with which those months have passed, and the genuine happiness </span><span style="background-color:transparent;color:rgb(0,0,0);font-family:Arial,sans-serif;font-size:11pt">found in encountering valued colleagues again after the vernal hiatus all make this an </span><span style="background-color:transparent;font-variant-numeric:normal;font-variant-east-asian:normal;font-variant-alternates:normal;font-size:11pt;font-family:Arial,sans-serif;color:rgb(0,0,0);vertical-align:baseline">enjoyable time. Since elementary school I’ve looked forward annually to “the start of </span><span style="background-color:transparent;color:rgb(0,0,0);font-family:Arial,sans-serif;font-size:11pt">school,” and this year is no different.

</span></p><p dir="ltr" style="line-height:1.38;margin-top:0pt;margin-bottom:0pt"><span style="font-size:11pt;font-family:Arial,sans-serif;color:rgb(0,0,0);background-color:transparent;font-weight:400;font-style:normal;font-variant:normal;text-decoration:none;vertical-align:baseline;white-space:pre-wrap">However, this year actually will be different in many ways. For me, of course, it will </span><span style="background-color:transparent;color:rgb(0,0,0);font-family:Arial,sans-serif;font-size:11pt">be different because I’m at a new university and in a new part of the country. For all of </span><span style="background-color:transparent;color:rgb(0,0,0);font-family:Arial,sans-serif;font-size:11pt">you, I think that operationally this year represents the next step toward continued </span><span style="background-color:transparent;color:rgb(0,0,0);font-family:Arial,sans-serif;font-size:11pt">pandemic recovery and to redoubled engagement with Plattsburgh Next. President </span><span style="background-color:transparent;color:rgb(0,0,0);font-family:Arial,sans-serif;font-size:11pt">Enyedi has set before me a number of goals that I’ll be discussing with you during the </span><span style="background-color:transparent;color:rgb(0,0,0);font-family:Arial,sans-serif;font-size:11pt">year, all of them tied together in my mind by their importance in implementing strategic </span><span style="background-color:transparent;color:rgb(0,0,0);font-family:Arial,sans-serif;font-size:11pt">priorities. The university will undertake a national search for your next provost, and that </span><span style="background-color:transparent;color:rgb(0,0,0);font-family:Arial,sans-serif;font-size:11pt">important work is also not quotidian by any stretch of the imagination!

</span></p><p dir="ltr" style="line-height:1.38;margin-top:0pt;margin-bottom:0pt"><span style="font-size:11pt;font-family:Arial,sans-serif;color:rgb(0,0,0);background-color:transparent;font-weight:400;font-style:normal;font-variant:normal;text-decoration:none;vertical-align:baseline;white-space:pre-wrap">I’ll close by reiterating my enthusiasm to begin the semester and by thanking you for </span><span style="background-color:transparent;color:rgb(0,0,0);font-family:Arial,sans-serif;font-size:11pt">spending some time reading this email. I look forward to meeting you!

</span></p><p dir="ltr" style="line-height:1.38;margin-top:0pt;margin-bottom:0pt"><span style="font-size:11pt;font-family:Arial,sans-serif;color:rgb(0,0,0);background-color:transparent;font-weight:400;font-style:normal;font-variant:normal;text-decoration:none;vertical-align:baseline;white-space:pre-wrap">Sincerely,</span></p><p dir="ltr" style="line-height:1.38;margin-top:0pt;margin-bottom:0pt"><span style="font-size:11pt;font-family:Arial,sans-serif;color:rgb(0,0,0);background-color:transparent;font-weight:400;font-style:normal;font-variant:normal;text-decoration:none;vertical-align:baseline;white-space:pre-wrap">Brent</span></p><p dir="ltr" style="line-height:1.38;margin-top:0pt;margin-bottom:0pt"><span id="gmail-docs-internal-guid-4970074d-7fff-37c2-ac8e-e6495015d64b"><br></span></p></span></div></div>