Reflections on the Semester

December 21, 2022

Dear Scarlet Knights,

I hope this message finds you in the best spirits as we wrap up the fall semester and approach the holiday break. One of the extraordinary privileges of serving as Vice Chancellor for Student Affairs is that I get to witness as you engage with each other and continue to grow as Scarlet Knights. Below, I have shared several memorable moments and included photos to bring them to life for you. As you reflect on the last few months, I hope you can also identify the moments that defined your semester and understand how they can shape and inspire you in profound ways.

At the beginning of the semester, it was nice to express appreciation to our Resident Assistants on the eve of welcoming more than 14,000 students to our residence halls. I’m also grateful to all the student volunteers who helped transition our students to campus life, and it was wonderful to see students participating in Culture Fest, as well as other student welcome events. And, unlike last year, we had beautiful weather for Scarlet Carnivale.

As the semester progressed, I continued to see students connecting and engaging with the resources at Rutgers—and with each other. Our annual Homecoming Bed Races saw the largest number of team registrants, as well as some inventive racing beds, and we had more than 1,500 folks join us for Parent and Family Weekend. On a more personal level, and as a former first-generation college student, I appreciated the opportunity to speak to a group of first-gen students about my college experience and learn about their experiences at Rutgers, as well as the chance to speak at a RUSA town hall meeting on student life issues. Finally, what would a new school year be without students bringing attention to an issue of great concern to them on the steps of Brower Commons?

While I have shared a lot about the moments that I experienced this past fall, this is not an exhaustive list of all the wonderful programs and events that have taken place on-campus, and I imagine that you have your own list of excellent moments to reflect upon. With that in mind, I encourage you to check out our gallery of photos from the past semester on Facebook. Best wishes for a successful conclusion to the semester, and I look forward to seeing you when our spring semester begins in January.

Sal

Salvador B. Mena, Ph.D. (he, him, his)
Vice Chancellor for Student Affairs
Rutgers University–New Brunswick