Dear Brandeis Community, 

The past few days have been hectic, and full of change and uncertainty. Just like you, we’re devastated that the semester and our terms are ending like this. This past week, however, has shown the strength of our community. Whether it has been contributing flight points, donating laptops, or helping one another pack and giving rides, you have proven what the core values of Brandeis are about. For this, we can’t thank you all enough. 

We are both so incredibly proud of how quickly the Student Union mobilized and unified during this hectic process. We would like to thank Union, not just for what you’ve done this year and what you were doing, but also for the immediate response to help the Brandeis community. We want to extend a special thanks to all of the members of our team who have been meeting with administration, posting updates and working on box procurement for the past week straight. Thanks to you all, we’re able to end the semester in the right way and show some Union pride.

The same goes for the Brandeis administration who in an unprecedented situation, have been doing their best to adapt and continue to support students as much as possible. We are particularly grateful that they have allowed the Student Union to act as a partner to facilitate voicing student feedback as well as student concerns. Both students and staff are struggling during this time and we appreciate their efforts to move classes online as fast as possible. We also want to draw attention to the fact that Brandeis is not closing, unlike many of our neighbor institutions. Drawing back to Brandeis’s founding values, this show of support to our students across all demographics makes us proud to represent this University.

In terms of Union updates, Marathon has been extended to end on April 3rd, 2020. All decisions will be made by the end of the semester and appeals will be occurring in the fall. The Student Union Treasury will be extending the reimbursement period, but please get in your forms as soon as possible by scanning them and sending them both to the Treasury and the Department of Student Activities. Resources to be able to support clubs during this time will be provided via the Club Leaders listserv courtesy of the hard work of our Club Support Committee. 

We will continue to update our Facebook (Brandeis University Student Union) and Instagram (@brandeisuniversitysu) with new information as we continue to work with the administration. Please consult our resource guide and send in your questions to our ongoing form. Make sure to take the precautions necessary to protect you, your family and others.

On a lighter note, it has been a privilege to be your Student Body President and Vice President. Having had the opportunity to have an influence and meaningful impact has made all the countless hours of hard work completely worth it. This experience has truly changed our lives, and has taught us both so much more than we ever could have expected. Please hold onto the positive memories as well when you look back on this moment of how powerful the Brandeis community is and can be. 

  —By students, for students,

                                                                                             Simran Tatuskar, Student Union President, and Kendal Chapman, Student Union Vice President