At Long Last: Welcome, Bruins!

Campus Update

Chancellor Block sent the following message to the UCLA campus community.

Dear Bruin Community: 

Welcome to the start of the 2021–22 academic year at UCLA! It is an immense joy to see the campus bustling with activity after 18 months of relative quiet. Whether you are here with us or joining remotely, I cannot wait to see what you will accomplish in the months ahead.

We begin this academic year with great optimism about the widespread return to in-person activities, yet we must also remain cognizant of the continued impacts and evolving nature of the COVID-19 pandemic. Please do your part to keep our community healthy by following UCLA’s COVID-19 protocols. I also encourage you to bookmark UCLA’s COVID-19 return to campus site, which will be updated regularly with new information. 

Just as we are dependent upon one another for our physical health, so too is the vitality of UCLA’s intellectual community a collective responsibility. The start of the school year provides an opportunity to reaffirm Bruin values of mutual respect, open-mindedness, compassion, integrity and inclusivity. Living up to these values enables members of our diverse community to feel supported in sharing differing perspectives, exploring new ideas, and engaging in healthy debates — activities that are essential to our intellectual growth and the pursuit of knowledge and truth. UCLA’s Principles of Community provide an excellent framework and set of expectations for us to follow both inside and outside of the classroom.

This is a very exciting time to be a Bruin — as we welcome back our athletes who competed in the Tokyo Olympics this summer, set new campus records in research funding, deepen our connections to Westwood Village, greet one of the most diverse and talented incoming classes in UCLA history and launch a new initiative that will infuse the use of data into a range of academic disciplines. In the coming months, we will also have more to share about new efforts to bring greater diversity to our faculty, support UCLA’s goal of becoming a Hispanic-Serving Institution by 2025, improve our public safety operations, and transform elements of our institution so that we can better serve our mission when we emerge from the pandemic.

Finally, I want to highlight a few exciting things happening just this week as our annual True Bruin Welcome continues: 

• Tune in at your convenience to watch This is Bruin Life, a unique program featuring performances and storytelling from our talented and diverse Bruin community. 
• Tomorrow, Tuesday, Sept. 21, is UCLA’s Enormous Activities Fair, which features more than 500 student organizations and departments. The fair is an excellent way for students to develop their interests and meet other Bruins.
• Friday, Sept. 24 is UCLA Spirit Day. Show your Bruin pride all day by wearing blue and gold — and tag @ucla if you post on social media.
• All students, staff, faculty, alumni and parents are invited to join Volunteer Day on Saturday, Sept. 25. A cornerstone of the UCLA experience, this has become a global day of service and is a wonderful opportunity to give back to the community. Project sites are filling up quickly and today is the last day to register! 
• There are more ways to get involved on the True Bruin Welcome website. 

After many difficult months, it is deeply gratifying to welcome many of you to campus for the start of this academic year. Thank you for all of the ways in which you have adapted to changes in your lives and work over the past year and a half, and for your understanding and support as we continue to navigate the twists and turns of the pandemic. I know that change and uncertainty can take a toll; please be sure to monitor your well-being as the year gets underway and to take advantage of campus mental health resources.

I wish you nothing but success in the coming year. Good luck, be well and go Bruins!

Sincerely,