April 17, 2007

To the Kutztown University Community:

We are deeply saddened by the horrific events at Virginia Tech. On behalf of the Kutztown University family, I would like to express our deepest sympathies to the families and friends of the victims, and our colleagues on the Virginia Tech campus. Our thoughts and prayers go out to them.

This type of tragedy affects us all, and causes us to pause and examine our own campus. One of the great assets of American universities is that they are open and welcoming places for everyone. This strength, however, leaves us vulnerable to danger.

I would like to assure the university community that we do have emergency response procedures in place to address such incidents. While we cannot ensure total immunity from a tragic incident, we do continue to be vigilant in protecting our students, faculty and staff.

We have scheduled activities today and tomorrow to allow members of the campus community to share their thoughts and feelings on this tragedy. There will be an open forum from 3 p.m. until 4:30 p.m. today in Alumni Auditorium of the McFarland Student Union. There will be an open microphone and university counselors will be available to address any individual concerns.

The university will also conduct a memorial service and candlelight vigil Wednesday night (4/18) at 6:30 p.m. at the Alumni Plaza (the rain location is the Academic Forum). The service will be followed by a performance by KU’s Concert Band in Schaeffer Auditorium in memory of the victims.

A memory book will be available at the designated campus events, which will be sent to Virginia Tech.

I hope to see many of you in person at one of the scheduled events.

Sincerely,
F. Javier Cevallos
President