Dear Members of the TC Community:

As you are aware, last night, the New York Police Department entered Columbia’s campus at the University’s request and made many arrests in the process of clearing the occupied Hamilton Hall, near 116th Street and Amsterdam Avenue. Columbia University will maintain restricted access to the campus as well as a continued police presence through May 17.

While carefully considering last night’s events, Teachers College remains open and fully operational. We recognize that these events were unsettling, particularly for those of you in the vicinity, as well those watching in real time on television. Nevertheless, with the end of the spring term on Monday, May 6, we appreciate the importance of providing our students and community with the opportunity to complete classes, access campus facilities and be together in community at year-end events and in preparation for graduation. And as I wrote to you last evening, we look forward to continuing to welcome members of our community to an environment that remains safe and inclusive.

I want to reiterate that the safety and wellbeing of our community is paramount. Please be assured that our Office of Public Safety is regularly monitoring events and we have established measures to support and ensure public safety. Members of the TC community can also access the Resources in Challenging Times web page for mental health and other resources. 

As you know, we are now sharing CU campus updates and other communications with the TC community as a way of increasing knowledge of what is happening at CU and affiliate campuses. We have received feedback that this is appreciated, but also at times can cause confusion as to which operating procedures we are following. As an independent institution, we make operating decisions with awareness of CU, but they are independent decisions based on the safety, priorities and needs of our distinct institution. Likewise, our students, faculty and staff learn and work under TC policies and procedures, even as we require that they abide by those of our affiliate campuses when present or taking classes there.

I remain, as always, proud of our TC community and the thoughtful, respectful dialogue and discourse taking place as differing perspectives and positions are expressed. It is a testament to our shared values, and it is for this reason that I also feel a sense of urgency in doing everything possible to enable the continuation of our important work together to create positive change for the greater good.

Sincerely,

Thomas Bailey
President