Dear Bloomington Campus Community:
I am thrilled to join IU President Pamela Whitten in welcoming you to the 2022-2023 academic year!
This is my first full academic year as provost, and it is truly wonderful to be with all of you here back in Bloomington. I am incredibly grateful to be part of this vibrant learning community, known worldwide for our innovative research and teaching, collegiality, interdisciplinary engagement, and service to our state and the world. It is a dynamic time of great opportunity and promise at IU—and together, we will make this our best year ever.
To our newest faculty, staff, and students, we are excited that you have joined us. We look forward to the many talents, experiences, and perspectives you will bring to our academic community. We hope that you will quickly find a strong sense of belonging and connection with all that our campus, town, and state have to offer. As many longtime Hoosiers will tell you, this is what makes IU so special. Please let us know what we can do to support you in your transition to IU, and welcome again.
To our returning community members, including those who have worked remotely or in hybrid formats over the past two years, thank you for all that you do. Your innumerable contributions are what makes IU the great place that it is, and I look forward to our continued work together toward the betterment of us all.
Along with academic pursuits, I encourage you this year to take advantage of our countless, one-of-a-kind discovery and engagement opportunities, beginning with Campus Connections: Fall 2022 events, several of which will feature giveaways and pop-up surprises. I look forward to seeing you cheering on our teams at IU Athletics events, checking out arts walks and exhibitions, enjoying performances through our internationally renowned Jacobs School of Music, helping celebrate the return of the First Thursdays Arts and Culture Festival, and countless opportunities between.
Other highlights this fall:
- Maya Cade, creator of the Black Film Archive, joins us in the month of September as a guest programmer with IU Cinema
- This year’s Themester, focused on the theme of Identity and Identification, includes readings, discussions, and a festival of documentary shorts
- A series of events in October with Linda Greenhouse, our Poynter Center Chair and Pulitzer Prize-winning New York Times journalist
- Science Fest in October, featuring more than 80 activities from over 15 scientific areas
- The new “Sherlock Holmes in 221 Objects” exhibition at the Lilly Library
- A lecture and reading from our William T. Patten Foundation lecturer, Cherríe Moraga (“Unbound Tongues,’ Radical Women of Color Feminism Revisited”)
- The Tracy M. Sonneborn Lecture in November with Sanya Carley from the O’Neill School
Welcome again, and I wish you a fantastic year of learning and community. We are glad you are here.
Sincerely,
Rahual Shrivastav
Provost and Executive Vice President
Indiana University Bloomington