05/25/2022
Dear campus community,
I wanted to reach out after Tuesday's news of a shooting at Robb Elementary School in Uvalde, Texas, that took the lives of 19 students and two teachers. We mourn the innocent victims of this unspeakable tragedy and hold in our thoughts the families, friends, classmates, colleagues and community members directly affected by this senseless act of violence.
Too many American lives have been lost to gun violence. Mass shootings make the problem horrifically visible, but this problem is a widespread public health crisis. As our colleague SUNY Distinguished Service Professor Emeritus Bob Spitzer has argued, it is time to do more to curb these incidents.
My thoughts are also with the many students here who will be our nation's future teachers and their SUNY Cortland educators. Teachers, staff and school administrators work to create safe, nurturing and inclusive schools. Yesterday's shooting yet again shattered what should be a sanctuary for students. Children deserve safe environments for learning. The feelings of violation and vulnerability brought about by the brutal murders of students and teachers in Uvalde yesterday reverberates in every school community. We stand with our teacher candidates and educators against this violence.
If you need someone to talk to during this time, I encourage you to lean on classmates, instructors and coworkers. Students, please consult the university's Counseling Center or SUNY's many mental health resources if you need support.
All the best,
Erik J. Bitterbaum
President