University Open on Christmas Eve

Dear Colleagues:

Our senior leadership offices have received a number of queries about whether the University will remain open on Tuesday, Dec. 24. The simple answer is yes, Western Michigan University is open that day.

The dates of all official campus holiday and closure periods for 2013 were set many months ago and have been widely published and posted on the Web. Decisions about the timing of this year's winter holiday and closure schedule were made at that time.

I know that many of you are hoping to be away from campus that day to spend time with your families. If you are among that group, please work with your immediate supervisor to arrange and receive approval to take annual leave for whatever period of time you hope to be away.

At this time of year, our on-campus population is small, and the demands on individual offices are light. I urge supervisors to work with creativity, flexibility and cooperation to ensure the basic needs of units are met. It is important that if an inquiry or visit is made, the individual does receive information regarding where their business can be conducted.

If you are someone whose personal holiday commitments make it possible to help out, this is a wonderful opportunity to show your holiday spirit and appreciation for your colleagues by being that individual who agrees to keep the lights on and the phone answered.

Again, each employee's supervisor is the key for all scheduling decisions, but for one day of the year, we can let the formalities of job descriptions fall by the wayside and all pitch in to make this a time of reaffirmation and campus community support.

Best regards,
Jan Van Der Kley
Vice President for Business and Finance