I am writing to you on Monday morning to tell each of you that you have been in our thoughts throughout the terrible past week, and that we here on campus hope that this letter finds you and your loved ones safe and well. I send special sympathy and heartfelt good wishes to our many alumni in the New York and Washington, D.C. areas.

Our campus has spent much of the last week simply going hour to hour. We have, of course, made our first priority caring for our students. They are experiencing the same wrenching emotions that all of you have been through: shock, sorrow, anger, and fear. But throughout the week, the members of the campus community have supported one another in wonderfully heartening ways. We have come together in a special all-campus convocation, many vigils and religious services, and in classes and residence halls, concerts, and studios.

Students have taken the lead in initiating ways to help. By noon last Tuesday, students had organized a campus blood drive and had arranged transportation to take hundreds of donors to nearby Elyria. The editors and staff of The Oberlin Review brought out a timely and informative special issue. The rock on Tappan Square was immediately painted black, and many candles and written messages have been placed there by the entire community.

We did not suspend classes last week, for we all thought it was enormously important to maintain our basic structure for bringing students and faculty together to support one another. However, we did cancel all athletic contests through the weekend, as well as virtually all on-campus events.

Today we are resuming "normal" operations, although we still feel far from normal. Students remain huddled around the televisions that have been set up around campus. The Student Senate is planning several days of dialogue with faculty this week, entitled Discussion Series on American Tragedy. Conservatory students and faculty are planning a memorial concert in the near future.

Last Wednesday, Alumni Association Director Midge Brittingham '60 sent e-mail messages to the 700-plus alumni from the Washington, D.C. area and the nearly 900 New York City alumni for whom we have e-mail addresses. Her message expressed the concern of the entire Oberlin community and asked recipients to respond and let us know if they were safe. So far, the alumni office has received more than 1100 responses. For those of you who do not have e-mail, please send us any news you may have.

At this writing, we know of only one death among our students’ families: the uncle of a college senior was one of the pilots of the hijacked airliners. We are still awaiting information about all alumni, but to date we do not know of other losses in our immediate Oberlin College family.

A number of you have continued to stay in contact with the College through our web site. Since this tragedy began, campus updates have been posted daily, and all of my letters to the Oberlin community have been posted online in addition to event updates, lists of on-campus and online resources, and reactions from students, parents, alumni, and faculty. We will continue to add information as long as necessary to keep everyone informed.

We hope that you will stay in touch with Oberlin in the coming weeks and months.

Oberlin College offers several ways to receive the latest news:

1. The College web site has daily updates about the campus. For information specifically related to September 11 and its aftermath, see www.oberlin.edu/sept11. You can also receive weekly updates on campus events via the College’s weekly e-newsletter. Subscription information can be found online.
2. Information about Oberlin alumni in New York City and Washington, D.C. can be found on incblots, an online message board set up by Paul Sciortino ’90.
3. To find contact information about other alumni, or to update your own information and your e-mail address, log on to the Oberlin Alumni Association Online Community or follow the "Alumni" link from the Oberlin home page. The ID number you will need to log on can be found on this letter’s mailing label or by calling the Alumni Association at 440/775-8692.

Please know that our thoughts are with you all in these harrowing times. We are going through one of the most difficult periods in American history. Let each of us continue to help and support every member of this far-flung community.

Sincerely,

Nancy S. Dye
President