{"id":111245,"date":"2026-10-08T15:03:05","date_gmt":"2026-10-08T15:03:05","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/www.uri.edu\/news\/?p=111245"},"modified":"2026-10-08T15:03:06","modified_gmt":"2026-10-08T15:03:06","slug":"a-message-from-ellen-reynolds-vice-president-for-student-affairs","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/www.uri.edu\/news\/2026\/10\/a-message-from-ellen-reynolds-vice-president-for-student-affairs\/","title":{"rendered":"A message from Ellen Reynolds, Vice President for Student Affairs"},"content":{"rendered":"\n

Oct. 8, 2026<\/em><\/p>\n\n\n\n

Dear Rhody Community,\u00a0<\/p>\n\n\n\n

Now that we\u2019re a month into the fall semester, I wanted to check in, see how you\u2019re doing, and make sure you have what you need. <\/p>\n\n\n\n

By now, you may be settling into a good rhythm and feeling energized by your classes, friendships, and activities. Or you may be realizing that balancing academics, work, finances, relationships, family responsibilities, and everything else that comes with college is more challenging than you expected. <\/p>\n\n\n\n

Wherever you are right now, please remember you do not have to navigate it alone. <\/p>\n\n\n\n

Whether you live on campus or commute, study full-time or part-time, or balance your education with work and family commitments, you are an important part of the URI community. In Student Affairs, we want you to be active, be well, and belong<\/strong>\u2014and we are here to help you succeed both inside and outside the classroom. <\/p>\n\n\n\n

Take care of your well-being <\/strong><\/p>\n\n\n\n

This is a good time to check in with yourself\u2014not only academically, but physically and emotionally. Make time to rest, eat well, move your body, connect with people who support you, and ask for help when you need it. <\/p>\n\n\n\n

If stress, anxiety, loneliness, or other concerns are becoming difficult to manage, the URI Counseling Center<\/a> offers confidential support, groups, care management, crisis services, and access to TELUS Health<\/a> for 24\/7 mental health support. You can also explore the Division of Student Affairs resource page<\/a> for counseling, health, wellness, academic, and other resources and services available to support you at URI.\u00a0\u00a0<\/p>\n\n\n\n

Ask for help early <\/strong><\/p>\n\n\n\n

If a class isn’t going as planned or you’re struggling to keep up, don’t wait. Talk with your professor, connect with your academic advisor<\/a>, or take advantage of tutoring<\/a> and other academic resources through the Academic Enhancement Center<\/a>. Reaching out for assistance is an important part of learning how to succeed.\u00a0<\/p>\n\n\n\n

And sometimes what shapes your college experience extends beyond what happens in the classroom. Personal matters such as financial hardship, illness, a family emergency, housing concerns, loss, relationship difficulties, or other unexpected circumstances can affect your ability to stay on track. Student Support and Advocacy Services<\/a> in the Dean of Students Office can help you identify resources and navigate challenging circumstances.\u00a0<\/p>\n\n\n\n

You don’t need to know exactly what kind of help you need before reaching out. Sometimes the most important first step is simply letting someone know that things feel a little overwhelming right now. <\/p>\n\n\n\n

Look out for yourself and one another <\/strong><\/p>\n\n\n\n

Being part of the Rhody community also means helping create a campus where everyone feels safe, respected, and able to participate fully in University life. <\/p>\n\n\n\n

Recent national attention to sexual violence on college campuses is an important reminder of our shared responsibility to foster a community grounded in respect, consent, care, and accountability. Whether with friends, partners, roommates, teammates, or members of student organizations, healthy relationships depend on open communication, respect for boundaries, and mutual consent. Sexual or relationship violence, harassment, coercion, intimidation, hazing, or any behavior that threatens another person\u2019s physical or emotional well-being has no place in our Rhody community. <\/p>\n\n\n\n

If something doesn’t feel right, or you’re concerned about a friend, please reach out. The Dean of Students Office Report It<\/a> page provides options for reporting concerns involving hazing, sexual misconduct and gender-based violence, bias, discrimination or harassment, student conduct, and concerns about a student’s behavior or well-being.\u00a0<\/p>\n\n\n\n

If you or someone else is in immediate danger, call 911. For non-emergency assistance from URI Public Safety<\/a>, call 401-874-4910.\u00a0<\/p>\n\n\n\n

Stay connected <\/strong><\/p>\n\n\n\n

Finally, make some time for the parts of college that happen beyond the classroom. Attend an event. Join a student organization. Go to a game. Visit the gym. Have lunch with a friend. Spend time outside. Introduce yourself to someone new. <\/p>\n\n\n\n

And to our commuter students, URI is your campus, too. I encourage you to take advantage of our campus spaces, programs, organizations, wellness services, and support resources. Your connection to this community is not determined by where you live. <\/p>\n\n\n\n

We still have a lot of the semester ahead of us. If things are going well, keep building on that momentum. If they’re not, please don’t wait to ask for help. There are people across URI who genuinely want to see you succeed, and sometimes one conversation can make all the difference. <\/p>\n\n\n\n

Take care of yourselves, take care of one another, and have a great semester. <\/p>\n\n\n\n

Go Rhody! <\/p>\n\n\n\n

Warmly, <\/p>\n\n\n\n

Ellen M. Reynolds, Ed.D. <\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"

Oct. 8, 2026 Dear Rhody Community,\u00a0 Now that we\u2019re a month into the fall semester, I wanted to check in, see how you\u2019re doing, and make sure you have what you need.  By now, you may be settling into a good rhythm and feeling energized by your classes, friendships, and activities. Or you may be […]<\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":20,"featured_media":0,"comment_status":"closed","ping_status":"closed","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"_acf_changed":false,"footnotes":"","_links_to":"","_links_to_target":""},"categories":[1866],"tags":[1857,1858,1856],"class_list":["post-111245","post","type-post","status-publish","format-standard","hentry","category-community-message","tag-audience-faculty","tag-audience-staff","tag-audience-students"],"acf":[],"_links":{"self":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.uri.edu\/news\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/111245","targetHints":{"allow":["GET"]}}],"collection":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.uri.edu\/news\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts"}],"about":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.uri.edu\/news\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/types\/post"}],"author":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.uri.edu\/news\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/users\/20"}],"replies":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.uri.edu\/news\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/comments?post=111245"}],"version-history":[{"count":1,"href":"https:\/\/www.uri.edu\/news\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/111245\/revisions"}],"predecessor-version":[{"id":111246,"href":"https:\/\/www.uri.edu\/news\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/111245\/revisions\/111246"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.uri.edu\/news\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media?parent=111245"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"category","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.uri.edu\/news\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/categories?post=111245"},{"taxonomy":"post_tag","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.uri.edu\/news\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/tags?post=111245"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}