Chancellor Dan White
June 18, 2021

Dear UAF faculty and staff,

This week Congress passed and President Biden signed a bill declaring June 19 as Juneteenth National Independence Day, and a federal holiday. Juneteenth commemorates June 19, 1865 when the last of the enslaved Black people in Galveston, Texas were freed, two years after the Emancipation Proclamation.

At UAF we continue to grow and embrace a culture of respect, diversity, inclusion, and caring. I am hopeful that national recognition of Juneteenth will create more opportunities for our students, staff and faculty to engage in open and constructive dialogue. We will continue to strengthen our efforts towards systemic change at UAF so that we are a place of belonging for all people.

Please join me in celebrating Juneteenth. I encourage you to go to resources such as the Smithsonian's National Museum of African American History & Culture, as well as our UAF Share, Learn, Grow page to learn about ways to celebrate this occasion.

Thank you for choosing UAF.

— Dan White, Chancellor
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