Kia ora koutou

Wow – so fabulous to see the campus come to life with Welcome Day !  2024 is shaping up to be an exceptionally big and buzzy year, if today is anything to go by!!  Thanks to you all for warm welcomes and massive manaaki for our incoming (and returning) student cohorts – it’s so great to see.

Accolades also to you all for our go-live with FOLIO and MultiSearch on Monday!  It was an extraordinarily tight timeline for implementation, and while I never had an iota of doubt that a team of your calibre could bring it home, I appreciate the work needed was immense and the pressure never let up.  I’m so immensely proud of you all, of your positive and collaborative spirit, and of your support to each other through some of this project’s multitude of challenges.  You have been collectively nothing short of awe-inspiring.

I also appreciate there’s no let-up right now or time for a decent celebration, as we hurtle together into semester 1.  But we will do this, fulsomely and well, when we have time to draw breath!

Finally, I have some personal health news to share.  I’ve recently been diagnosed with breast cancer, and am in the midst of diagnostics (MRI, biopsies) at the moment, ahead of a treatment plan being decided upon.  It seems clear that surgery will be the first step, though timelines are yet to be confirmed.  Library managers and I have been working together closely to map out how we can best provide continuity and support during the days ahead.  This will be a bit of an evolving situation, as more information comes to hand including timelines for my absence.  For now, I’m here and feeling really well 😊
I’m also absolutely happy for you to share this news with other UC staff as/if it comes up – the more we all know, the better support we can provide each other.

Kia pai te mutunga wiki,
Kat