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Dear campus community,

I am writing today to share the Â鶹´«Ã½ÉçÇøÈë¿Ú Faculty and Staff Housing Task Force Report.

This Task Force was formed in 2019 by President Morishita to explore and recommend tangible steps we can take in the short and long term to provide access to more affordable housing options—especially for individuals we hope to recruit into faculty and staff positions at Â鶹´«Ã½ÉçÇøÈë¿Ú. 

Based on recommendations in the report, I plan to implement the following by the beginning of Fall 2021 semester:

• Establish a comprehensive online housing portal for faculty, staff and students that will provide information and resources about a variety of housing options.
• Recruit local real estate professionals, including Â鶹´«Ã½ÉçÇøÈë¿Ú alumni, who are willing to consult with and assist community members searching for housing options.
• Identify local private rental units in homes close to the Hayward campus, owners of which would welcome Â鶹´«Ã½ÉçÇøÈë¿Ú faculty, staff and students as tenants.
• Coordinate low cost overnight accommodations for faculty and staff who commute long distances and need to stay over a night or two a week.

At a later date, I plan to contract for a housing demand study to explore the viability of constructing housing units on the Hayward campus. The Task Force Report identifies a number of potential locations for these units. Because we will implement more flexible work options over the next year, making it more realistic for faculty and staff to commute further distances from our campuses, I think it’s prudent for us to settle into our Post-COVID configuration before I initiate the housing demand study.

At this time, please join me in recognizing and thanking the Task Force chair, vice president Debbie Chaw, and all Task Force members for their time and effort in producing this important report.

Affordable housing remains one of our biggest challenges in recruiting new and supporting existing faculty and staff. I believe this report and the steps we are taking will put us on a path toward improvement.

Sincerely yours,

Cathy

April 7, 2021