Happy New Year Message by Professor Tamerler

Dear TASSA Friends,
With 2020 coming to a close, we can all agree that it has been an incredibly challenging year. 2020 will be remembered as a year of historical turmoil, from the terrifying pandemic to long-overdue demands for racial justice and economic distress for so many. It seems an appropriate time to reflect and to share gratitude for our community.
With the global pandemic, we have witnessed firsthand completely unprecedented events. We faced escalating COVID-19 cases, isolation, quarantine, hospitalization, and, unfortunately, deaths. The routines that guided us through our lives have been disrupted, and the internet became the dominant proxy for our interactions at all levels. We learned to adjust to a new work reality, adapt faster to technological tools, adjust more effectively to the changing needs, and learn to reach out to people in need in many different ways. These times also inspired most of us to be at the forefront of global resilience, recovery, reinventions, and discoveries. We start to see the end of the tunnel with the vaccines; however, we still cannot yet put our diligence regarding safety.
2020 will surely be remembered by incidents of racism and injustice that have spurred outrage and protests. This year reminded us one more time that we must continue doing everything we can to advance a more just and equitable world. We need to fully commit to diversity, equity, inclusion, and belonging to overcome injustice on racial, ethnic, gender biases. 
There are brighter days ahead!
Whether you work onsite or remote, our fight to overcome the pandemic, injustice, and provide a more equitable future must continue. TASSA elected a new Board and Executive Committee Members this year with many new initiatives already in place for 2021. I am proud to be part of our incredible community, with each of you committed to impact our world for the greater good.
Thank you for your support of TASSA.
Happy New Year!
Stay well and be safe.

Candan Tamerler

President and Chairman of the Board