Extending the Memorial Day Holiday

Dear Faculty and Staff Colleagues:

One year ago, Carnegie Mellon University was compelled to take the unprecedented step of shifting all staff and faculty to remote work in response to the COVID-19 pandemic. The 12 months since that transition have been stressful, challenging and surreal, and we empathize with the many members of our community who have experienced health issues, personal losses and hardships during this time.

CMU persevered in upholding our core missions in education and research, due in large part to your adaptability and creativity, which were critical to our success. On behalf of the entire leadership of the university, we want to thank each of you for your efforts this year. As an additional tangible expression of our gratitude and appreciation, we are pleased to announce that this year’s Memorial Day holiday will be extended by two additional paid days off, to include Friday, May 28, and Tuesday, June 1.

As with our recent announcement to extend the use of COVID-19 Floating Holidays and the temporary PTO Rollover Exceptions, we hope these extra days and time away from your work responsibilities will provide a much needed break to rest, recharge and have fun.

We recognize there are some work responsibilities that continue at all times; therefore, managers and supervisors will be flexible with schedules to ensure everyone can take advantage of this extra time. Staff members who cannot take the extra time off around the Memorial Day weekend will have until December 31, 2021, to request the time off.

Consistent with past practice, staff who fall outside of our usual benefits will receive a lump sum payment for this time off. This includes part-time exempt and non-exempt benefits eligible staff, and those individuals who are employed by campus vendors. If you have questions, please contact Leavemgmt@andrew.cmu.edu. 

Once again, your collective response to the past year has been truly inspiring and we remain deeply grateful for your commitment and contributions to CMU at this extraordinary time.

Sincerely,

Farnam Jahanian
President and Henry L. Hillman President’s Chair

Jim Garrett
Provost