Peterson Update: and the decision is ...

Here is an email that I sent out to our email list. Let me know if you want to be added to the list.

Greetings! This email is long over-due and I hope that the suspense hasn't been killing you :) So, our decision is (insert drum-roll here): Cape Town. We finally made the decision late last week after some long deliberation and a deadline extension from the University of Cape Town. Quite a bit of agonizing went into the decision (see blog for more details), but ultimately it was made quickly. I asked for a extension from UCT because I wanted to give the University of Nairobi more time. Turns out the Vice Chancellor had been out of town and wasn't available to make a decision until last week. So, late last week, I got an email from the Physics Chair at Nairobi telling me that the Vice Chancellor had decided to conduct a full interview process with multiple candidates. The Physics chair estimated that it would take two months for the whole process to play out. So, I told Nairobi that I couldn't wait that long and accepted the offer at Cape Town on May 7th.
So, now what? We finally get to start planning our future. Lots of details yet to be determined, but this is what I can tell you. My start date is Sept. 1st, and we would like to be there 1-2 weeks early to get settled, so we will try to move in mid August. It also means that one big headache is resolved, mainly getting our stuff moved, because UCT will hire a moving company to move us, which is awesome. It also sounds like I will get to start teaching right away, which I am excited about. UCT's second semester starts in July and ends in Nov, but the Physics Chair told me he is working on getting me some time in the classroom once I get there.
Well, that is it! The decision is finally made! Thank you so much for your prayers and we will keep you posted on our plans and the arrival of the new Peterson, Steve & Diana