Graduate Studies and Postdoctoral Affairs (GSPA)
Needles Hall, second floor, room 2201
To: Graduate students
From: Vivek Goel, President and Vice-Chancellor, James W.E. Rush, Vice-President, Academic & Provost, Jeffrey Casello, Associate Vice-President, Graduate Studies and Postdoctoral Affairs
Subject: Changing academics until January 27
Welcome to another non-traditional start to the New Year. While the break may not have been all that we wished for, we do hope that you had some time to rest, recharge and connect with family and friends.
Earlier this week, the Government of Ontario announced that it would move to a modified version of Step Two of the Roadmap to Reopen starting today. At the University, we are already well-positioned to manage this change to Ontario’s public health protection measures.
Before the winter break we moved most teaching and learning online until January 24. To align with the government direction, we will extend these arrangements until January 27. The government changes also mean that recreation facilities are now closed and food services on campus will be take out only.
Guidance from the Ministry of Colleges and Universities indicates that essential in-person learning activities are permitted to continue as previously planned. If your course has essential in-person components, you can expect to hear about it from your program or faculty.
If you are scheduled to serve as a TA for a course that has in-person elements, please be assured that all of our on-campus class activities are being conducted in ways that are consistent with public health guidelines. If you have concerns about your TA assignment, please contact your supervisor, Departmental Graduate Officer or Departmental Coordinator.
New guidance has been provided for research activities including travel
The University’s Vice-President Research and International has issued revised guidelines for research activities and travel, both domestically and internationally. Please review that guidance with your supervisor and ensure that your research activities are compliant with the University’s regulations and, when permitted, your ongoing work is done safely.
We are working on proactive measures to support people who are coming to campus
We know that for many people, returning to the campus is a necessity – even while most of our community learns and works remotely. This means that for people in the highest risk roles and situations who work on our campus we are working to obtain more rapid antigen tests and we continue to procure medical-grade masks that are available through Central Stores.
Whether you are coming to campus or not, there are ways in which you can help flatten the curve and protect yourself against severe illness:
- Get a booster dose as soon as possible, and make sure eligible children are vaccinated as soon as possible. The evidence is now clear that boosters are highly effective in preventing severe illness and hospitalization. What’s more, we expect that booster doses will become part of being “fully vaccinated” in Ontario soon and will be required to access our campuses in due course.
- If you need to book a booster dose you can do so with Health Services and there are many online resources to help you find available shots, such as Vaccine Ontario or Vaccine Hunters.
- If you are an international student and have questions about vaccines, please reach out to ise@uwaterloo.ca.
- Wear a mask that fits well, has multiple layers, and has an effective filter layer. You can review detailed guidance from the Safety Office on new protective equipment guidelines that were issued yesterday. Wherever you go, please always follow the Public Health Agency of Canada’s (PHAC) recommendations on masks.
- Limit your in-person contact with other people and stay home if you have any symptoms of COVID-19. You can take this self-assessment if you think you may have been exposed to COVID-19 or have symptoms.
If we all do our part now to slow the spread of the Omicron variant and protect the healthcare system, we can get back to in-person learning and working. We will continue to monitor the situation closely and work to obtain the safety supplies of masks and rapid tests that will support us when we return to in-person activities.
Please keep watch on your email, our social media channels, and the COVID-19 information website for more help and information.