Message from the President, Nov. 11
Posted on Thursday, November 11th, 2021
Dear Colleagues and Learners,
Over the last few months, I have been spending most of my days working from the Ottawa campus. I often take the opportunity to walk the hallways and greet colleagues and learners – hearing how they are doing and listening to their feedback and ideas, always being energized by their enthusiasm and optimism.
Seeing this progress first-hand reminds me of how – from the beginning of the pandemic – our primary purpose has been to keep all learners and employees safe, while exploring every opportunity to gradually increase on-campus activity levels. This sure-footed approach has required patience and sacrifice from the entire College community. It has allowed us to pursue increased academic and other College activities, and allow many to safely work on our campuses, according to the most recent regulatory requirements.
Our Winter Term 2022 planning is now well advanced, and we fully anticipate that our on-campus activity levels – in both instructional and non-instructional settings – will increase even further. We will achieve this while following the direction of our public health officials and the province.
A memo sent to Post Secondary institutions last week from the Ministry of Colleges and Universities stated that measures for non-instructional spaces on campuses are being lifted “cautiously and gradually” in alignment with changes made as part of the government’s A Plan to Safely Reopen Ontario and Manage COVID-19 for the Long-Term. This week the Ontario government also paused the lifting of capacity limits in some higher-risk settings “out of an abundance of caution”. It is a reminder that we all must remain vigilant in the face of the pandemic.
The advances we have made are due in large part to our College Community members adhering to public health guidelines – including mask-wearing, physical distancing and infection control procedures, along with high participation rates for vaccination. As of November 8, there have been 13,123 submissions to our AC Mobile Safety App, with almost 95 per cent of those applications being fully vaccinated. Effective October 31st, only College Community members who are fully vaccinated are permitted to attend on-campus activities, unless they have been approved for exemption and continue to be supported through testing.
Looking ahead to the Winter Term, I encourage all those planning to attend campus in January to submit their vaccination status as soon as possible. For those still pursuing vaccination and planning to attend campus for the Winter Term, please note that November 16th is the last day to receive your first dose in order to be fully vaccinated in time for the start of classes. Please visit this link for all important deadlines and additional details.
With increased activities levels on campus, we are beginning to come together more often in-person to mark important events and milestones. We will be hosting a Remembrance Day Ceremony in the Marketplace Food Court this morning, Thursday, November 11. The ceremony will also be live-streamed for those working and studying remotely. Ceremony details can be found here. As part of our ongoing Reconciliation efforts, I would also like to note that as part of National Veterans Week, November 8th was National Indigenous Veterans Day. You can learn more about the full week of events, and the contribution of Indigenous Veterans here.
With recently finishing our mid-term break, it is an opportune time to remind ourselves how far we have come together, as we begin to look ahead with anticipation toward the holiday season and the heightened promise of the New Year on the horizon.
Sincerely,
Claude Brulé
President and CEO
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