COVID-19: University of Guelph Releases Plans for Winter Semester | The Canadian News

The University of Guelph has published its plans for the winter semester of 2022 as it continues to navigate the COVID-19 pandemic.

TO letter Written by Gwen Chapman, Principal and Vice President, it details how the school is preparing to return to “mainstream course delivery” and offer in-person instruction for most courses this winter.

“The university has taken a principled approach to planning for winter 2022 and continues to make decisions based on public health guidance,” said Chapman.

“Our goal is to provide high-quality teaching and learning experiences and to ensure the mental, social, and physical health of our faculty, students, and staff.”

Key components of the plan include maintaining an enrollment limit of 450 students per class even though the province no longer limits class sizes.

The university said the cap will help manage traffic flows in and out of its largest classrooms.

Instructors may also choose to use a combination of remote and face-to-face lessons, and some courses identified by universities and departments may be available through distance learning.

The university also reiterated that like the fall semester, in-person learning will only be available to students who are fully vaccinated or have received an approved exemption.

“We know that in-person teaching and learning is critical, especially for our freshmen and sophomores,” said Chapman.

“This fall, through the gradual expansion of face-to-face learning, a rigorous mandate for vaccinations, strict protocols and other measures, we have shown that U of G can safely deliver in-person teaching and learning.”

He added that while it is impossible to predict how the pandemic could turn things around for January, getting vaccinated is key to his “ability to provide more academic experiences in person.”

The university said 28,000 members of the U of G community have provided proof of vaccination status and that 97 percent consider themselves fully vaccinated and 2 percent partially vaccinated.

In Guelph, more than 89 percent of the vaccine-eligible population is fully vaccinated, and in Ontario, 83 percent.

“These trends are extremely positive and give us confidence that we can prepare for a winter semester with teaching and learning primarily in person,” said Chapman.

“We will continue to work with our University and local public health experts to protect your physical and mental health, which includes enforcing our vaccine mandate and maintaining our public health and safety protocols and measures.”