TO student-led petition Moving all of Queen’s University’s face-to-face exams to an online format has already collected more than 4,000 signatures in less than a day.
The petition, started by student Abby Maclean, says putting students into gyms for exams is dangerous and fails to listen to Kingston’s current struggles to contain the spread of COVID.
“Having in-person exams put thousands of students at risk and likely means that many students will not be able to see family members who are particularly vulnerable to COVID during the holidays,” the petition says.
“This petition is a call for Queen’s to change testing online and listen to students for once.”
Maclean also wrote an open letter to the media, saying that Queen’s policy on conducting in-person exams does not align with her recent response to Omnicron’s presence in the community.
Queen’s director of media relations Julie Brown says, however, that some of the points made in Maclean’s letter are in fact incorrect, including the claim that students need a positive PCR test to be exempt. .
Some students have already been told that their remaining exams will be postponed until February.
Several students have commented in support of the petition, with one saying that Queen’s current policy on reporting positive cases actually deters students from being comfortable doing so.
“I have heard multiple reports from students testing positive for home kits but did not report to public health or were not evaluated by KFLA BECAUSE some colleges require deferred in-person exams to be written in August 2022,” the student wrote.
“These are serious consequences for public health compliance and the Queen MUST do her part to encourage the removal of barriers to reporting.”
Many Kingston residents have complained in recent weeks that it is taking too long to access a COVID test.
Last night, Queen’s University sent an email to students that included some measures that were being taken to help address the recent spread.
Student Wellness Services has opened a clinic on Rose Commons in Mitchell Hall as of today, however the clinic will only be open on weekdays from 9 to 4 by appointment.
The email also directs students to other potential testing sites like Beechgrove, however that location currently shows zero test availability during regular testing hours for the rest of the month.
Finally, Queen’s has reverted to some improved security measures in common spaces like the ARC, saying that “the improved measures follow a successful fall period with moderate cases of COVID-19 among the university community,” despite several confirmed outbreaks within the Queen’s community recently. weeks and 35 confirmed cases this week alone linked to the University.
Maclean’s open letter says that students who have received responses to their inquiry about transferring exams online have been told that the process would be too costly.
“It should be alarming for all students and their families to hear that financial considerations are more important to Queen’s than the health of its students and their communities,” Maclean says in the letter.
Media relations director Julie Brown says an official statement is expected in response to the concerns today.
Reference-ygknews.ca