By Cheryl Jahn

Faculty Associations concerned over return to class

Aug 5, 2021 | 3:52 PM

PRINCE GEORGE – The Return-to-Campus plan, as laid out weeks ago, is starting to become a cause for concern. The plan requires in-person education again at all public-funded post-secondary institutions. But the plan does NOT require mandatory masks, distancing, or proof of vaccination. The interim President of UNBC asks only one thing of students.

Vaccinations are really important and I’ve been stressing in every communication to the university community follow the guidelines,” states Dr. Geoff Payne. “They’re the experts, they’re the ones who have outlined it for post-secondary what phase that we’re in, whether its masks, whether its vaccinations and really stressing that vaccinations are really important.”

But the Confederation of University Faculty Associations of British Columbia, which represents 5,500 faculty members at five of BC’s research universities, including UNBC, has written to Advanced Education Minister Anne Kang. It reads:

“Our members are concerned about the return to campus plans at post-secondary institutions. These concerns are borne of their exclusion from institutional decision-making and from the behind-the-scenes direction being given to institutional administrators against the express needs of faculty, staff, and students.”

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It goes on to state: “We call on you, Minister Kang, to affirm the autonomy of BC’s universities to continue to establish the health and safety rules governing safe campuses, including but not limited to the introduction of vaccine and mask mandates, modes of course delivery, class sizes, and on-campus joint health and safety committees.”

The President of UNBC’s Faculty Association says the Return-to-Campus plan was more viable in May or June, but the risks are higher today, with COVID cases climbing again and new variants.

“I think we need to revisit whether not having masks, not requiring vaccinations, not having social distancing is still the way forward because there are unique circumstances in universities, in high schools, in elementary schools,” says Paul Siakaluk. “A lot of these students, these classes, they’re going to be sitting right beside each other.”

But he adds “the stick in the mud” is that registration for the Fall semester has been underway since June and if students are expecting in-person classes, they should get in-person classes.