Graphic: Elana Emer
BREAKING: Ryerson moves courses online to prevent spread of COVID-19
In All, Campus News, COVID-19, News March 13, 2020 Leave a Comment
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By Alexandra Holyk
At 11:21 a.m. on March 13, Ryerson University announced that all in-person classes will be suspended and moved online starting March 23.
"The week of March 16 will be a week of transition for the university, allowing faculty and staff to explore and implement alternate arrangements," the statement from university president Mohamed Lachemi read.
"Students will be hearing from their departments on course delivery during the week of March 16," the statement continued.
Ryerson later tweeted, "Students should contact their departments concerning classes and exams scheduled for today." It is still unclear if classes on March 13 will be cancelled.
All residences and food services will remain open.
"Students living in residence will continue to be supported and will be contacted directly by Student Housing and Community Care with additional information," the statement read.
Ryerson's statement comes after the Ontario government announced that all publicly-funded schools will be closed until April 5 to prevent the spread of COVID-19.
Various post-secondary institutions across the province have also moved to online learning, including the University of Toronto, University of Western Ontario, Laurentian University and York University, among many others.
The Eyeopener previously reported that a petition was started by a Ryerson student to convince the university to transfer courses to an online setting to limit unnecessary contact between students, staff and faculty.
Since its creation on March 12, the petition has received more than 6,200 signatures.