Weekly Update – December 17, 2021
December 17, 2021
Weekly Update – December 17, 2021
CUASA Office Holiday Closure
Please note, the virtual CUASA Office will be closed from Thursday, December 23, to Tuesday, January 4, inclusive. No services will be provided during this time. The virtual office will reopen on Wednesday, January 5, at 9:00am.
Accordingly, this is the final weekly update of 2021. Updates will resume in January.
If you need to contact CUASA during the office closure, please contact the following and we will get back to you when the virtual office reopens in January:
- for grievance concerns or matters: members with a last name beginning with the letters A-M, please email Hanan Mankal ([email protected]); members with a last name beginning with the letters N-Z, please email Alex Aucoin ([email protected])
- for non-grievance matters, please email [email protected]
We thank you for your patience and understanding during the holiday closure.
COVID Situation Update
As you may have seen, the University announced yesterday that it will hold the first three weeks of the winter 2022 term courses fully online. The update included that the small number of in person exams scheduled from Monday, December 20, 2021, and onwards will be moved online or rescheduled.
Carleton has also said that from December 20, 2021, until January 31, 2022, employees should only come to campus to perform necessary work that cannot be conducted remotely. Research that cannot be performed from home can continue to proceed on campus following public health guidelines for indoor capacity limits.
CUASA encourages all members to work from home when possible until January 31, 2022, and to follow public health guidelines for any necessary on-campus activities.
The Association also strongly recommends that all members schedule an appointment for their third vaccine dose as soon as possible. As announced by the province yesterday, as of Monday, December 20, it is expanding eligibility to all individuals aged 18 and over, as well as shortening the interval to three months following an individual’s second dose.
Finally, following the announcement from the federal government advising against non-essential international travel, CUASA encourages all members to exercise caution. If you must travel, monitor and review Canada’s entry requirements before and during your travel.
We’re Hiring – Research Officer (Equity)
CUASA is seeking a Research Officer (Equity) on a one-year limited term appointment to assist with advising, developing, and coordinating resources and initiatives related to anti-racism, anti-oppression, and Equity, Diversity, and Inclusion (EDI).
Full details can be found here. Please share with anyone you know who may be interested.
ARWG Drop-In Session
Members from CUASA’s Anti-Racism Working Group (ARWG) will host a drop-in session on Thursday January 13th, 2022, from 1-4pm (via Zoom) for BIPOC and Jewish-identified members to have an open discussion about the results of the BIPOC Experience Survey that was circulated last year. The last hour of this session will be more informal and we invite members to stay on, with a drink of your choice, so we can get to know each other better. If you are interested in attending, please contact [email protected] to RSVP to receive the Zoom details.
Academic Community Updates
LUFA applauds Ontario Legislature’s warrant for University’s financial records
After months of refusing to turn over key financial documents to Ontario’s auditor general, the Laurentian University administration has been given a deadline of February 1st to comply by Ontario’s legislature.
The Laurentian University Faculty Association (LUFA) is welcoming this latest development in the University’s ongoing insolvency process and has been pressing for the release of key documents, including those related to the University’s dealings with LUFA.
To keep reading, click here.
Harry Crowe Foundation Conference 2022 – Academic Freedom and the Law
Academic freedom in Canada is the right of academic staff to teach and discuss, to research and publish, to participate in the academic governance of and to criticize their administration, and to exercise their civil liberties, including freedom of expression, without institutional censorship. The exercise of academic freedom is both facilitated by and constrained by the law. This conference will explore the legal foundations of academic freedom, as well as the legal limits placed on it with a view to strengthening the protections for academic freedom in Canada.
This important conference will be held online February 10-11, 2022. The registration link and the conference agenda are available at: http://www.crowefoundation.ca/events/.
The Harry Crowe Foundation was established as a charitable organization by the Canadian Association of University Teachers in 2002 to carry out education and research on the role of academic freedom in contemporary society. The Foundation is named in honour of Professor Harry Crowe whose celebrated academic freedom case in the 1950’s helped establish the mission of what was then a fledgling CAUT.
Call for Nominations to CAUT Executive Committee
Nominations are being actively sought for election to the CAUT Executive Committee.
The deadline for nominations to all positions is March 1, 2022. Elections will take place at the CAUT Council meeting in Ottawa on April 28 to May 1, 2022.
The nomination procedures, description of positions, terms of office and CAUT release time policy are available on the CAUT website.
