In a historic moment, The UWI delivered the inaugural meeting of the Five Islands’ Campus Council online within the context of the State of Emergency and 24- hour public health curfew in Antigua and Barbuda. It was “UWI solidarity” in the worst of times. The UWI’s core business and mission-critical meetings such as those of the Campus Council, the University Grants Committee, and the University Council meeting also continued in this vein. Online Delivery of Classes The swift transformation to online delivery of classes was made possible by more than a decade of realignment towards a technologically-enabled future, starting with the formation of the Open Campus in 2008. All campuses have been able to move to multi-mode delivery, with more than 90% of our courses now having online content and delivery. Systems to facilitate examinations and assessments have also been agreed upon to ensure the successful completion of the academic year. The UWI Supports the Region in This Battle As we struggle beside our people to overcome the threat of COVID-19, we are heartened that we have the skills, the talent and the robustness to build an even better university for the future. We continue to support our regional political leaders in their management and containment policies, through multifaceted engagement and participation.
African descent. The fourth, brought together a panel of regional and international experts in another virtual setting, on April 27, to examine why some racial groups and socio-economic classes are more vulnerable than others and what strategies are key to interrupting this worrying trend. The UWI has also been actively present in other events, such as a presentation made by Professor Ian Hambleton of the George Alleyne Chronic Disease Research Centre to CARICOM’s Special Emergency Meeting of Heads of Government on modelling the virus’mobility, country by country. This valuable scientific work adds to the outstanding contributions being made every day by ‘UWI Science’ in policy fora, complementing ‘UWI Medicine’ at the region’s hospitals, clinics, and COVID-19 centres. Business Continuity Assured The UWI moved rapidly to transition courses and programmes to online delivery, ensuring continued Access for our people, Alignment with the needs of society in this time of crisis, and Agility in our response. The UWI Executive Management Team decided that the business of The UWI must go on, while in full compliance with the public health policies of our governments. Both academic and administrative staff transitioned to working from home, ensuring that the business of the University continues.
UWI COVID-19 website: www.uwi.edu/covid19
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