Western English Language Centre
Faculty of Education Building 1137 Western Road N6G 1G7 London, ON, Canada

Dear Western Students, With fall reading week approaching, I hope you can take some time to rest and recharge. I know these last few months have been hard.... You’ve been asked to limit your social activity, learn in new ways, avoid travelling that’s a lot of change. All of this can impact your mental health and well-being. We have supports for you and I encourage you to access our workshops, counselling and peer-to-peer supports: https://www.uwo.ca/health/ Prioritizing your physical well-being is also important. Campus Recreation continues to offer digital programming, and I’m pleased to share that a phased return for our sport and recreation activities will begin Monday, Nov. 2. More to come on this over the coming days. If you’re heading home for the break, we are asking you to limit your in-person interactions as much as possible and continue to follow health and safety protocols. The Middlesex London Health Unit continues to discourage non-essential travel to Ottawa, Montreal, Quebec City and the Greater Toronto Area, including Peel and York Regions. Travel outside of Canada is also strongly discouraged. If you do travel abroad, you must quarantine for 14 days upon your return and register your quarantine plan with Western in advance: https://uwo.eu.qualtrics.com/jfe/form/SV_1Y1n6xQ6JwbFE2N If you choose not to travel, Western has a number of virtual events planned for students, and all residence dining halls will be open next week. Your efforts to take care of our community are making a difference. Please take some time next week to take care of yourself. Be safe and be well, Alan Shepard President and Vice-Chancellor

An update from President Alan Shepard. Please read below:

A reminder that all members of the #WesternU community are required to wear non-medical masks or face coverings indoors, in the presence of others, and in commo...n and shared spaces. This includes: corridors, lobbies, washrooms, elevators, classrooms, teaching laboratories, meeting rooms, or in any outdoor area where physical distancing is a challenge. Undergraduate students: For undergraduate students who were unable to pick up their Western branded masks, distribution will continue on campus from September 21 to September 25. Please pick up your mask on the main level of Western Student Services Building 11 a.m. to 4 p.m. with a Western ONECard. Western ONECard pickup will be at the Info Desk in Student Central 1120 Western Student Services Building. Students who indicated they were living off campus when they uploaded their photo for their 1st Western ONECard will have their masks arriving by mail with their cards. Western will be doing another round this week for the students who have not picked up their cards & have an out of town home address. Graduate students: Graduate students who have yet to receive their masks should contact their Supervisor or Faculty supply requisitioner for how and when they will be able to receive their masks. For those with approved accommodations who are unable to wear a mask, Western will provide a face shield. Any student with an accommodation request, please contact Western’s Accessible Education team at [email protected] Employees: Western employees who have not been supplied with face masks, please contact your supervisor. Any employee with an accommodation request, please contact Employee Well-being : http://uwo.ca/hr/safety/ergo_rehab/contacts.html Let’s work together to keep Western healthy and safe during these unprecedented times. [Young man wearing a Western branded face masks squints off into the distance.]

We're excited to welcome our students back to Western! Let’s be thoughtful and work every day to take care of ourselves, each other and our community. Please watch our special #takecarewesternu message from President & Vice-Chancellor Alan Shepard below:

Free Western University masks, WELC Family! Please see below for additional information on how to get your masks.

We can’t wait to welcome everyone back in the fall, whether it’s virtually or in person! If you’re planning to come to Western from abroad, make sure you know w...hat you need to do before you travel. Important details and tips related to making quarantine plans, booking necessary transportation and accommodations, and other information can be found on our Arrivals page. iesc.uwo.ca/internationalarrival2020/

First-year studentsyou can now book your move-in time in your myHousing Portal! We are experiencing a high volume of use right now, so please be patient when a...ccessing the site. Rest assured that there are lots of time slots available and you will be able to book and change your selection right up until August 31, 2020. We can’t wait to welcome you home! https://myhousing.uwo.ca Western University University Students' Council of Western

Attention WELC family! IESC (International Student & Exchange Centre) has created a website with very important Information regarding travel, quarantine and much more. To be prepared when arriving to Western, please click here:

WELC Family, here is an LTC/Bus Pass Update

Happy Pride, London! Western is proud to celebrate the official beginning of the 2020 London Pride Festival, which starts today and will run virtually throughou...t the coming week. We want to see how you are celebrating this year. Please send us your Western Pride photos and short videos. You may just see yourself in our virtual Western Pride Parade video coming July 26. Send your photos to [email protected] or tag them with #westernuPride. Find all you need to know on the Western Pride webpage: www.uwo.ca/westernupride

Happy Chinese Dragon Boat Festival from all of us at WELC! We hope you ate all the Zongzi today, relaxed and spent time with you family. Have a lovely weekend!

Today, Western released the Anti-Racism Working Group report and the University's response and actions to move us forward. These commitments will I hope be fou...ndational in creating systemic change, and setting Western on the path of a more just future. President Shepard Key actions include: 1. Establishing a senior role at the university to help lead our efforts towards equity, diversity and inclusion. This senior role will begin as a Special Advisor to the President because that can happen this summer, and will be subsequently proposed to the Board of Governors as an Associate Vice-President’s role. 2. Establishing a Council to advise the various constituents of the university on our ongoing anti-racism and EDI work, including the collection and publication of relevant data, and metrics that measure our progress. 3. Strengthening our training programs across campus to combat racism. 4. Conducting a review of existing policy and the mechanisms for reporting racist incidents. 5. Carrying out an awareness campaign to combat all kinds of racism, especially anti-Black racism and racism against Indigenous communities, and attending to the intersectionality of other kinds of oppression. 6. Committing to additional funding for anti-racism, equity and inclusion initiatives. We encourage the community to read the report, as well as the full response from President Shepard, which can be accessed via Western News and the President’s website.

Congratulations to Luocheng on this AMAZING graphic design that provides 6 best practices for "Netiquette" (Internet etiquette)! We have an incredibly talented graphic designer within the WELC family. Check out Luocheng's Netiquette assignment below for reference on how to be successful in learning online. Happy weekend, WELC family!

Western's plan for the fall semester: An update from President Alan Shepard for all Western students Dear Current and Future Western Students,... I hope this note finds you and your loved ones healthy. We know you have questions about what our fall term will look like. Teams across campus are working hard to provide you the exceptional learning and student experience Western is known for, while prioritizing the health and safety of the campus community. We've put together information about the fall that we hope provides some clarity as you make important decisions over the coming weeks. Students are the heart of the Western community. We remain fully committed to your success and look forward to welcoming you in September! Sincerely, Alan Shepard President & Vice-Chancellor

Incase you missed it! President Shepard has shared an important update regarding a mixed model of virtual and in-person learning for fall 2020; a gradual return to campus for faculty and staff; and building a strong, clear future for our University.