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Dear 91ŃÇÉ« community,

In my last update, I shared that 91ŃÇÉ« will require all individuals coming to our campuses this fall to be vaccinated against COVID-19. Since then, I am very pleased to learn that the  has recommended that all post-secondary institutions across the province require proof of vaccination for those coming to campus.

As we work to finalize the details of our strategy, I can confirm that this September the University will require all members of the community to provide proof of full vaccination or an exemption based on a validated medical or human rights ground. 

Community members will use the YU Screen tool to submit proof of vaccination or an approved exemption. YU Screen will be ready to accept this documentation on Sept. 7 and all information that is collected here will be subject to strict privacy and confidentiality requirements. 

Those who cannot be vaccinated or who are awaiting their first or second dose will be required to adhere to additional health and safety measures, including frequent testing. Between Sept. 7 and Oct. 19 (the date whereby proof of having received a full vaccination series is required), those attending activities on 91ŃÇɫ’s campuses who are not yet fully vaccinated (including those with approved exemptions), will be required to submit proof of a negative COVID-19 test result.

We recognize that not every community member will be able to be fully vaccinated by the first day of the fall term. Some time will also be needed to process exemption requests for medical or other reasons recognized by the Ontario Human Rights Code. I want to assure you that the University will make every effort to support community members to receive their vaccinations in a timely way, and to access testing in the meantime where needed.

We continue to partner with Humber River Hospital to offer a series of vaccine clinics on the Keele Campus in August and September. As well, those who are eligible and who study or work on the Glendon Campus will be able to access  offered through Sunnybrook Hospital. Community members are also reminded that vaccines are widely available in Canada on a walk-in basis through local public health units and community pharmacies.

As well, anyone who is vaccinated in Ontario can prove that they have been fully vaccinated by uploading the physical or emailed receipt that was provided to them at the time of vaccination from the Ministry of Health. Vaccination receipts can be downloaded through the  or by calling the Provincial Vaccine Booking Line at 1-833-943-3900. Those arriving from out of province will need to provide proof of vaccination in that province and anyone arriving to Canada from international destinations can use the  that was required for upload to the  prior to entry into Canada. 91ŃÇÉ« recognizes both World Health Organization and Health Canada-approved COVID-19 vaccines.

I recognize that there are still many questions about how this will be rolled out within our community. We will be sharing more specific details and instructions on the new process that will support this requirement before Sept. 7. Thank you for doing your part to ensure a safe return to our campuses this fall.

Sincerely,

Rhonda Lenton
President & Vice-Chancellor

Mise Ă  jour sur l’obligation de vaccination Ă  l’UniversitĂ© 91ŃÇÉ«

Chers membres de la communautĂ© de 91ŃÇÉ«, 

Dans ma derniĂšre communication, je vous annonçais que 91ŃÇÉ« exigera que toutes les personnes frĂ©quentant nos campus cet automne soient vaccinĂ©es contre la COVID-19. Je me rĂ©jouis d’apprendre que depuis le  a recommandĂ© que tous les Ă©tablissements postsecondaires de la province requiĂšrent une preuve de vaccination pour les personnes frĂ©quentant les campus.  

Alors que nous finalisons les dĂ©tails de notre stratĂ©gie, je peux confirmer qu’au mois de septembre, l’UniversitĂ© exigera de tous les membres de la communautĂ© qu’ils fournissent la preuve d’une vaccination complĂšte ou d’une exemption fondĂ©e sur un motif mĂ©dical ou de droits de la personne validĂ©.  

Les membres de la communautĂ© devront utiliser l’outil YU DĂ©pistage/YU Screen pour soumettre leur preuve de vaccination ou une exemption approuvĂ©e. L’outil YU DĂ©pistage sera prĂȘt Ă  accepter cette documentation le 7 septembre; toutes les informations recueillies seront assujetties Ă  des exigences strictes en matiĂšre de vie privĂ©e et de confidentialitĂ©.   

Les personnes qui ne peuvent pas ĂȘtre vaccinĂ©es ou qui attendent leur premiĂšre ou deuxiĂšme dose devront se soumettre Ă  des mesures de santĂ© et de sĂ©curitĂ© supplĂ©mentaires, notamment des tests de dĂ©pistage frĂ©quents. Entre le 7 septembre et le 19 octobre (date Ă  laquelle une preuve de vaccination complĂšte sera requise), les personnes participant Ă  des activitĂ©s sur les campus de 91ŃÇÉ« qui ne sont pas encore entiĂšrement vaccinĂ©es, y compris celles ayant des exemptions approuvĂ©es, devront fournir la preuve d’un rĂ©sultat nĂ©gatif Ă  un test de dĂ©pistage de la COVID-19.  

Nous sommes conscients que tous les membres de la communautĂ© ne pourront pas ĂȘtre complĂštement vaccinĂ©s avant le premier jour du trimestre d’automne. Il faudra Ă©galement un certain temps pour traiter les demandes d’exemption pour des raisons mĂ©dicales ou autres reconnues par le Code des droits de la personne de l’Ontario. Je tiens Ă  vous assurer que l’UniversitĂ© fera tout son possible pour appuyer les membres de la communautĂ© afin qu’ils reçoivent leurs vaccins en temps voulu et qu’ils aient accĂšs Ă  des tests de dĂ©pistage entre-temps si nĂ©cessaire.  

Nous poursuivons notre partenariat avec l’hĂŽpital Humber River pour offrir des cliniques de vaccination sur le campus Keele en aoĂ»t et en septembre. De plus, les personnes admissibles qui Ă©tudient ou travaillent sur le campus de Glendon pourront accĂ©der aux  de l’hĂŽpital Sunnybrook. Nous rappelons Ă©galement aux membres de la communautĂ© que les vaccins sont largement disponibles au Canada, sans rendez-vous, auprĂšs des unitĂ©s locales de santĂ© publique et des pharmacies communautaires.  

De plus, toute personne vaccinĂ©e en Ontario peut prouver qu’elle a Ă©tĂ© complĂštement vaccinĂ©e en tĂ©lĂ©chargeant le reçu papier ou le courriel du ministĂšre de la SantĂ© remis au moment de la vaccination. Les reçus de vaccination peuvent aussi ĂȘtre tĂ©lĂ©chargĂ©s sur le  ou en appelant la ligne provinciale de rĂ©servation des vaccins au 1-833-943-3900. Les Ă©tudiants et Ă©tudiantes qui arrivent au Canada en provenance d’autres provinces devront fournir la preuve de leur vaccination dans leur province d’origine et ceux et celles en provenance de destinations internationales pourront utiliser la  qui devait ĂȘtre tĂ©lĂ©chargĂ©e dans  avant leur entrĂ©e au Canada. L’UniversitĂ© 91ŃÇÉ« reconnaĂźt les vaccins contre la COVID-19 qui ont Ă©tĂ© approuvĂ©s par l’Organisation mondiale de la santĂ© et par SantĂ© Canada.  

Je sais que vous vous posez encore beaucoup de questions sur la façon dont ces mesures seront mises en place dans notre communautĂ©. Nous vous communiquerons des dĂ©tails et des instructions sur le nouveau processus appuyant cette exigence avant le 7 septembre. Merci de contribuer Ă  assurer un retour sĂ©curitaire sur nos campus cet automne. 

SincĂšres salutations,  

Rhonda Lenton
Présidente et vice-chanceliÚre

The post An important update on the vaccine requirement at 91ŃÇÉ« appeared first on Research & Innovation.

With a scarcity of COVID-19 vaccines in many African countries and the rise of new variants of concern, łÙłó±đÌęAfrica-Canada Artificial Intelligence and Data Innovation Consortium (ACADIC) is playing a pivotal role in providing locally nuanced analysis of data to inform public health decision making, as well as vaccination rollout strategies.

The interdisciplinary consortium is directed by 91ŃÇÉ« Professor  from the Faculty of Science. Also serving on the executive committee from 91ŃÇÉ« are: Distinguished Research Professor , director of the  in the Faculty of Science and ACADIC co-president; Professor James Orbinski, director of the Dahdaleh Institute for Global Health Research and ACADIC executive committee member; and LA&PS Associate Professor , associate director of the  and ACADIC executive committee member. ACADIC brings together an interdisciplinary team of data scientists, epidemiologists, physicists, mathematicians and software engineers, as well as AI, disaster and emergency management, clinical public health, citizen science and community engagement experts. It is leveraging big data and AI-based techniques in nine African countries, with experts from 11 different countries – Botswana, Cameroon, Canada, Eswatini, Mozambique, Namibia, Nigeria, Rwanda, South Africa, Zambia and Zimbabwe.

These techniques help identify and analyze emergent COVID-19 hotspots and outbreaks, and develop strategic, highly targeted and staged delivery plans for vaccines to priority areas. The team is also using ongoing monitoring to enhance COVID-19 testing to ensure public health interventions are equitable and effective.

Half of the world’s doses of vaccines have been secured by a handful of economically developed countries, but most African nations have received very few and continue to prepare and test their vaccination campaigns for when sufficient vaccine doses are made available.

A defining challenge is to develop local strategies that will reduce the number of COVID-19 cases, even as variants of concern circulate amidst a dearth of vaccines.

Some areas of focus for 91ŃÇÉ« researchers involved in ACADIC include:

• making big data and AI actionable for real-time delivery of reliable and comprehensive information to predict the spread and impact of an epidermic, and to guide governmental policies and best practice in an epidemic;
• the role of big data and AI in understanding and intervening in pandemics;
• big data, AI and COVID-19 in Africa;
• łÙłó±đÌę;
• vaccine acceptance/hesitancy across Africa;
• incorporating AI and mathematical modelling for smart vaccination rollout in vaccine-limited regions;
• clinical public health practices in epidemics and pandemics;
• intervention systems in disasters and health emergencies;
• disease dynamics and modelling;
• transferring lessons learned from mass vaccination simulation to Africa;
• disease modelling and simulation in refugee camps in Africa; and
• use of AI to model economic impacts of COVID-19 in Africa.

The post How artificial intelligence and big data are fighting COVID-19 in Africa appeared first on Research & Innovation.

Schulich School of Business organization studies Professor  and her collaborators, Stephanie Andel from Indiana University-Purdue University Indianapolis and Maryana Arvan from the University of North Carolina at Charlotte, set out to answer this question.

“Early on during the pandemic, the World Health Organization came out with recommendations that people should limit their consumption of news related to COVID-19 to just one to two times per day and from trusted news sources, and this really caught our attention,” says Shen.

Consider a worker who cannot stop watching the news because the number of cases in their community is rising. This worker is likely to feel significant anxiety due to their continued consumption of news, as the media tends to use attention-grabbing headlines to get us to keep tuning in or clicking on online articles. This anxiety may then interfere with workers’ ability to get absorbed in and mentally devote themselves to their work, as worrying may leave them with little energy or serve as an intrusive distraction when working. Workers may also differ in the extent to which their anxiety detracts from their work engagement.

In their new  published in the Journal of Applied Psychology, Shen and her collaborators examine relationships between COVID-19 news consumption, anxiety, work engagement and occupational calling by following a sample of 281 Canadian workers over a period of eight weeks during the first wave of the pandemic. They found that on weeks where workers watched more news than usual, they experienced greater anxiety, and consequently lower work engagement; however, workers who felt called to their job because it provides them a sense of purpose and fulfillment were able to maintain high levels of work engagement even when they felt highly anxious. Moreover, workers who were more engaged with their job in a given week generally experienced lower anxiety the following week.

“We’ve all heard a lot about the many difficulties of working during the pandemic,” says Shen. “Our study points to the fact that being engaged in their work can be beneficial for many workers, perhaps by helping them replenish or gain important resources, which can then help them manage their stress and anxiety.” Shen also acknowledges that this benefit does not seem to occur for everyone. The study finds that for workers who are drawn to their work because it allows them to help others, high levels of work engagement does not seem to pay off by reducing subsequent feelings of anxiety. This suggests that these workers may be particularly vulnerable during the pandemic, as their anxiety or investment in their work may tend to make them feel like they are not doing enough.

“With everything going on, many companies are worried about engagement during the pandemic,” says Shen. “Our work suggests that in order to promote an engaged workforce, companies should try to help their workers find personal fulfillment, joy and purpose in the work that they are doing.” 

The post Pandemic news consumption affects work engagement, study shows appeared first on Research & Innovation.

Brought to you by 91ŃÇÉ«'s Office of Alumni Engagement, the Scholars’ Hub @ Home speaker series features discussions on a broad range of topics, with engaging lectures from some of 91ŃÇɫ’s best minds. Events are held in partnership with Vaughan Public Libraries, Markham Public Library and Aurora Public Library.

Students, alumni and all members of the community are invited to attend. All sessions take place at noon via Zoom.

For the Aug. 18 edition of Scholars’ Hub @ Home, Professor Jane Heffernan from 91ŃÇÉ«'s Department of Mathematics and Statistics, Faculty of Science, will host a discussion titled "Immunity and COVID-19."

Attendees will learn how immunity against SARS-CoV-2, the pathogen causing COVID-19, can be gained from infection and vaccination. When a sufficient level of immunity is gained in a population, the population can obtain herd immunity and can be protected from disease spread. This talk will provide an overview of some modelling studies that quantify the outcomes of immunity generation in infected and vaccinated hosts, and asks whether the threshold of herd immunity can actually be achieved.

To register for the event, visit .

The post Next Scholars' Hub @ Home event looks at immunity and COVID-19 appeared first on Research & Innovation.

Karen O'Meara, department head of dramatic arts at Richmond Green Secondary School in Richmond Hill, Ont., was one such teacher. Determined to forge ahead with her combined Grade 11 and 12 musical theatre production, she reached out to , professor and Chair of the Department of Theatre in 91ŃÇɫ’s School of the Arts, Media, Performance & Design, whom she had been collaborating with on workshops for drama teachers. They both decided that this was the perfect opportunity to combine forces in a new way.

“At the time,” explains O’Meara, “I was putting on a production, which I then had to translate into an online production. What ended up resulting from that conversation was a number of 91ŃÇÉ« theatre students saying, ‘Hey, we don’t have anything to do. It’s the pandemic and everything is locked down; we would love to help with your show.’ So those were the initial seeds of this project.”

With the help of those enthusiastic student volunteers, Richmond Green presented its first online production in spring 2020 – and it was a huge success. Heading into the next pandemic-impacted school year, Schweitzer decided to take the project one step further by officially incorporating it into 91ŃÇɫ’s theatre curriculum as a for-credit experiential education offering called the Independent Production Practicum.

The course kicked off in January of this year and the seven enrolled students – Isabella Liscio, Megan Keatings, Hannah Smith, Rachel D’Arpino, Dave Harack, Laura Nigro and Joshua Kilimnik â€“ jumped right into planning mode, joining O’Meara for a two-hour meeting on Zoom every Monday night. When the high-school semester began the following month, the 91ŃÇÉ« students took the high schoolers through a series of theatre workshops, which O’Meara says “set the bar high for the students and gave them a fantastic foundation to continue with creative exploration.”

Through breakout rooms on their weekly Zoom calls, the 91ŃÇÉ« students went on to provide mentorship in areas where they had passion and interest. There were rooms for choreography, vocals, directing, producing and script-writing, to name a few. They attended the high-school classes whenever they could, and provided leadership within the classroom setting – running scenes and coaching students on various aspects of the show. Their contributions did not go unnoticed.

“The 91ŃÇÉ« students were outstanding,” says O’Meara. “They had so much genuine enthusiasm for what our students were doing. They were always willing to offer their expertise, make suggestions and provide great feedback.”

One of the 91ŃÇÉ« theatre students, Liscio, who just finished her third year specializing in performance creation and research, started working with O’Meara in May 2020 as a volunteer to get classroom hours for her teachers college application. She has now helped Richmond Green put on three productions. “This experience has meant so much,” she says. “I want to be a drama teacher and I didn’t have much experience working with high-school students before. I got to learn and explore with them what this genre of online theatre is and work with them in the areas of acting, directing, marketing and production.”

Another third-year student, D’Arpino, who is majoring in performing arts and concurrent education, originally applied for the course thinking it was a volunteer opportunity that would serve her well as she pursues a future as a high-school drama teacher. She was thrilled to discover that it had become a for-credit course and she hopes to continue her involvement with the school. “Karen wants our opinion, asks us to help and gets everyone involved,” she says. “The kids are so immersed in everything, learning it all and putting it together from scratch. It has been such an amazing opportunity to give input and watch the whole experience come to life.”

Like the others, Harack, who will be heading into his third year of 91ŃÇɫ’s theatre production program in the fall, plans to attend teachers college post-graduation. He knows this experience with Richmond Green will help him thrive in that setting and in the industry at large. “Seeing the students take the lead has been really awesome,” he says. “To see them progress from an idea to filming scenes and then editing, it was a really rewarding experience.”

Putting on a large-scale production during pandemic times certainly had its challenges, though, requiring the students to adapt on the fly to the ever-changing restrictions. “We knew we were only going to get a very short time together in person and we had to take advantage of every minute,” says O’Meara. “Our biggest learning was that if you want to produce work virtually, you have to be very organized, have a solid plan and be flexible to change.”

And change they did. The 28-person high-school class was expecting to have two in-person blocks for filming, but when everything was shut down after the first block, they had to go back to the drawing board and rewrite the script accordingly. “But because we had such a good plan at the start and a very good scene-by-scene vision, that really helped guide us when we had to make a change,” says O’Meara.

The end result was "Out of Sync," a completely student-written musical that went live on the evening of June 23 via Zoom, of course. The show was about four high schools – one private, one public, one arts-focused and one sports-focused – competing against each other in a lip-sync battle. As the rival schools went from cut-throat saboteurs to considerate allies, the show left its audience with the feel-good takeaway that music has the power to unite people from all walks of life.

Understandably, signs of the pandemic were everywhere in the production – students in masks, physical distancing, scenes filmed in students’ homes, in parks, on Zoom and some spliced together to make it appear that the cast was in the same place when in reality they were not. And perhaps that was part of the show’s charm, serving as a sort of time capsule for the strange and surreal year that was.

No one yet knows what the next school year has in store, but one thing is certain: the educational experience gained from putting on this production in such turbulent times will have a lasting impact for all involved.

“I’m delighted that our students have had such an exciting opportunity to work closely with Ms. O’Meara and the students at Richmond Green on the development of a new musical,” says Schweitzer. “Through this collaboration, they’ve developed leadership and teaching skills that will enhance their careers, whether they decide to go on to become high-school drama teachers themselves or pursue other creative avenues. I look forward to seeing this kind of partnership grow in the future.”

By Lindsay MacAdam, communications officer,ÌęłÛč󟱱ô±đ

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