Carleton University announced via email on Nov. 15 that changes have been made to the winter 2022 course schedule.
Classes that were supposed to be conducted in-person next semester have been switched to an online format.
“The date and time of your classes will have remained the same, but the course delivery type (in-person or online) may have changed,” the email announcement read.
In less than a week, an online petition calling for transparency from the university around the course delivery decision has amassed more than 4,000 signatures.
This decision came as a surprise for many students like second-year software engineering student Edidiong Okon who moved to Ottawa from Nigeria last month expecting her winter courses to be in-person. All four of Okon’s classes are now online.
“The fact that I am here is an additional financial responsibility. I’m paying for residence and now, I don’t even think I need this room because this situation here, like studying online, is basically the same as it was back home,” Okon said.
Chris Babcock, a second-year global and international studies student living with his family in Malawi, said he was planning to move to Ottawa this winter to attend his five classes scheduled in-person. He now only has one.
Babcock said he is confused about why the changes were made and is hoping the university will repeal their decision and return his classes to an in-person format.
Francesca Lepore, a second-year global and international studies student, said online learning makes it challenging to build relationships with her peers.
“There’s so many people that I have from my Zoom classes who I haven’t had the opportunity to meet with and the online environment really doesn’t foster community,” Lepore said.
Lepore, a Vancouver, B.C. native, said that three of her four classes have been moved online.
“Going forward, the university has to have better communication. They have to be a lot more transparent with big issues like this one,” Lepore said.
Steven Reid, a spokesperson for the university, wrote in an email to the Charlatan that when students registered for winter classes in July, the delivery mode had not yet been finalized. He said that as a result, when the mode was determined, some classes switched from in-person to online.
“The change caused understandable confusion and disappointment, and for that we are sorry,” the email reads.
The winter term will have about 50 per cent of classes in person compared with the 30 per cent that were in person this term, according to Reid. He advised students to continue to review their course schedule for changes.
Anthony Valenti is a second-year global and international student and the program’s councillor for the Carleton Academic Student Government (CASG).
Valenti said he urged elected student representatives from the Board of Governors (BoG), Rideau River Residence Association (RRRA) and the Carleton University Students’ Association (CUSA) to speak with the administration on behalf of students impacted by these changes.
“I want to see activism. I want to see advocacy,” Valenti said. “It’s crucial that our student leaders are in constant contact with their colleagues to properly advocate in a way that isn’t performative.”
Amy Hinchey, president of the Bachelor of Global and International Studies (BGInS) Society, said she’s heard from many students who are “frustrated” and “disappointed” following Monday’s changes.
Hinchey said the BGInS Society is looking to reach out to the university but she, like others who spoke to the Charlatan, is unsure of who is behind the changes.
CASG president Jennifer Ramnarine and CUSA vice-president (student issues) Valentina Vera Gonzalez held an Instagram live on Thursday afternoon to update students on the situation after meeting with Carleton University vice-president (students and enrollment) Suzanne Blanchard.
“What Suzanne basically said is even though they don’t have to social distance, they don’t have to respect these capacity limits, they’re going to because they want to prioritize safety measures,” Ramnarine said.
In a letter sent to the university’s president and provost on April 15, Carleton University Scenario Planning (CUSP) working group noted that although the Ontario Ministry of Colleges and Universities announced that in-person classes can resume without physical distancing, the group recommended that the university continues to comply with the Ottawa Public Health guideline for physical distancing.
Reid wrote in the email that future semesters would be closer to normal.
“Notwithstanding any changes due to the ongoing pandemic, we anticipate a return to more conventional course delivery and mostly in-person courses by the spring/summer 2022,” Reid wrote.
Featured image from Screengrab.
