COVID-19 Information

Last updated March 11, 2022

in-person teaching and learning for the 2022 Winter Academic Semester will resume for classes of 100 students or less on February 28, 2022. Read the message

The impact of the COVID-19 pandemic has been felt around the world, including at the University of Prince Edward Island. Although COVID-19 has changed aspects of how we teach and learn, UPEI remains committed to providing high quality education, as well as access to engaging and rewarding learning experiences, in a safe and responsible manner. 

Beginning in March 2020, the pandemic forced all faculties and departments at UPEI to adapt existing plans and develop new procedures and protocols to ensure the safety and well-being of students, staff, faculty, and future visitors. After operating under an essential services model for two months, the University unveiled UPEI’s Operational Ease-Back Plan—Planning the Way Forward in May 2020, which outlined a three-stage approach to returning to working, teaching, learning, and conducting research on campus. While we aligned the plan with guidance from PEI Chief Public Health Office (PEI-CPHO), the public health authority on PEI, we also introduced our own unique measures to ensure the safety of our vast and diverse community of students, staff, and faculty.

UPEI safely welcomed students, faculty, and staff back to campus in September 2021. Over 75% of our courses were in-person, while the remainder were delivered online or in a hybrid format for the convenience of our students. 

2022 Winter Academic Semester

The plan for the 2022 Winter Academic Semester was to return to a pre-pandemic level of in-person activities, meaning that UPEI would resume in-person course delivery methods and classes across all faculties, with limited exceptions. However, in December 2021, due to the arrival of the Omicron variant and a significant increase in the number of COVID-19 cases on PEI, the University Senate endorsed a move back to online teaching and learning for the beginning of the winter semester. UPEI extended online teaching and learning several times based on PEI-CPHO guidance for post-secondary education.

After the PEI-CPHO released its Moving On—Transition Plan to Living with COVID-19 and issued updated guidance for post-secondary guidance in February, UPEI confirmed its mode of delivery for the remainder of the semester. 

It was announced on February 16 that the UPEI Senate, in accordance with the updated winter 2022 Public Health Measures for PEI Post-Secondary Education, decided that in-person teaching and learning for the 2022 Winter Academic Semester will resume for classes of 100 students or less on February 28, 2022. Read the message

The UPEI Operational Plan – 2022 Winter Academic Semester includes guidance, plans, and protocols that have been developed to support students, faculty, and staff. We continue to base our campus operations on guidance from the PEI Chief Public Health Office (PEI-CPHO).

We know that our plans may need to change again, depending on evolving public health conditions and requirements, but we are prepared for that possibility. We will post updates to these web pages as soon as they become available and communicate any changes directly with members of the campus community by email. 

University updates and messages

We actively work with the PEI Chief Public Health Office and other networks to keep the UPEI community updated about risks and health and safety guidance associated with COVID-19. UPEI began communicating to students, staff, and faculty about COVID-19 in January 2020, sharing appropriate information from official government sources. Messages to the campus community are distributed by email and posted to the kansasinvestigation.com website (see below) and UPEI SAFE app.

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COVID-19 Information

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