Oct. 8, 2020

The fall-term reading week is the perfect time to catch your breath, relax and regroup ahead of midterms. If you’ve been feeling stressed about school or life in general (you're not alone!), check out some of the many supports and resources available to help with your studies and your well-being.

Academic Supports

• Golden Guide to Remote Learning: It’s never too late to get organized and plan for success in a virtual learning environment. Check out this to-the-point strategy article to start the rest of the term on the right foot.
• Study skills and online workshops: Topics include managing stress, procrastination, and avoiding Zoom fatigue. A complete schedule of fall workshops is posted in the Student Success Portal.
• Academic integrity: Familiarize yourself with the golden rules for acting with integrity in your academics, the behaviours which might lead to counter-productive habits, and some of the types of academic misconduct you’ll want to stay away from.
• On-campus study spaces: Did you know you can book out study space at the Brantford and Waterloo campuses? This is a pilot program and depends on every Laurier community member following safety protocols to stop the spread of COVID-19. To access your study space, you’ll need to pass the COVID-19 Self-Assessment Test on the SafeHAWK app, and you will be required to show your green badge to the student study-space host. If you don’t have the SafeHAWK app, you can download it from the App Store or Google Play.

Health and Wellness Supports

• Laurier’s Student Wellness Centres on each campus are open and conducting appointments virtually. Please call your campus wellness centre to make an appointment with a physician, nurse, mental health nurse, or counsellor.
• Remote wellness workshops: Coping with stress, food and your mood, resiliency and self-compassion are just some of the topics covered in these online workshops. Check out the full schedule of topics covered throughout October, November and December.
• Athletics and Recreation: Physical activity is so good for your mindset. Try a virtual exercise class, book a workout time at the Athletic Complex or the Laurier-Brantford YMCA, or get outside in safe and physically distanced ways. Waterloo Region and Brant County are filled with beautiful parks and trails that you can explore safely.

Thanksgiving Safety

Thanksgiving is this weekend, and many of you may be returning to your home communities to gather with family and friends. Please carefully consider your plans for the Thanksgiving weekend and their impact.

There is a significant uptick in COVID-19 cases across the province. We know people spread the virus to other people, and that the virus spreads easily in social settings. While it is less likely that you will become seriously ill from COVID-19, this is not the case for other community members – our elderly and those with underlying health issues most specifically.

Keeping our communities safe from COVID-19 is our shared responsibility. Actions taken over the Thanksgiving weekend will impact our immediate future if we ignore public health guidelines. If you must gather, consider who you’re gathering with, and please continue to follow public health measures, including wearing a mask, maintaining physical distance, and washing your hands.