March 16, 2020
Dear APUS members,
The Association of Part-Time Undergraduate Students (APUS) is carefully monitoring ongoing public health concerns related to COVID-19, including updates and recommendations from the University of Toronto administration to ensure the safety of our members. Out of care and concern for our membership, both APUS offices (Sid Smith and North Borden) will be closed for the month of March and until further notice. Additionally, all scheduled programming and events for March and April, including our tax clinics, will unfortunately also be postponed until further notice. As previously announced, our Annual General Meeting scheduled for this past Friday, March 13 was also postponed until further notice.
Despite our office closures, we want to assure you that we are still here to support you as part-time students during this very difficult and stressful time. Announcements from U of T, the Faculty of Arts & Science, UTM, UTSC and other faculties and departments regarding classes, exams, and University services are frequent and frequently changing. We know that many part-time students may not have access to the internet or a personal computer at their homes, and rely on access to campus libraries that may now be closed or operating with limited hours. We want to ensure that all our members are able to remain safe and healthy while accessing the resources that they need to complete their courses this semester. If you are a student without access to a personal computer or with limited access to the internet, please contact us as soon as possible. We will work with you and your Registrar’s Office to help find a solution.
APUS staff will be working remotely to help you find resources, answers to your questions and advocacy support. We have also updated our Academic Advocacy Intake Form on our website to reflect the current situation (https://apus.ca/academic-advocacy-and-support/). You can contact us as follows:
- APUS Member Services Coordinator at services@apus.ca for questions related to the Health & Dental Plan or filing your taxes.
- APUS Academic Advocacy Coordinator at advocacy@apus.ca for questions related to academic accommodations, general academic support & advocacy, or access to a personal computer and/or internet.
- APUS Executive Director at ed@apus.ca for questions related to office closures, the postponed AGM, and any other questions.
We will continue to provide updates to our membership by email through our listserv, on our social media, and our website. We care deeply about all of you and we continue to be here to support you.
With love,
The Association of Part-Time Undergraduate Students