COVID-19 response: Monday 11 May

Most of Aotearoa will move to Alert Level 2 on Thursday 14 May. Alert Level 2 will give us a bit more freedom in the way we live, work and study, and is thanks to the dedication and sacrifice of everyone across Aotearoa over the past few months. You have all played a role in this achievement and I thank you all. Ngā mihi ki a koutou katoa.

Alert Level 2 still has restrictions and the next few weeks may be challenging as we adjust to a new way of teaching and learning under this Alert Level. Our success will be measured by our ability to ensure that effective COVID-19 control measures and health and safety guidelines are in place that correspond to the Alert Level.

There is a great deal of work that goes along with this, including contact tracing. Our team has already completed a significant amount of this mahi. Now that we have timeframes for moving to Alert Level 2, we are focused on formalising these new systems and protocols before we can safely welcome you back to campus.

When will tauira and kaimahi be allowed back on campus?

• Tauira will not be allowed back on campus immediately following the country’s shift to Alert Level 2.
• Instead, we will take a staggered approach to opening our campuses, with kaimahi being allowed on campus first for health and safety preparations. We are in touch with kaimahi via email regarding a ‘return to campus’ schedule for them.
• Provided the COVID-19 situation is stable enough to allow us to remain at Alert Levels 2 or 1 for sustained periods of time, we are planning for tauira to return on site from Tuesday 2 June 2020.
• Until then, teaching and learning will still take place online.
• From 2 June, we anticipate all our campus facilities will be re-opened, but physical distancing and hygiene protocols will need to be followed.Information on protocols and precautions will be communicated to tauira by your kaiako and will be available on our website over the coming week.  

COVID-19 protocols induction

• Tauira will need to complete a COVID-19 protocols induction before they start classes on site. Likewise, kaimahi will also need to complete their COVID-19 protocols induction before they return to campus.
• We will provide tauira and kaimahi with a ‘checklist’ and supporting documentation that will detail the protocols you need to follow on campus under Alert Level 2. Kaimahi will go through these protocols with tauira and this information will also be available on our website. It is critical all tauira and kaimahi follow these protocols. We will communicate more detail on this over the coming weeks.

Noho

• Noho are expected to resume on site from Monday 15 June 2020.
• Timetabling details will be communicated in due course.

How will my on-site classes be different under Alert Level 2?

• Physical distancing requirements will apply in classrooms/teaching spaces. We are looking at class sizes and the impact this will have on programme timetabling if class sizes need to be adjusted, as well as any scenario that may impact on the COVID-19 protocols.
• Some classes may not be able to return to on-site teaching due to physical distancing requirements, and these will still be required to be delivered online. If any tauira are impacted by this, your kaiako will be in touch in due course.

Will online delivery continue until tauira can come back to campus?

• Until tauira can return to campus from Tuesday 2 June, kaiako will continue to carry out teaching online.
• We will continue to explore and implement opportunities for online delivery of programmes that are due to commence online delivery from mid-May.
• Some marae-based delivery may commence in the coming months – this is dependent on whether this can happen within the COVID-19 control measures and health and safety protocols. If you are in these programmes, your kaiako will be in touch with you on plans for this.

There is a possibility that Aotearoa may be moving up and down Alert Levels over the coming months, so we still need to ensure we can effectively activate online teaching and learning at any given point. 

We also need to acknowledge our tauira and kaimahi who are vulnerable and at-risk and therefore unable to return to campus for the foreseeable future. This is another reason why we will continue to have some people studying from home and so we will retain the option of some element of online teaching and learning as we move through Alert Levels. If you are vulnerable and at-risk, please reach out to your kaiako so we are aware and can ensure arrangements are in place for your learning. Likewise, kaimahi who are vulnerable and at-risk need to get in touch with their managers if they do not feel comfortable returning to campus at this stage.

What do tauira and kaimahi have to do differently once they are on campus?

• There will be a single point of entry on our campuses. This means all tauira and kaimahi must enter through the Main Reception areas. You will need to sign in each time you enter and leave the campus for contact tracing purposes.
• We will need to keep a physical distance of two metres from each other in all areas of the campus.
• Everyone will need to follow contact tracing protocols and maintain safe hygiene.
• Further information will be available on this in the coming weeks.

Frequently Asked Questions (FAQs)

Our FAQs will be updated to reflect Alert Level 2 over the coming week so please check back regularly on our website here. If you have any additional pātai, please contact our COVID-19 Response Team at ssc@wananga.ac.nz. Further updates will continue to be communicated with you as these are available. Continue to check your emails and follow the Awanuiārangi website and Facebook page for all the latest updates from us. 

This is a unique situation we all find ourselves in. We will continue to learn and adjust over the coming weeks and we ask for your continued support to ensure we can keep our Awanuiārangi community safe.

Professor Wiremu Doherty

Chief Executive Officer

Visit main COVID-19 Response Page