[COVID-19] Restart & Recovery

To: Principals, Deans, Academic Directors, and Chairs
From: Cheryl Regehr, Vice-President & Provost 
Vivek Goel, Vice-President, Research and Innovation, and Strategic Initiatives 
Date: May 14, 2020 
Re: [COVID-19] Restart & Recovery 

The University of Toronto is preparing for a gradual safe return to our campuses for faculty, librarians, staff and students. As an institution, we are following the advice of public health authorities as we develop a range of options in the face of incredible complexity and a constantly evolving situation. We are guided by a commitment to the health and safety of our community, to maintaining academic excellence, and to ensuring that our students feel a part of U of T’s caring community.  

Reopening will take time and our plans will need to be flexible. We are preparing guidance documents in the areas of research, environmental health and safety, academic continuity, student experience, residences, and more. These guides will be broadly shared with you and the U of T community over the next couple of weeks. Thank you to all those who have contributed insights, advice, and time during the ongoing consultations. Many of you are also working hard to develop plans in your divisions and departments to respond to a range of scenarios for a return to our campuses. We appreciate your patience as we coordinate our approach for restart and recovery.  

Thank you for your leadership and resilience under these difficult circumstances. We look forward to our continued collaboration as we create a roadmap for the weeks and months ahead.