Strengthening student and community safety

Strengthening student and community safety

New campaign to help students protect themselves and the Kingston community from COVID-19. 

By Dave Rideout

August 20, 2020

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Campaign sample imagery. "It's our community. Keep it safe."
Health and safety guidance and resources will start to appear in students' social media feeds as they return to Kingston.

Queen’s students returning to Kingston should soon see a number of helpful resources and directives in their social media feeds designed to help keep them and the Kingston community safe from COVID-19. A targeted communications and advertising campaign launched today will direct students to important information, ranging from health and safety precautions to special tools created to help them return safely and responsibly to campus and the community. 

Though the majority of students will continue to learn remotely this fall, a limited number are returning to campus for in-person classes and many others will be moving into Kingston, either to residences operating at 50 per cent capacity or off-campus accommodations.

“Our new campaign has been carefully designed, with the help of students and our community partners, to effectively reach students and give them the health and safety guidance and resources they will need to keep themselves and others in the city healthy and safe,” says Michael Fraser, Vice-Principal (University Relations).

The digital campaign will be running for the next four weeks and it will deliver a series of health and safety messages directly to students. These messages will be animated and will highlight such essential public health protocols as handwashing, physical distancing, avoiding large gatherings, and wearing of face coverings. 

The campaign will also encourage students to click through to a number of important student resources developed by Student Affairs to help them prepare for a safe and healthy fall term. These include an off-campus living guide, a COVID-19 student prevention checklist, and a student household COVID-19 Plan worksheet. These resources will be publicly available on the university’s COVID-19 website, which will also be updated regularly with key information for students around academics and student support services.

The campaign is one part of a broader plan aimed at ensuring a safe and gradual return to normal operations, as evolving public health guidance permits. Queen’s continues to work with partners in government and at KFL&A public health to inform this ongoing process. Queen’s student associations – the Alma Mater Society (AMS) and Society of Graduate and Professional Students (SGPS) – are also providing guidance and will be reaching out to students to ensure they are informed.

Learn more about the university’s broader coronavirus safety planning and gradual and safe return to campus on our COVID-19 Information website.