Dear McMaster students, faculty and staff,
Whether you’ve been on campus throughout the pandemic, are returning to a familiar place, arriving in Hamilton for the first time, or joining us remotely, welcome back to McMaster!
This September will look and feel a bit different for many of us. It’s okay to have mixed emotions; over the last year and a half, we’ve all experienced stress, fatigue and challenges. We’ve also deeply missed the connections made by working, learning and discovering together.
We need to support and be patient with each other through this gradual transition over the fall term, acknowledging that it won’t be perfect. There will be situations we can’t predict and adaptations we’ll need to make. But there will also be joyful reunions, new friends, and a return to the vibrant buzz of campus life.
To protect ourselves and each other, we need to work together through this next chapter of the pandemic. This means following our health and safety guidelines-like wearing a mask indoors or when we can’t safely distance outdoors, getting vaccinated, and staying home when sick-but it also means leading with kindness, respect and understanding.
We’re committed to keeping you safe as well. Along with individual safety measures, we have assessed and upgraded ventilation systems across campus, equipped our buildings with clear signage and are following a comprehensive cleaning and disinfecting plan.
We want to make sure you have the information you need for the first week of term. Take a look through the Back to Mac guides for students, instructors, employees and supervisors, and don’t forget that our vaccination mandate comes into effect today. You can find more information on the mandate, including how to use the MacCheck digital tool, in our vaccination FAQs and information about testing on campus on this webpage.
We also want to take this opportunity to thank the staff and faculty who have kept McMaster running throughout the pandemic. It is because of your tremendous efforts that we have maintained the critical operations that keep our spaces clean, safe and beautiful, provided essential services, continued in-person teaching for vital learning activities and furthered ground-breaking research.
As you transition into the new academic year, we wish you all a healthy, safe, and exciting term. Please continue to watch for updates through direct emails, social media and our Back to Mac website. Though the pandemic has shown us that we must be prepared for the unexpected, what we are certain about is that we can’t wait to see you and welcome you Back to Mac.
Sincerely,
David Farrar
President and Vice-Chancellor
Susan Tighe
Provost and Vice-President (Academic)