Re-introduction of COVID-19 procedures on UNSW campus(s).

Dear Merlin and to the Uni Council,

Following the Albanese government's address on the 30th of September 2022, regarding the removal of covid isolation to be replaced with a non-mandatory quarantine, we would like to request the re-introduction of COVID-19 procedures on campus.

This request comes on behalf of the concerns voiced by students with autoimmune and other health-based disabilities who are anxious about the loosening of laws and procedures which detrimentally shape their health, quality of life, and their student experience on campus.

Students have expressed their concerns about the lack of COVID-19 mandatory isolation and would like to see UNSW, one of the leading institutions that prioritised COVID-19 research take an equitable approach on this matter.

Vast amounts of research have also demonstrated that when healthy able-bodied students contract more severe variants of COVID-19, they are likely to develop underlying disabilities, develop a risk of acquiring long covid and experience lifelong changes to their immune, respiratory, and other biological systems.

As the Students with Disability Co-Officer for 2022 and 2023, I believe the following procedures should be put in place to secure the safety of this demographic and all those that wish to remain COVID safe for the safety of their loved ones and/or themselves.

Reintroduce masks for all poorly ventilated areas, and;

Continue to have sanitation scrub downs between tutorials/lectures;

Introduce ventilation systems in all large to medium sized classrooms;

Introduce mask dispensers at the entrance and exit of all buildings across UNSW Kensington, Paddington, and Canberra,

Ensure all sanitiser bottles are filled and readily available to use;

Make it mandatory that all closed spaces that can be ventilated are ventilated within the teaching period and or to not offer classrooms closed spaces for everyone’ safety;

Always offer an online or hybrid tutorial for every course for the safety of the students and teacher;

Always have lectures streamed via online platforms.

If you have any further queries, please do not hesitate to contact us as we are happy to discuss how we can better the lives of students and their loved ones, without compromising their safety and also balancing their student experience. I kindly look forward to your response.

Kind regards,
Michael Rahme
SWD Co-officer 2022