Dear UWI Mona Student,

We hope that you and your family are safe and well.

On Friday July, 3, 2020 we completed Semester II for Academic year 2019/2020. We are happy that as a University, we were able to successfully navigate the challenges we faced. This was achieved by having all hands on deck, working together to provide solutions for the campus, the country and the Caribbean region.

During the period April 3 to 15, 2020, The UWI Mona allowed Jamaican students residing in Halls of Residence to collect their belongings. With teaching for the semester set to close on May 29th, students are again being permitted to retrieve their belongings from the Halls of Residence. Collection of belongings from the George Alleyne, Irvine and Leslie Robinson Halls will be facilitated from Wednesday, May 27 through Saturday, May 30, 2020 from 9:00 am to 4:00 pm daily.

(From left) MGI Director, Dr Parris Lyew-Ayee Jr, Brigadier Radgh Mason from the Jamaica Defence Force, President of the PSOJ Keith Duncan, Senior Superintendent of Police Stephanie Lindsay, and Chairman of the Council for Voluntary Social Services Saffrey Brown pictured at the launch of the PSOJ COVID-19 Response Fund.

As the quest for a vaccine for the novel coronavirus (COVID-19) continues, The University of the West Indies (The UWI) is coordinating the participation of several Caribbean countries in the World Health Organization's (WHO) global mega-trial called SOLIDARITY.

The senior executive leadership of The University of the West Indies (The UWI)—the Vice-Chancellor, Campus Principals, Pro Vice-Chancellors, University Bursar and University Registrar—have all committed to allocating a percentage of their salaries for the next three months towards a student hardship fund. The aim of the fund is to promote equity of access for all students as well as provide much needed additional counselling services during this time.

Professor Dale Webber, Principal of The UWI Mona elbow bumps final year student, Rodanne Corney who is one of the beneficiaries set to receive a device donated though a cross-sector partnership to support students in need, access online learning platforms.

In keeping with the Covid -19 protocol established by the Government of Jamaica, The UWI Mona Campus has suspended most face to face activities on campus including teaching, meetings and gatherings with more than ten persons, thus reducing daily traffic on the campus. The daily campus traffic/population has also been significantly reduced as a number of staff are working remotely and most students residing in the Halls have returned home. This reduced traffic increases the risk of theft and other criminal acts on the campus.