Memorial is proceeding to resume additional on-campus research activities, fieldwork and research involving face-to-face interactions with research participants.

This will be done in accordance with an updated Framework for a Phased Approach to Returning to On-campus Research Spaces, Fieldwork and Face-to-Face Interactions with Research Participants.

At level 3 and level 2, the approvals of requests will be provided at the level of dean and school head, with some campus-specific processes as outlined in the framework.

We now plan to move to level 2 requests in line with the province’s move to alert level 2, but will drop back to higher levels should the provincial situation change.

Prior to approving on-campus access related to research activities under level 2 of the framework, including access by graduate students and postdoctoral fellows, building-specific Health and Safety Plans must be developed by academic units and be approved by Environmental Health and Safety (EHS), or the appropriate campus health and safety authority, for overall ramp up of operations (research, teaching and administration) within a building in which the research activity is to take place.

This will include defining measures to control and monitor space use and people flow in corridors, common areas (such as washrooms, lunchrooms, lounges, seminar rooms, classrooms, photocopy rooms, etc.), and shared graduate student or postdoctoral fellow offices.

In some cases, multiple academic and non-academic units will need to co-ordinate with each other when developing building-specific Health and Safety Plans, as in the situation where buildings are shared.

For resumption of research activities under level 2 of the COVID-19 Research Working Group Framework, researchers must download and complete the relevant request forms (see the Face-to-Face Interactions with Research Participants Request Form here; the Fieldwork Request Form here; and the On-campus Research Request Form here) and submit the forms to their dean or school head (see the framework for campus-specific procedures).

The requested research can proceed once it has (1) been approved by the dean or school head and (2) been approved by EHS (or the campus equivalent).

Deans, school heads and EHS (or the campus equivalent) must copy their approvals to research.requests@mun.ca.