15 April 2020

Belgium Campus COVID-19 Communication (10) Dear: Students, Parents, Staff and Friends of the Belgium Campus iTversity Community,   We may have addressed some of you on occasions such as the academic opening, graduation, or any other event; however, we do not often reach out to the entire Belgium Campus community directly. But the current situation calls for such a communication. The COVID-19 pandemic has had such an impact that we feel we must reach out to you now. The global and disastrous impact of the virus has necessitated the implementation of several political measures in our country, which have a great impact on our higher education institution. Sadly enough, we all witness how this sinister virus is impacting our families, our friends, our communities, our very own way of life. None of us are left untouched, and it hurts to see how our prosperous campus life has come to a complete standstill. It is not the first time that we highlight the importance of your trust, your contribution and your support and we are thankful for that. During these difficult times we ask for your help to cope with the uncertainties of the current situation. We are facing a daunting task to tackle the problems and prepare for the emergence of an entirely new global system, while we remain optimistic that our world will thrive once again. We would therefore like to inform you that for a start we have adopted a policy of full compliance with the government’s directives. Although we find ourselves in times of emergency, we shall continue to stick to our values of academic integrity, inclusiveness, equal treatment, truthfulness, character building and self-reliance through transparency, factual dialogue and fact-driven decisions. It’s time for facts, not fear. CNN started the ‘Facts First’ campaign and defined it well: “In a time of uncertainty, facts provide clarity; in a time of anxiety, facts comfort; in a time of misinformation, facts correct; in a time of division, facts unite; in a time of crisis, facts matter most.” Some countries are advocating the so-called ‘herd immunity’ strategy, whereby group-immunity is built up through a policy of the ‘survival of the fittest’. In addition to the fact that it is opposed by the WHO and many reputable epidemiologists, this strategy goes against the Belgium Campus’s values of inclusiveness and solidarity with the disadvantaged. We have had no choice but to close our campuses as part of the lockdown measures set out by the government to contain the virus. Consequently, we decided to optimize the use of information and communication technology (ICT) and deliver our programmes online. However, the process of shifting to virtual teaching and learning is easier said than done. The shift clearly exposes the digital divide within our country, its education institutions, and the students at these institutions. Some are far better equipped than others, and internet access remains a problem. Like most other higher education institutions, we were fast to respond to this disruptive crisis. For many institutions, this situation will further complicate the existing challenges, including budgetary inadequacies, systemic inefficiencies, low adoption of technology, and low capacity to generate funds internally. Public institutions may eventually receive assistance from the state to overcome the consequences of COVID-19. We as a private not-for-profit institution, have to operate with a business model that is heavily dependent on tuition fees and corporate funding for survival. As an ICT institution we have risen to the occasion and promptly have taken the opportunity to improve and maximize our ICT operation by investing heavily in new infrastructure to keep up with the rapidly changing global educational landscape in a successful way. We consider this threat, as well as the approaches to overcome it, as the catalyst for long-lasting changes which should enable us to successfully complete our mission and vision as one of the private key players in the South African educational landscape. Let us unite, open our mind and touch hearts As we have entered a lockdown period of several weeks, we would like to take this time to reflect and thank all members of the Belgium Campus community for their continued cooperation and support during these difficult times. It is only as a result of this dedication and commitment that we are able to cope and prepare for the future. Thank you to our students and their parents for understanding the severity of the situation and for allowing us to comply with the government’s order to close our campus, including vacating our residential facilities. We realize that this was not a simple issue, particularly for residence students whose parents or relatives had to travel a great distance on such short notice. Your cooperation does not go unnoticed; it is greatly appreciated. Thank you to our support, admin and academic staff who continue to go above and beyond their duty in preparing for the lockdown. We are grateful for your continued hard work and dedication to provide our students with the quality education they deserve. Without your efforts, we would not be able to make the necessary provisions to save the academic year by providing online classes. To all our staff who must stay home out of necessity, thank you for your understanding. We still count on all of you when the situation gets back to normal. Lastly, we would like to thank our security team who have continued to keep our campuses safe. Your task is extremely important, especially during this time of increased risk. Let us, in hardship, prepare for an extraordinary destiny What we are facing is, simply put, daunting. The disruption of our lives is unprecedented, proven by the fact that we receive many heart-breaking messages of growing worries. It takes time and patience to respond and finetune everything for each of our individual community members. We see some students struggling financially, with parents becoming temporarily unemployed and students losing their student jobs, all having trouble making ends meet. While we do not always know the full extent of