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Message of support to the Laurier community from the Office of the Provost and Vice-President: Academic

Message of support to the Laurier community from the Office of the Provost and Vice-President: Academic

June 30, 2023

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This message is sent on behalf of Heidi Northwood, provost and vice-president: academic, Trish McLaren, associate vice-president: academic, and Vanessa Oliver, interim associate vice-president: equity, diversity, and inclusion and is a follow up message to the president’s message about the disturbing act of gender-based violence that took place at the University of Waterloo on Wednesday.



Dear Laurier community,

The Wilfrid Laurier University community is shocked, saddened and outraged by the act of gender and identity-based violence that took place at the University of Waterloo on Wednesday. This is a traumatic event for our friends and colleagues at UW, and we stand with them in support and solidarity. These incidents do not occur in a vacuum, and this event also deeply impacts our community here at Laurier.

The rise in anti 2SLGBTQQIA+ rhetoric is very troubling and we must stand in solidarity with our colleagues engaging in equity-related teaching and work at Laurier and other postsecondary institutions. Historically, the 2SLGBTQQIA+ community has been targeted by violence, and we are mindful that many others on our campuses, including Indigenous, Black, racialized, disabled and neurodivergent community members, also face intersectional forms of violence.

We stand united against gender-based violence and all other forms of hatred and bigotry and are absolutely committed to being a community where everyone can thrive and feel safe. In solidarity with UW and the 2SLGBTQQIA+ community, Laurier will continue to fly the Progress Pride flag on both campuses throughout July.

As we collectively process this violent incident, we will prioritize being intersectional, trauma-informed and person-centred as we move toward healing. Campus community members who identify as Two-Spirit, trans, non-binary, queer, gender non-conforming, and women will likely be disproportionately impacted by these events and may require additional supports. The well-being of our students, faculty and staff remains our top priority.

We also want to remind the community that Laurier has resources available to faculty, staff and students to foster an inclusive environment for people who identify as trans and gender non-conforming.

For those of you in classes this semester, please reach out to let us know how we can best support you. The Office of Human Rights and Conflict Management (humanrights@wlu.ca) is available for counselling support for faculty, staff, and students, and there are multiple counselling resources listed below. For instructors looking for information and resources regarding classroom safety, contact the Office of the Provost and Vice President Academic at vpacademic@wlu.ca.

In preparation for the fall semester, we will be organizing workshops for faculty members to learn what to do in the event of an intruder entering their classroom. Laurier, like all universities, has in place emergency response protocols for violent acts on campus and we will be reviewing our systems and processes over the summer.

Thank you for continuing to support our friends at UW and each other. We know that many of you have been increasingly worrying about an event of this nature happening and we urge anyone who needs support at this time to reach out to the services available to students, faculty and staff listed below.

Sincerely,

Heidi Northwood
Provost and vice-president: academic

Trish McLaren
Associate vice-president: academic

Vanessa Oliver
Interim associate vice-president: equity, diversity and inclusion



Resources

Students

Staff and Faculty

  • Homewood Health EFAP, call 24/7/365 Toll-free (English): 1.800.663.1142 
  • Delton Glebe Counselling Centre: 519.884.3305 or glebecentre@wlu.ca
  • Laurier Human Resources: 519.884.0710 x2007

Everyone

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