Earthquake Statement:

Students,

On February 6th 2023, Turkey and Syria were hit with an earthquake, leaving millions of people in a dangerous and life-threatening situation. We send our most heartfelt and deepest condolences to anyone who has been affected by this natural disaster. We want to ensure that any student who has been affected by this natural disaster has access to the resources they need and have attached several in this statement for students to utilize if they need help.

In addition, we have included the student absence self-declaration form for students to use, which affords you up to 120 hours off from classes. We have also drafted a letter template that students can send to professors to provide more context on the situation. Note that this letter is not required – only the self-declaration form is necessary to utilize the new student absence policy. The self-declaration form for the UM student absence policy is attached to this post, and the pre-written letter can be found on our website.

UMSU understands that this is a very difficult time for our vibrant community campus and that many students feel scared, devastated, and alone right now. Please know that UMSU and the wider University of Manitoba community is here to support you in whatever way we can.

Humbly,
Your UMSU 2022-2023 Executives