A fall term
like no other

September’s return to class at Western always promises a fresh start and new optimism.

This fall, Western is aiming for a clean slate in more ways than one as the term begins under a blended model of in-person and online courses emphasizing health and safety as well as quality education and student growth.

In just a few short months, the university – along with everyone teaching, working, researching and studying here – has reinvented itself to limit the spread of COVID-19.

Sweeping changes to operations include extensive signage and messaging across campus and making facemasks mandatory for all. Invisible but essential upgrades to facility ventilation have also taken place.

There are program pivots that make OWeek a mostly virtual event while still building community.

And there are instructional innovations that redefine what it means to teach and learn and thrive in a digital environment.

We’ve compiled a sampling of these changes – each of them helping nurture excellence in teaching, research and scholarship – in this special back-to-school edition. Check them out and see why Western, even in this most unusual of September starts, remains purple and proud.