Mitigating the impact of COVID-19 at Ca' Foscari and the Suzhou Office

When Italy tackled the coronavirus outbreak in March by introducing a nation-wide lockdown, Ca' Foscari moved all of its teaching and administrative activities online, thereby guaranteeing the uninterrupted continuation of teaching and student services for the entire academic community. During the lockdown, we provided for over 1,200 online courses, over 36,000 hours of classes, 896 master’s degree defences (all of those that were scheduled) and carried out hundreds of exams.
After two months of lockdown, the nation entered Phase 2 of its three-phase coronavirus emergency response. Businesses reopened gradually and social distancing and mask-wearing were maintained. As the negative impact on the economy became clearer, the university committed to assisting students in financial difficulty by introducing a range of financial aid dedicated to assisting with the reduction of tuition fees, the cost of internet connectivity, the purchase of devices used to follow online lectures and the expenses of public transit and housing.
Phase 3 of the national emergency response began in September. In the firm desire to allow in-person teaching and research to resume as much as possible, Ca' Foscari has implemented a plan for the fall semester that puts professors and students back in the classroom. The system limits the number of students physically present by employing a reservation system for spots in the classroom and permitting those who do not have a reservation to attend lectures in person to follow their classes online. This has been implemented while maintaining complete compliance with the provisions put in place by the Italian government with regard to social distancing.
With regard to international exchange and cooperation, and the specific case of the Suzhou Office on the campus of Soochow University, the university has continued its work in spite of the pandemic. Although international travel has been essentially eliminated, thereby making academic exchange experiences problematic, digital and online solutions have been put into place. Since March, Ca' Foscari has maintained contact with Chinese partner institutions and students thanks to the organization of webinars and online conferences. Suzhou Office staff has also participated in virtual education fairs and helped new Chinese applicants to bachelor's and master's degrees as well as the Marco Polo programme carry out the new administrative procedures introduced in response to COVID-19. Work also continues on cultural projects whose planning had begun before the pandemic.
In addition to all of this, the Suzhou Office also organized a beginners' Italian language course in the city of Hefei for this month. The course allows Chinese students to learn Italian from Chinese instructors in the classroom and with the assistance of mother-tongue Italian teachers online.