SCHULICH LAW’S RESPONSE TO COVID-19
Law school community rises to challenges caused by the pandemic In the wake of a global pandemic, the Schulich School of Law has worked hard to support students and to lessen their financial burden through these uncertain times. EMERGENCY BURSARY FUND The Schulich Law Emergency Bursary Fund was set up in April to assist students with unanticipated expenses as a result of the pandemic. Since then, we have awarded 146 bursaries totalling more than $143,000. This would not be possible without the contributions of our generous and loyal donors. EMPLOYMENT OPPORTUNITIES In addition to the bursaries, we have added 85 employment opportunities for students: 39 research assistantships and an additional 46 internships. All together the Schulich Law Annual Fund will support $650,000 in student employment initiatives, and together with our endowed internship funds we will have supported a total of 124 opportunities.
FACULTY RESEARCH AND ADVOCACY Our faculty members have been hard at work in research and advocacy related to the pandemic in the areas of health law, human rights and environmental regulations. Some examples include: • Professor Elaine Gibson has been researching and speaking about state quarantine powers in times of pandemic, as well as the need for provision of personal protective equipment to help care providers during the COVID-19 outbreak. • Professor Joanna Erdman has been working with International Planned Parenthood Federation/Western Hemisphere on pandemic-related mobility restrictions and their impact on sexual and reproductive health services in Latin America and the Caribbean. • Professors Matthew Herder (LLB ’03, LLM ’06) and Sheila Wildeman (’99) recently received a CIHR Grant. They will address how the pandemic has restricted access to a safe supply of substances and will develop evidence-based recommendations to support access to safe supply. • Members of the Health Law Institute, led by Professors Matthew Herder and Constance MacIntosh, received a grant from the NS COVID-19 Health Research Coalition to identify solutions that can be implemented to address health law- and policy-related deficiencies and gaps that have been caused or revealed by COVID-19. • Professor Adelina Iftene has been doing a great deal of advocacy and writing related to decarceration during the pandemic. • Professor Sheila Wildeman has been working to ensure that the rights of individuals with disabilities living in institutions are considered in pandemic planning. • Professor Constance McIntosh has been advocating for the rights of Indigenous communities who have been disproportionately impacted by COVID-19. • Professor Meinhard Doelle (LLB ’89, JSD ’05) has been exploring the negative impact of the pandemic on the economy and the environment. • Professor Emeritus Wayne MacKay (’78) has been providing media commentary on a wide-range of issues related to the pandemic. • Professor Jocelyn Downie has been examining issues around Coronavirus triage protocols and end of life issues arising from the pandemic. A big thank you to our alumni and faculty for stepping forward in these particularly difficult times.
VOLUME 41 · 2020
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