With the support and collaboration of the whole academic community, Politécnico de Leiria was able to deliver high-quality education throughout the academic year 2020/2021, despite the disruptions caused by the COVID-19 pandemic.
Portugal’s high COVID-19 vaccination rate and the government and health authorities’ decisions have enabled us to prepare a safe return to in-person activities.
Considering the Recommendations for Higher Education and Science Institutions to ensure safe curricular and non-curricular activities (DGES/DGS) and the Resolution of the Council of Ministers No. 114-A/2021 of 20 August, Politécnico de Leiria will adhere to the following guidelines from 13 September:
- All teaching/learning activities meant to be in person will restart, according to the regime of each study programme.
- All support services, research and development activities meant to be in person will restart, except those not supposed to, according to the law.
- Schools’ Deans, in collaboration with Coordinators of Departments and Coordinators of Programmes, will design risk mitigation plans under their specific needs.
- It is still mandatory to use a mask in all in-door spaces at Politécnico de Leiria. During teaching activities, teachers are allowed not to use masks ensuring there is a minimum safety distance.
- Politécnico de Leiria will continue providing disinfection equipment (for hands and surfaces), encouraging the academic community to use them to access teaching spaces or the workplace. We also encourage you to clean the surfaces you’ve touched after using them.
- Politécnico de Leiria advises the academic community to maintain doors and windows open to ensure indoor air quality. Doors should also be kept open to avoid people touching on the same surface.
- We emphasise that gyms and other sports facilities, including dance and body language classrooms, follow the above-mentioned health and safety guidelines, as well as the physical safety distance. People are allowed not to use masks when doing exercises in those spaces.
- Politécnico de Leiria will continue providing in-person enquiry services, but you should book a slot in advance.
- In-person meetings can return, but people can also keep using videoconferencing tools to meet with your colleagues, including for public assessments, namely, a dissertation defence, project or report teamwork, human resources hiring processes, and governmental and management meetings.
- Student accommodation will continue working according to the legislation in force. The number of people allowed in common spaces will be increased.
- Food Services spaces (canteens, cafeterias, etc.) should return to the pre-pandemic number and organization of tables, leaving a one-space gap between users. Canteens will maintain their takeaway services and the opening hours will be extended.
- If there are suspicions of a possible positive COVID-19 case, you should follow the procedures stated on Politécnico de Leiria’s Contingency Plan and the guidelines provided by the SNS24 once you contact them.
Politécnico de Leiria encourages the academic community to get vaccinated to protect Public Health and prevent the spread of the SARS-CoV-2 virus.
Please keep doing with your hard work, so that together we ensure everyone follows these safety rules and act responsibly to protect others. Together, we will move toward social and academic normality, which is certainly everyone’s desire!
We thank the academic community once again for all its incomparable hard work, collaboration, and resilience.
Inform the academic community of this Order and publish it on the website of Politécnico de Leiria.
Order No. 216 /2021
Guidelines Update – COVID-19 – Academic Year 2021/2022
Leiria, 10 September 2021
Rui Pedrosa
President of the Polytechnic of Leiria