By Lauren Chan | Communications Coordinator
To respond to the global COVID-19 pandemic, Asian University for Women (AUW) entered a precautionary response period on 11 March 2020. Over this period, the campus closed to all but vital workers. Online provision of teaching was swiftly implemented and administrative support was enhanced to ensure the health and safety of our residential students and frontline staff. We have seen new community spirit emerging amidst the confusion as students, faculty, and support staff adjust to living in a rapidly evolving context. Currently, more than 100 students have made the informed decision to remain on campus, while all others have been supported in returning to their home countries.
To bring together our international community, AUW has been hosting a series of virtual panels in its 'AUW Strong' series, featuring the particular experiences of our diverse community in the wake of COVID-19. The first in this webinar series was moderated by AUW Chancellor Cherie Blair and was joined by both current students from the Rohingya community as well as AUW alumnae who are working with UN agencies and others at the forefront of the Rohingya refugee crisis in Bangladesh.
The second webinar in the AUW Strong series featured Dr. Maryam Qudrat, AUW Trustee and Lecturer at California State University Long Beach, in conversation with AUW alumnae from Afghanistan. This panel brought color to the ways that individuals in conflict-affected countries, like Afghanistan, address and adapt to the threats of COVID-19. AUW alumnae shared their perspectives, work experiences, and hopes for the future.
In the third panel, stakeholders from across the apparel industry came together to discuss how the boom in the readymade garments industry brought jobs and opportunities to millions of women in Bangladesh, including the ability to enroll in Asian University for Women's Pathways for Promise program for entry into undergraduate education. Our panelists shed light on how the global pandemic has disrupted the industry in Bangladesh and discussed how – and in what new form – the industry might emerge in its aftermath.
AUW will continue to host webinars in the coming month. We hope you will tune in!
We are grateful to members of the international AUW community for their support during the COVID-19 emergency. Though the world is in peril, we are stronger together.
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