U of C says no changes to vaccine directive or masking mandate in COVID-19 update

The University of Calgary released a response to the province's lifting of restrictions Tuesday evening, saying that their plans remained the same.
"There will be no immediate changes to the University of Calgary’s Vaccination Directive or its masking mandate," the university said in a COVID-19 update. "The COVIDSafe Campus protocols are not part of the Government of Alberta’s Restriction Exemption Program.
"The university is currently assessing the changes to public health requirements and will provide a further update on health and safety protocols in the coming days.
"As we first communicated on January 14, classes and class components originally planned to be in-person will be in-person instruction on campus following reading week. Classes originally planned to be offered remotely will continue online."
Kenney announced earlier Tuesday that rules that require students to wear masks in Alberta schools will end on Monday, and children under 12 won't have to wear masks anywhere starting then.
PROVINCE RESPONDS
Late Wednesday afternoon, Demetrios Nicolaides, Alberta's minister of advanced education, tweeted that he expected post-secondary institutions to adopt new provincial policies.
"I expect AB institutions to align their COVID-19 policies with that of our gov't and I am eager to see students returning to in-person learning without proof of vaccination requirements this March," Nicolaides said.
CTVNews.ca Top Stories
BREAKING | U.S. President Joe Biden touches down in Ottawa
U.S. President Joe Biden arrived in Ottawa Thursday evening for a whirlwind 27-hour visit expected to focus on both the friendly and thorny aspects of the Canada-U.S. relationship, including protectionism and migration on both sides of the border.

Trudeau, Biden could agree to end 'loophole' in Safe Third Country Agreement: CP source
Canada and the United States are negotiating a deal that could see asylum seekers turned back at irregular border crossings across the border, including Roxham Road in Quebec.
Opposition parties affirm call for interference inquiry, amid questions over MP Han Dong
Amid renewed questions over the pervasiveness of alleged interference by China in Canadian elections and affairs broadly, opposition MPs voted Thursday afternoon to affirm a parliamentary committee's call for the federal government to strike a public inquiry.
'Scream as loud as you can': 5 boys rescued from NYC tunnel
Five mischievous boys had to be rescued after they crawled through a storm drain tunnel in New York City and got lost, authorities said.
Asteroid to hurtle past Earth closer than the moon this weekend
An asteroid discovered just last week will pass closer to the Earth than the orbit of the moon this weekend, an occurrence so rare it happens only once in a decade, according to NASA.
Number of Canadians receiving EI at record lows, down 44 per cent from last year: StatCan
The number of Canadians receiving employment insurance benefits are at record lows and down 44 per cent from last year, new figures from Statistics Canada show.
Indigenous sisters developing video games to revitalize Mohawk language
Two Kanien'keha:ka (Mohawk) sisters from Montreal are on a mission that is close to their hearts: to save their ancestors' first language by developing video games young and old can play.
Here are the locations of the first 12 new Zellers stores
Zellers has opened the first of 25 new locations within Hudson's Bay stores across the country. The Canadian retail chain launched 12 stores in Ontario and Alberta Thursday, along with a new e-commerce website.
South Carolina's top accountant to resign after US$3.5-billion error
Embattled South Carolina Comptroller General Richard Eckstrom will resign next month after a US$3.5 billion accounting error in the year-end financial report he oversaw.