At MacEwan, animals have had a meaningful presence on campus for many years, supporting staff, faculty and students.

We would like to share some important updates to our animals on campus standard, as well as provide an update to our Pets Assisting with Student Success (PAWSS) program.  

Our animals on campus standard has undergone a review and refresh to reflect the safe, respectful and coordinated way in which animal presence on campus is managed. The main updates to this standard include: an emphasis on the priority activities of service-related animals, clarity around which animals can be on campus, and the types of animal access and activities available at MacEwan. Please read the updated standard here.

We are happy to confirm that the PAWSS program has received endorsement to continue with internal activities at MacEwan University. This allows for ongoing purposeful interactions on-campus with students, staff and faculty, further supporting the wellbeing of our campus community.

We want to ensure the safety of all members of our community and maximize the potential positive impacts that we know animals on campus can bring. We will be clearly advertising where and when PAWSS activities will take place.

PAWSS will be overseen by Student Affairs and further updates to programming and scheduled activities will be shared with you. Student Affairs has the capacity to integrate activities into larger mental health and wellness initiatives and is well positioned to sustain the program moving forward, building new and exciting opportunities that benefit students, first and foremost, and our entire campus.

We ask our community to be mindful that not all animals on campus are associated with PAWSS. Interacting with animals who have other important responsibilities (e.g. service animals) can cause harm to the handler and animal. We also ask that any animal that does not meet the specified purposes outlined in the animals on campus standard are not brought to campus.

Dr. Craig Monk
Provost & Vice-President, Academic

Originally distributed by GlobalMail