Welcome students: Message from Dr. Ian Sutherland: Jan. 7, 2024

Hello Grenfell students, 

Tomorrow, Jan. 8, marks the first day of in-person classes at Grenfell Campus for the winter semester.  

Things will look a little different here as we navigate the challenges presented by the cybersecurity incident which took place on Dec. 29. This incident has impacted our IT services at Grenfell, requiring the temporary shutdown of Wi-Fi and @grenfell.mun.ca email. 

As soon as we became aware of the incident, we established a team of pan-university and third-party cybersecurity experts whose priority has been course delivery and your comfort and safety on campus. Staff here, and in St. John’s, have been working around the clock to find solutions.   

I’m happy to report that since we learned of the incident, there have been many positive developments.  

Your @mun services were not impacted. This includes your MUNmail email (https://my.mun.ca/munmail), MUN self-serve and Brightspace. This means you can continue to do things like add/drop courses or log into your course Brightspace shells.  

Services at the library are operational.  

A drop-in internet lounge has been set up in meeting room 3 at the Civic Centre. Here, you can log into online courses, FaceTime your family or check social media. It is open tomorrow, Jan. 8 from 9:30 a.m. to 9 p.m. As of Tuesday, Jan. 9, it will be open from 8 a.m. to 9 p.m. daily. 

Additional internet hotspots are being established around campus. A map of those hotspots will be shared in the coming days. 

The Grove is accepting debit and credit cards as well as meal plans. The Bursar’s Office and Bookstore are accepting debit and credit cards payments. 

The ATM near the Bursar's Office is also available.  

As we continue to work to bring services back online, stay connected by checking your @mun.ca email often, visiting https://www.mun.ca/updates for answers to frequently asked questions and checking Brightspace regularly to communicate with your instructors.  

I hope you’ll also join me for daily coffee breaks in the Arts and Science atrium at 10 a.m., starting tomorrow. This is a chance to chat face-to-face about any questions or concerns you may have. You’ll also find an “Ask Me” booth in the atrium where you can ask questions or get information at any time.  

I also want to send the deepest thanks and appreciation to all those working so hard to get us through this. In particular, a huge shoutout to the IT teams, and to our faculty, instructors and staff. We anticipate that it may take several weeks to fully recover, and I kindly ask for your patience and understanding as we work together to find solutions and overcome this challenge.  

I understand this may cause you stress and, as always, our doors are open. We’re all part of this great community that continues to come together when we need it most. 

Sincerely, 

Ian Sutherland