Highlights
- As a result of the global COVID-19 pandemic, Wiki Education closed its office in the Presidio and moved all its operations online. In order to deal with the new situation, staff created a contingency and a crisis communications plan for each program. We also instituted a weekly COVID-19 briefing aimed at creating a shared understanding of how the pandemic affects our organization. A “Friday virtual social hour” helps staff deal with being isolated at home.
- March 2020 also saw dramatic changes to the higher education landscape as the vast majority of courses in the U.S. moved to online platforms as a result of the outbreak of COVID-19. It was a chaotic time for our instructors and students as they all adjusted to this new mode of learning, and Wiki Education was there to help. Wikipedia Student Program Manager Helaine Blumenthal checked in on courses to see if they needed additional help and to let them know that Wiki Education’s support would remain uninterrupted. We were truly heartened to hear from so many of our instructors as we all adjust to these new circumstances both in our professional and personal lives. We are grateful that we can continue to work with our instructors and students during this challenging time, and hope we can provide our students with a meaningful educational experience whether they are on or off campus.
- We launched the third Scholars & Scientists course in partnership with the Society of Family Planning (SFP) to improve Wikipedia articles related to abortion and contraception. We know that Wikipedia plays a significant role in the research people do about health and medicine, and we are happy to work with SFP to ensure the public has access to the highest quality information about family planning.
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For student work highlights; examples of great work from our Scholars & Scientists, Wikidata, and Visiting Scholars Programs; finance and fundraising updates; and more read our full report here.
