At the May U3A Benalla Committee meeting we considered an update from U3A Network re COVID. A request for unvaccinated people to rejoin our U3A has been rejected, following Network instructions. We will continue to review our response to COVID drawing upon the advice of the U3A Network.
After the May Meet and Mingle, I attended the President’s Day briefing conducted by Network using Zoom. Network is investigating the future delivery of some classes as distance courses, with a small trial of these distance classes happening at the moment. U3A Benalla is not involved in the trial.
There was also discussion about the use of hybrid courses which would use both face to face and Zoom within the one meeting in the future. The technical issues of hybrid courses are causing difficulties at present and it appears that it will be at least 12 months before hybrid classes could eventuate.
U3A Benalla have a vibrant selection of courses at the moment, so neither the distance delivery or hybrid classes may be suitable for our needs. However, it was very interesting to hear about them.
Meantime we are hopeful that we have recruited a Ukulele instructor who has recently moved to the Benalla district. It is anticipated that a ukulele group could start later in Semester 2 2022.
Margaret Jenkins
President