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If the COVID-19 crisis has taught us anything, it is the importance of quick, decisive action to avert catastrophe. The University of Pretoria's Gordon Institute of Business Science (GIBS), like many business schools, faces unprecedented change as learning methodologies, business environments and markets are turned on their head. Follow the School’s responses as it pivots to respond to this international pandemic.

Almaty Management University (AlmaU) experiences transformation following online studies and distance work as prevention measures against COVID-19. The new work format focuses on the well-being of the students and teaching and administrative staff, which is the top priority for AlmaU. The University continuously supports faculty members, students and staff via formal and semiformal sessions.

In the face of the COVID-19 pandemic Poland has introduced epidemic state and partial lock-down there fore HEIs had to switch from almost entirely campus-based teaching to remote mode of teaching in a relatively short time. The University of Economics in Katowice decided to adopt a step-by-step strategy. It allowed both students and academic teachers to get accustomed to the new tools, platforms and methods of teaching/learning with less stress and resistance, which is typical for anyone facing change and stepping out of the comfort zone.

IBS-Moscow RANEPA shares experience of increasing the share of distant courses in its curriculum from 10% to 100% in a week's time. During Moscow authorities’ preemptive measures in keeping the COVID-19 from spreading, IBS-Moscow chose to be the first business school to close up on-campus offline education and temporary transition educational programs involving 750+ students and 150+ professors to online education, while insuring the quality of all supplementing processes.

Organizing full-time learning with online technology during the pandemic has posed challenges for educators in Kazakhstan and worldwide. The Eurasian Center for Economics and Law Research at the Narxoz University School of Law and Public Policy looked at the transition to online learning at Narxoz from the perspective of students and faculty.

The Covid-19 pandemic has pushed higher education institutions online to ensure that effective learning continues. While technology can facilitate seamless migration of face-to-face learning to a virtual platform, accessibility to quality digital content is crucial, especially during the Movement Control Order (MCO). As the workplace is rapidly expanding beyond the lecture halls, online classroom delivery will become a new norm.

The COVID-19 pandemic promptly corrected the plans of everyone in the world. In quarantine situation, when governments of the most countries recommended citizens to stay at home. Under such unusual conditions majority of business schools faced with a challenge how to organized study process without interruption and how not to lose clients, find a new ones and successfully adapt programs to total online learning? The KROK Business School team demonstrated ability to quickly navigate and change the format and transfer all existing programs to online mode, as well as to launch several innovative projects.

In a very short time, the University of Economics and Human Sciences in Warsaw (UEHS) managed to shift all classes to the internet platform. In such a way, all students can continue their education. The challenge was enormous, as it required high mobilization of all administrative and academic staff. At the end of the day, the collective effort paid off. The students are satisfied, and the staff is gaining new valuable experience.

COVID-19 needn't be a horseman of the apocalypse in human history. In every crisis, there is both danger and opportunity. Global civic universities can become change agents in solving “wicked problems” of society, requiring a system approach, social agency and a different way of thinking. He waka eke noa=we are all in this together (Māori proverb).

SKOLKOVO has transferred to the distance working regime taking care of health and safety of its employees: some programs are held in the online format and all internal meetings and seminars are conducted at Zoom platform. SKOLKOVO has also launched a virtual classroom which allows holding interactive events and educational programs for degree and corporate clients.