Following the suspension of Elon University’s study abroad programs in Italy, students returning from Florence are going to be reimbursed. According to the Global Education Center, students will be reimbursed for the flight, program fees and any remaining meal vouchers.
Following concerns over the spread of the new coronavirus, which is also known as COVID-19, Elon required students and faculty to leave Italy by the end of last week. This included 20 students and one faculty member from Florence as well as five students from Elon’s partner program in Sorrento.
Shanna Van Beek, communications manager of global education, said students in Florence will be reimbursed for the cost of the return flight, as well as $5,755 for program fees and meal vouchers. Elon aims to have the reimbursements processed to student accounts by March 6.
“It’s trying to recoup a portion of that, recognizing that we’ve had to implement a really significant change to the program,” Van Beek said.
The Elon partner program in Sorrento through the Sant’anna Institute was also suspended on Feb. 29, with five students returning to the U.S. to complete coursework online. Van Beek said each program suspension is handled differently. As of March 3, students leaving Sorrento will be reimbursed by Elon for their return flight.
“We made the decision to suspend the program and recall students really before we had every other logistical question answered because we didn’t want to be delayed in making that really important decision by getting caught up in the details,” Van Beek said. “I know that’s really frustrating for students and their families. We’re definitely still working through all of that.”
Elon University policy says if a location is under a level three or level four travel warning from the Department of State, the university prohibits travel to that location, Van Beek said. The Centers for Disease Control and Prevention and the Department of State have assigned Italy a level three warning. The CDC recommends avoiding non-essential travel to Italy, as there is “limited access to adequate medical care in affected areas.”
Van Beek said the timing for sending students back was specific in part due to the constant changes with the coronavirus as well as the virus’ impact on travel restrictions.
“We were worried that we might reach a point where our students in Italy would not be able to return to the United States,” Van Beek said. “Should the situation progress to where students are being quarantined or restricted from returning back to the United States, that would be a very serious situation.”
Similar precautions have been taken in the past. Van Beek said Elon worked with students who studied abroad during the Zika virus outbreaks in South America and Ebola virus outbreaks in Africa.
Senior Lecturer in Spanish and professor for the Florence program Ketevan Kupatadze hopes to act as a liaison between professors at the Accademia Europea di Firenze and students back in the U.S.
“This was still very much the beginning of their journey, and they were looking forward to the other three months that they were going to spend here,” Kupatadze said. “Some students mentioned that they chose Elon because they would have an opportunity to spend a semester in Italy or abroad. To have to cut their semester short and return back without really completing the experience is really heartbreaking for them.”
Students returning to the U.S. will continue their coursework online starting March 9. Van Beek said this is to give professors time to shift their course, initially designed for in-person instruction, to an online platform.
After Spring Break, students who were abroad are able to return to campus if they would like. While they are not required to, Van Beek said, it is an option.
“There will be communication from Residence Life later this week with exactly how that will look on campus,” Van Beek said. “The details of where they are invited to live, what on-campus housing is available. … Residence Life is working really hard to come up with a suitable option there.”
Dean of Students Jana Lynn Patterson said after Spring Break, the university will focus on helping students transition if they choose to come back to campus.
North Carolina identified the state’s first case of COVID-19 on March 3. The North Carolina State Laboratory of Public Health conducted the test, which will be confirmed by the CDC lab. The person who contracted the virus is doing well and is currently in isolation.
“I know that people are worried about the virus, and I want to assure North Carolinians our state is prepared,” Gov. Roy Cooper said. “Our task force and state agencies are working closely with local health departments, health care providers and others to quickly identify and respond to cases that might occur.”
Vice President for Student Life Jon Dooley updated students, faculty and staff on March 2, saying Elon is continuing normal operations, “even as we plan for a possibility that we could be affected on campus at some point in the future.” As part of the preparation, Elon set up a special website dedicated to keeping the community informed as updates on coronavirus continue to develop.