Southeast extends coronavirus-driven suspension of 'study abroad' trips

If there is any doubt the novel coronavirus continues to be a global concern, Southeast Missouri State University has announced it will not offer “study abroad” experiences to its students through the end of the Spring 2021 semester.

“As with other institutional decisions made in response to the COVID-19 pandemic, this decision was made with the intent to keep Southeast students, faculty and staff safe and healthy,” said Mike Godard, Southeast’s provost since July 2019.

The decision to nix university-supported foreign trips is in effect during the current Fall 2020 semester and applies to all international travel, including faculty and staff.

Kathy Harper, director of university communications for Southeast, said 10 to 15 students “were interested in possibly participating” in international study (and) “were aware” the program might be canceled for the spring.

Harper added Southeast has offered study abroad opportunities for more than 40 years, ranging from short-term faculty-led programs to semester-long or year-long exchanges with partner universities.

Some of the most popular destinations for Southeast students, she said, included Ireland, Germany, France, Spain, Ecuador, South Korea, Japan, Taiwan and the United Kingdom.

Additionally, as recently as September 2018, Southeast signed agreements with universities in Guatemala, the Netherlands and Brazil, “paving the way for seamless and cost-effective opportunities for students to study abroad,” according to the university’s semo.edu website.

Godard, the university’s chief academic administrator, said Wednesday faculty advisers are working with affected students to reschedule travel plans or “find suitable academic alternatives to meet degree program requirements.”

Godard said the decision to extend the ban on university-supported study abroad trips was made in consultation with president Carlos Vargas, a native of Mexico, and Southeast’s 21-member Emergency Response Team, which was formed in March in response to COVID-19.