Education Abroad in the Time of the Coronavirus
by Sylvie Burnet-Jones
We hope you and your families are safe in these troubled times and will enjoy the Global Buffs stories in this edition of your Global Buffs Gazette: Jeff Risom found his dream job when he returned to Denmark; Andrew Stromberg’s program was brutally interrupted by Coronavirus; Rachel Kois was inspired by her program to create her own online marketplace; Monique Duvoisin was the “heart and soul of CU's exchange with the University of Bordeaux for decades”; among others.
Our academic year started very positively. For the first time in CU’s history, we sent more over 2,000 students abroad in 2018-2019 and ranked in the top 30 US institutions for number of students studying abroad. At the start of the spring semester, we were on the way to reaching our 2011-12
Generation Study Abroad goal of doubling the number of students going abroad in ten years. But the spread of COVID-19 turned our world upside down. We had to recall more than 1,000 spring students from abroad and cancelled all summer programs. Prospects for future semesters remain uncertain.
Because the office’s funding structure is based exclusively on fees charged to study abroad participants, we had to make the difficult decision to downsize our staff, with the majority of remaining employees on partial furlough this summer and throughout the year. Unfortunately, our scholarship program also fell victim to the crisis:
we lost 80% of our funding for the Buffs Abroad Scholarships, the portion that came from our operating budget. Fortunately, we still have funds from donors (many thanks to all our donors!) but those only represent 20% of the total scholarship amount and will not be enough to help all students with financial needs who wish to study abroad.
More than ever, we welcome any and all contributions to the Education Abroad scholarship fund, no matter the size.
As we work to rebuild for the future, we stand battered but not defeated. Our team is working relentlessly on creative ways to offer students alternative opportunities to access the benefits of a global experience while international travel is on hold. We’ve also started planning our faculty-led programs for 2021, aiming to offer 50 different options with CU faculty. Education abroad has become a key component to undergraduate education. In a post-pandemic world, where international travel becomes safe again, students and their families will still expect CU to provide world-class education abroad programs as it has for the past 60 years. We will be ready and more committed to our
mission than ever “
to inspire students to become global leaders in a culturally diverse world.”
As the new editor of the Global Buffs gazette, I welcome you to
share with me and the Education Abroad office how your study abroad experience has changed you, where you are now, and what you’re doing across the world. We would love to hear from you and feature you in our next edition!
Table of Contents photo: Grace Tipley, CIEE Spain: Alicante Liberal Arts
The Global Buffs Gazette: Spring 2020 - News for CU Boulder Education Abroad Alumni
?Last Updated June 2020