Lee students reflect on Global Perspectives trips after early return
Photo courtesy of Will Clark
When Lee students embarked on Spring Break, none could have predicted how the growing threat of the coronavirus would interfere with their return to campus. Many of Lee’s faculty and students have unique perspectives on this ongoing situation, focusing on preserving the health and safety of themselves and others.
To fulfill Lee’s Global Perspectives requirement, many students take time during Spring Break to travel abroad. This year, Lee students could be found all over the U.S. and Europe, including places like England, Ireland and Italy. When the dangers of the coronavirus rose to critical levels, however, the administration worked swiftly to change travel plans and academic calendars.
“I’m glad we went,” said Brian Conn, the Ireland Spring Break trip director. “The timing worked out to be just the last possible moment this trip could have happened.”
Dr. Paul Conn remained in touch with the student body via email updates and livestreams, explaining Lee’s precautions to ensure the health and safety of all students returning from their Spring Break travels.
Students on the receiving end of these emails found themselves in a variety of predicaments. While some students treated this as an extra few weeks of a break, others feared being trapped in countries experiencing lock-downs due to COVID-19.
Junior accounting major Katherine Lange was on an independent semester abroad in Rome during this time. She left in January without hearing about the virus and was unaware of how her trip would be impacted.
“I was nervous about the potential of getting stuck in the country … I bought four different tickets to get home,” Lange said. According to Lange, one-by-one, each airport began suspending flights.
Similarly, multiple students left in January for Lee’s UK Semester Abroad trip with plans to return at the end of the semester. Junior communication major Will Clark said he had not even heard of the virus before leaving the U.S. Clark explained students on the trip did not see any impact in the U.K. until stores began closing a few days before the group left the country.
As the UK Semester Abroad students soon flew home and landed at Hartsfield-Jackson Atlanta International Airport, a member of the U.S. Department of Health boarded their plane.
“They gave us these forms to fill out which asked if we had been to any certain countries in the past 14 days, which we hadn’t been,” Clark said. “They asked if we felt any symptoms. We had to give them our forms. Then, there were people waiting to take our temperatures when we got off the plane. They were wearing shields over their masks. It felt like something out of a movie.”
Upon returning, students and faculty on the trip were screened by Lee University Health Services to ensure all were healthy. They were then advised to self-quarantine for the next 14 days.
“I had waited for two years to go on this trip. It was sad, but we would’ve been stuck over there for a long time if we didn’t leave then,” Clark said. “I knew it was best to play it safe. We were there for almost two months, so we got a lot of experience. I understand where Lee is coming from. They’re keeping the students safe.”
Students on the Ireland Spring Break trip had a similar experience.
“Once we were in Ireland, I didn’t feel that the virus was any closer to us than it was back in Cleveland,” said Brian Conn. “The day we were leaving, there were around 60 confirmed cases in Ireland, which is a country of roughly 6 million people.”
As talk of the virus continued, Dublin began shutting down its main attractions, including its zoo and several museums.
“We were on a tour, and the tour guide told us before we started, ‘If one of you coughs or sneezes during this tour, we will escort you off the premises.’ That was probably the biggest precautionary measure we saw,” said senior psychology major Chmira Gilliam.
Upon hearing of a possible travel ban, trip leaders coordinated new flight plans to ensure each student would be able to return home. This resulted in splitting the students into two flight groups.
“We were supposed to go through Amsterdam, but we would’ve been stuck that way. They helped us to fly out of Dublin, leaving a day early. We got to the airport, and the U.S. Customs line was as long as the track outside of the Nursing Building at school,” said Gilliam.
“They would individually take you back, ask you questions to see if they could suspect you for carrying the virus, and then you could leave,” said Gilliam. “We got on the plane one at a time, and the pilot said he had to wait for every single person to board the plane. We waited an extra three hours for every person to get on the plane before we could fly.”
Once both flight groups had reunited, all students left the Atlanta airport and headed to the Health Clinic on campus, where they collectively arrived around 2 a.m.
“We didn’t interact with anyone upon landing. [We] were brought directly to the Health Clinic, and each of the trip participants were screened for preliminary symptoms of COVID-19 before being allowed to leave. Anyone who had shown significant symptoms would have been taken for testing. No one on the trip to Ireland was taken for testing,” said Brian Conn.
“They made it seem like we weren’t a hassle, even though I know it was,” said Gilliam. “They made it seem like it wasn’t a big deal for them to go out of their way to do all these things to ensure our safety.”
Afterward, Dr. Conn, with advice from the CDC, made the call that all students needed to self-quarantine for the next 14 days.
During this time, a female sophomore student was returning to campus from a domestic trip with friends. The student said she did not feel at risk of contracting the virus during her trip.
“When I thought I had symptoms, I went to the health clinic where they first tested me for the flu and strep,” said the student, who spoke to the Lee Clarion on the condition of anonymity. “When things were getting more serious, and a lot of my symptoms were lining up with COVID-19, I was asked for all the names and numbers of the people I had been in contact with. The health clinic called every single person to explain the situation and how important it was that they quarantined.”
The Health Clinic arranged for the student to receive a coronavirus test at a nearby location, and she traveled with a mask and gloves to prevent spreading the virus.
“I was moved into a house off campus so I wouldn’t have to stay in the dorms. They gave me a bunch of groceries and checked up on me every day to make sure I was doing well physically, mentally, emotionally. They’ve been very good at making sure I’m taken care of,” said the student.
After nine days, the test results came back positive, and Dr. Conn promptly addressed the student body in an email.
When this student’s test results came back as positive, the Tennessee Department of Health was given the information of all people that had come into contact with the student. The department called each person to ensure they were continuing with their quarantine and to answer any questions they might have and to see if they were experiencing any symptoms. None of those that came into contact with the student developed symptoms of COVID-19.
Later, Dr. Conn stated in a livestream he had been emailing the student to personally keep in contact with her and ensure she was doing well. During this livestream, Conn announced that campus would need to be closed for the rest of the semester. “Our highest priority is your safety and your health, and we have a responsibility to your family,” said Conn. “We can’t have the real life at Lee that we all love in a way that is safe and responsible as early as April 13.”
Since then, Conn has led multiple livestreams to keep students and families informed. He closed a recent email with, “I love you. I see you. You are my spiritual sons and daughters. I pray for you and all the wonderful faculty and staff that love you too. You can do this. We can do this. God is with us.”
Throughout this time, Conn has encouraged students to share any questions, comments, concerns or simply an update of how they are doing to studentfeedback@leeuniversity.edu.
“We all have to give up something, and for me, it was a lot of experiences,” said Lange. “We are absolutely in this together, not just nationally but globally. We all have to do our part and stay in and pray for the health of all of those around us.”
