Concerns prompt cancellation of student trips abroad until April 30
Concern over the coronavirus has resulted in the cancellation of school-organized trips.
On March 4, education minister Zach Churchill announced the province's regional centres for education had collectively decided to cancel all school-organized student trips to international destinations until April 30, including those that had been planned for March break.
The announcement came four days after Nova Scotia’s Acadian school board – the Conseil scolaire acadien provincial (CSAP) – withdrew its approval for international trips planned by three of its schools.
“The situation involving COVID-19 continues to evolve and the regions made the decision, based on discussions with Dr. Robert Strang, Nova Scotia's chief medical officer of health, to adopt a low-risk approach for students and chaperones. I fully support this direction,” said Churchill, in announcing the decision of the regional centres for education.
It was a similar message from Chris Boulter, regional executive director with the TriCounty Regional Centre for Education.
In a letter to students and parents/guardians, Boulter said the decision to cancel school-organized trips abroad is disappointing, but was deemed necessary.
“We recognize that international travel provides a valuable educational experience for students,” he wrote.
“However, we also know that the public health situation involving COVID-19 is evolving at a rapid pace. Given the importance of the well-being and safety of our students and chaperones, the Tri-County Regional Centre for Education has made the difficult decision to cancel all school-organized trips to international destinations between now and the end of April.”
For those who were going to participate in a school-organized international trip in March or April, “trip planners will be in touch with you with more information,” Boulter wrote.
No decision has been made regarding school-organized trips to international destinations that may have been planned for May or June.
“Our Regional Centre for Education will continue to monitor the situation and, after consulting with public health officials, we will provide further direction by April 9,” Boulter said.
Churchill said the department and regional centres for education have no control over non-school-sanctioned trips, other than not allowing meetings related to these trips to happen on school property.
"Outside of that there's not much we can do from a system perspective," he said on March 5.
He said his office and regional education offices were fielding calls from people concerned about those trips going ahead.
CSAP WITHDREW ITS SUPPORT
Before the education department had made the announcement, the CSAP had already withdrawn its approval for March break trips that had been planned by three of its schools, including École secondaire de Par-en-Bas in Tusket, Yarmouth County, due to concerns about the coronavirus. A group of 30 Par-en-Bas students and chaperones were to visit Italy.
On Feb. 29 the CSAP rescinded previous motions that had been made approving school trips for Par-en-Bas, École acadienne de Truro and École NDA in Chéticamp.
CSAP spokesperson Stéphanie Comeau said the board’s main priority is the safety and security of students and chaperones.
The board was concerned trip participants might be exposed to the virus and they could be quarantined while in Europe, Comeau said.
“And if one student or chaperone is affected, the chances are that the whole group would be quarantined,” she said.
Comeau said the CSAP took the decision regarding the school trips very seriously.
“The board looked at different factors from the World Health Organization, the travel advisory list and also information coming from Nova Scotia health authorities,” Comeau said. “It was not a decision that was taken lightly.”
Parents who had insurance will be able to work with travel companies to get a refund, she said.
Some CSAP schools have trips planned for later in the school year, including École secondaire de Clare. What will happen with those trips will be determined as they get closer to their scheduled departure date.
MONITORING WILL CONTINUE
The decision by the regional centres for education to cancel all school-organized student trips to international destinations until April 30 affected 1,200 students, the education department said. Some of the planned destinations included high-risk areas.
Churchill said ultimately it was too much of a risk to have students landing at international airports and mixing with potential coronavirus carriers.
Concern over students being stranded by quarantines and travel restrictions also existed.
Churchill said the almost two-month ban on student trips allows the centres and his department to monitor the spread of coronavirus.
“It’s temporary because we don’t know what’s going to happen in the next couple of months," Churchill said.
The ban could be extended depending on how serious the coronavirus threat becomes.
Churchill said the cancellation decision came from centres of education to ensure parents would be covered under some travel insurance agreements. Those agreements specifically required trip cancellations had to come specifically from the centres for parents to get their money back.
The minister also said he’s looking into what can be done for those with no protection. He said regional centres are working with travel companies and “evaluating things like vouchers.”
"We’re doing whatever we can to ensure parents recoup those costs.”