Schools cancel trips to U.S. amid travel ban
Essex County board, Ryerson concerned some students would be turned away
More schools have joined the growing list of organizations that have cancelled class trips to the U.S. amid travel restrictions imposed by U.S. President Donald Trump’s government.
A school at Ryerson University and the Greater Essex County school board joined the Girl Guides who announced last week that they would be suspending their trips to the U.S.
Permanent residents of Canada who are citizens from one of six Muslim-majority countries — Syria, Sudan, Iran, Somalia, Libya and Yemen — can be denied entry to the U.S. under revised travel restrictions that went into effect last Thursday.
“We didn’t want to risk our students not being allowed entry into the U.S.,” said Christopher De Sousa, director of the School of Urban and Regional Planning.
The School of Urban and Regional Planning has made the difficult decision to constrain their field trips to Canadian destinations in 2017, De Sousa wrote in a Feb. 17 email.
Usually about 130 students visit the U.S. every year, but this year the School will visit the Canadian cities of Ottawa, Montreal, Quebec as well as Sweden/Denmark, Vancouver/ Victoria and Ecuador, he said.
The Greater Essex County District School Board is reviewing its field trip policy and about 100 students were part of the trips that were cancelled, said Clara Howitt, Essex County District School Board Superintendent of Education.
“The district cancelled a handful of trips bound for the U.S.,” she said. “One trip in particular was planned for Washington during the time of a social justice rally whereby a half million people were expected to be there for the protest. We did not feel it was safe to have staff and students in Washington during the planned protest.”
While the Ottawa-Carleton District School Board has not cancelled any trips to the U.S. so far, a letter was sent out to parents and students telling them they could opt out of trips if they so choose.
Other school districts have not cancelled trips but continue to monitor the situation.
“At this point in time, no trips to the U.S. have been cancelled as a result of changes at the border, however we’re continuing to closely monitor the situation as it develops,” said Ryan Bird, spokesperson for the Toronto District School Board.