Risk Management this Summer
Over the past decade, World Leadership School has become a leader in both student travel and risk management consulting through our work with dozens of independent schools in the US and Canada organizing international student travel programs and training their trip leaders on risk management through our Administrator and Trip Leader Workshops. We analyzed risks and assessed student travel programs prior to the pandemic and are continuing to integrate this new risk into our existing protocols. There is no doubt in anybody’s mind that travel, domestic and international, will continue to look different for the foreseeable future. We remained focused on a responsible return to travel.
At World Leadership School, we take a holistic approach to evaluate risks on our programs from the perspectives of each of our stakeholders: students, community members, faculty, instructors, and families. Our programming is centered around building lasting relationships with local communities and provide students incredible opportunities to immerse themselves in a community we know and trust. We maintain the same level of responsibility to our students as we do to the communities they visit.
Our decisions leading up to this summer will focus on the travel regions, restrictions (at local, regional, and country levels), and the pandemic outlook in the United States. The resources we will continue to use for making decisions regarding travel are the Centers for Disease Control, the US Department of State, the World Health Organization, and governing bodies in each location.
Current Travel Outlook
International and Domestic Programming with Few Changes
With the prospect of a vaccine being widely available throughout the United States by May and available in many of our travel locations by the start of summer, we are optimistic that travel can resume in 2021 with few modifications. The primary indicator for this scenario will be a decreased advisory status from the Centers for Disease Control, Department of State, and regulatory agencies in our travel locations
Benchmarks:
- Widely-accessible vaccine in both the United States and travel location
- A significant decrease in the daily caseload in the United States
- Low daily caseload in the travel region
International and Domestic Programming with Major Changes
In the event there are no significant improvements to caseloads in the US or each travel location before our summer programs, major modifications to our programs may be necessary. Major changes we will consider if these benchmarks are met are mandatory 10-day quarantine upon arrival in-country, limited in-country travel, adjustments to program dates, and cancellations of specific programs. Modifications to our domestic programs may take the form of an enhanced isolation period at the beginning of the program and schedule changes. In the event any of these modifications are necessary, we will make every effort to ensure families have access to another program or we will issue a refund in line with our refund policy.
Benchmarks:
- Consistently-elevated COVID positivity rates in our travel regions
- Elevated CDC and Department of State travel advisories
- Local information from coordinators and communities in the travel location
Cancel International and Domestic Programming — Proceed with Domestic Programs
The final potential situation is program cancellation. Our tolerance for canceling domestic programs is markedly different from international programs. Proximity to home, lack of air travel, and the ability to maintain social distancing on programs make our U.S.-based programs less complicated to manage. However, in the event of continued elevated COVID-19 caseloads in the United States and in our travel regions, specifically, the possibility of a full cancellation of programs may be necessary. In the event of full program cancellation, we will issue a refund in line with our refund policy.
Benchmarks:
- Rising COVID-19 caseloads in international travel locations
- Lack of vaccine access in international travel locations
- Local medical facilities above 75% capacity within 2 weeks of the program
Enhanced Protocols
We anticipate many of our student travel programs to run this summer and continue to adjust our policies and protocols to match guidance from the US Centers for Disease Control and local governing bodies. A few of the standard protocols we plan to implement this summer to mitigate the risk of COVID-19 are in-line with what most students have experienced in their schools and communities.
No matter where we travel, a few of our new policies and procedures will be required:
- For two weeks prior to departure, each traveling student will track symptoms through our online health form and isolate within their family unit.
- Each student must present a negative PCR test result taken within 72 hours of departure.
Students are required to travel with the following:
- Personal digital thermometer
- Masks (3) that cover both nose and mouth
- Individual (3) hand sanitizers
Throughout our program, our groups will continue to emphasize good hygiene:
- Frequent hand washing
- Cleaning surfaces before use with sanitizer wipes
- Mask wearing when in public, or outside of the group
- Maintain a distance of at least 6 feet, whenever possible
We are excited to offer the opportunity for middle and high school students to responsibly return to travel. More information and updates on our COVID-19-specific policies or travel outlook can be found on our website.
If you have any questions about risk management on our student travel programs, please do not hesitate to contact us at info@worldleadershipschool.com.
