The Frank J. Guarini Institute for International Education

September 15, 2017

Dear Students, Parents and Friends:
 
Recent terrorist incidents in UK, Spain, and other countries in Europe and elsewhere have heightened concerns about the ongoing threat of potential terrorist activity across Europe and around the world, including in the U.S. and many of the locations where Dartmouth operates programs abroad. As has been the case in recent years, we anticipate this is an issue we will have to continue to pay close attention to for the foreseeable future.
 
While there are risks unique to the overseas setting, security experts and university officials believe that students can safely study in the foreign countries where we hold our programs. However, when incidents do occur at overseas locations, the impact on participants and their families are often more profound because of the unfamiliarity of the context and the distance that separates participants from their primary source of support. This is something we should all continue to keep in mind.
 
During times of heightened security concern, we ask that students participating on our programs pay attention to the following:

• Keep in regular contact with their parents
• Regularly keep abreast of news and information available through trusted reliable information sources (International SOS, local and international news sources, etc.)
• Remain vigilant by paying attention to their surroundings and be prepared to respond to instructions from local authorities, their Dartmouth faculty program director, and our local partners
• Keep a peer, a local host, or their faculty director informed of their whereabouts
• Provide detailed contact and itinerary-specific information to their faculty director and local host for any travel away from the program location
• While traveling, leave extra time to check in at airports or other transportation hubs, and be prepared for possible delays
• Keep a copy of their passport and ID with them for use in any ID checks
• Review and continue to practice the basic travel safety tips shared during orientation meetings
• Keep program emergency contact information with you at all times (Dartmouth faculty director, local hosts, International SOS, Dartmouth Safety and Security 24-hour dispatch [+1-603-646-4000]) 

Dartmouth's program locations around the world have proven to be safe locales for our programs in the past and we expect they will remain safe. Should circumstances dictate a different approach by Dartmouth, we will update our guidance accordingly and promptly reach out to off-campus program participants.
 
All the best and safe travels.
 
Sincerely,
 
John G. Tansey
Executive Director
The Frank J. Guarini Institute for International Education
Dartmouth College
44 N. College St., Suite 6102
Hanover, NH  03755  USA
Tel: (603) 646-1202
 
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