Friends World Program of Long Island University

Health & Safety

Emergency Protocols

The China Center follows all emergency procedures established by the Global College and Long Island University. It is university policy that no Global College students should be permitted in countries with State Department travel warnings in place. The student and/or student’s parents should contact the appropriate university administrators for more information.

The China Center subscribes to the U.S. Department of State Travel Warnings (DOSTRAVEL) electronic mailing list, which notifies members of all travel advisories and warnings issued around the world and provides Consular Information Sheets for these countries. If a travel advisory is issued for the People’s Republic of China, the Global College students will be notified by the Academic Director and precautions will be taken to ensure the safety of students. If a travel warning is issued, students will be evacuated from the country in due course once it is safe to do so. We encouraged all students to subscribe by sending an email to DOSTRAVEL and typing in the message body: “SUBSCRIBE DOSTRAVEL YOURNAME” (omit the quotation marks and leave subject blank). You can also use the online subscription here.

The Global College China Center is registered with the U.S. Department of State. Students are also required to individually register their passports with the U.S. Department of State prior to departure or immediately after arrival and to provide a copy of their passport information (including the information page, visa page and entry stamp) to the Administrator. Students should also fill out their local address in China on page five of the passport in pencil. Students should be advised that their passport is the property of the U.S. government and is not a personal possession, so it is the responsibility of the holder to ensure that it is not lost or stolen. This is particularly important for absentminded individuals. A copy of your passport must be carried on your person at all times while a student with the Global College in China, and if you leave the city of Hangzhou you must take the original passport with you, which is required to stay at any hotel in China. It is good practice to keep a copy of your passport, visa and entry stamp with you when you travel and in a separate bag from your wallet in case your passport is lost in transit. Some students also scan digital copies of these to keep on their notebook or handheld computer. Travel registration is a free service that allows the student to record information about her or his trip to China so that the Department of State can use this information to assist students in case of an emergency. The student may register at the local U.S. Consulate General in Shanghai or online at the U.S. Department of State Registration Home Page and if the student is not subscribed to DOSTRAVEL, students are required to register to automatically receive email updates to Travel Warnings, Public Announcements, and Consular Information Sheets that are issued by the U.S. Department of State by clicking the Travel Info link on the above site and selecting China-Mainland and Hong Kong SAR (China) from the list of countries.

If a passport is lost or stolen, the student must report the incident to the local Chinese police station immediately and to the American Citizen Services in Shanghai within twenty-four hours. The local police station will provide a Document for Reporting Lost Passport, which should be taken to the American Citizen Services. You will be charged USD 97 for a new passport if the student can document her or his identity with a photocopy of the lost passport or with another official U.S. government issued identification, such as a driver’s license. The student must then take the new passport back to the police station to have a new visa issued. If an American citizen loses a passport multiple times she or he may be denied a new passport by the Department of State and repatriated. For all these reasons it is very important to keep multiple copies of your passport.

In addition to those policies established by the university, the China Center has implemented several emergency and health and safety procedures and contingency plans, which are discussed in detail and with invited professionals during the first week of orientation. Students will also be provided with emergency bilingual contact cards during the orientation, which should be carried on the student’s person at all time.

In the advent of an unforeseen crisis, such as a natural disaster, civil unrest, anti-American acts of violence against U.S. citizens and interest, or an act of terrorism or war, students should do what is necessary to first secure the safety of their own person and then call the Academic Director and/or Faculty Advisor for further instruction. If communications are down, and if it is safe to do so, students should gather at the China Center and await instruction from the faculty. In the advent of an unforeseen crisis, security measures will follow an announcement issued by the Regional Security Officer (RSO). Under certain rare circumstances, such as military aggression between the U.S. and China, students may need to be evacuated from the country. In such an event, all students should first meet at the China Center and will leave together via the safest international port of exit.

The safety of our community requires the cooperation and diligence of each member. All faculty and students are encouraged to monitor online and other international news sources for breaking stories pertinent to the health and safety of our Global College community in China and to keep each other informed. CNN International is now offered at the China Center via satellite from the Phillipines, providing twenty-four hour access to breaking news, including those stories otherwise banned in China. Students are also encouraged to keep informed of Chinese political conditions by subscribing to CNN Breaking News Alerts filtering for the keyword “China” at their website here.

Students and parents should also familiarize themselves with the appropriate sections, “II. Responsibilities of Participants,” and “III. Recommendations to Parents/Guardians/Families” in the document, Responsible Study Abroad: Good Practices for Health and Safety, which is published by NAFSA Association of International Educators’ Section on U.S. Students Abroad (SECUSSA) and is available here.

Last updated on Apr 02, 2008

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