WPI Halts Travel Over Coronavirus, Leaves Students 'Scrambling'

WORCESTER, MA — Worcester Polytechnic Institute halted international travel for students, staff and faculty this week amid a growing global outbreak of the new coronavirus, COVID-19. But the decision will impact hundreds of students who were planning to travel abroad in the upcoming semester to complete projects required to graduate.

Some students say they were blindsided by the decision, which WPI made after Gov. Charlie Baker on Wednesday asked schools in Massachusetts to consider canceling international trips.

"These decisions have been made out of an abundance of caution in collaboration with senior leadership and in consultation with the university’s global travel review and response team and the coronavirus working group," WPI said in a statement Wednesday. "These two groups have been tracking global concerns about the virus, preparing our campus response, and making adjustments to programs as needed over the past six weeks."

About 300 students were planning to travel abroad over the next few weeks to begin "Interactive Qualifying Projects" (IPQ). The students would have gone to WPI project centers located around the globe in places like England, Japan, and Israel.

With international travel canceled, the students will complete the IQP projects remotely from Worcester. But the projects typically include activities that need to be done in-person. For example, one IQP completed in 2019 involved WPI students working with the disabled in India.

"The Interactive Qualifying Project (IQP) is one of the most distinctive elements of the WPI Plan and WPI’s signature project-based curriculum, giving every WPI student the experience of working in interdisciplinary teams to solve a problem or need that lies at the intersection of science and society," reads a description of the program on the WPI website.

One student who spoke to Patch said that her classmates are "scrambling" to figure out how to complete international projects from Worcester. She personally stands to lose about $1,000 in travel costs — but the cost is much higher because the study abroad program is why she chose to attend WPI.

Many students do complete IQP projects in Worcester and across Massachusetts. The students heading abroad have been planning their trips since last year, however.

"[T]his is a heartbreaking decision for the 284 students that were planning to travel abroad this D term," wrote student Nicole Shedd in Tech News, a WPI student news site. "Many students choose WPI for their global projects program, and its cancellation with no opportunity to reschedule is infuriating."

The U.S. State Department has issued international travel advisories because of COVID-19. The novel virus originated China's Wuhan province, but has spread to other parts of Asia and Europe, and now the United States. Risk of acquiring the disease in Massachusetts is low, and the state has only seen one confirmed case, and one "presumptive positive" case. Over 700 state residents have either completed or are still in self-quarantine.

Asked for comment about student backlash to the decision, a WPI spokesperson referred to the statement issued Wednesday by President Laurie Leshin.