Juniors Abroad Carries On

By: Honor Tamminga

This year George Fox University (GFU) hopes to return to its age-old tradition of Juniors Abroad after having to cancel the program for the last two years. Despite the uncertainty caused by COVID-19, the administration is doing its utmost to allow students the opportunity of traveling abroad once again.

The Juniors Abroad program, which allows students the opportunity to travel to foreign countries for three weeks in May, is an integral part of what makes GFU distinct from other universities. “It isn’t just solely a tourist trip,” said Audrey Smith, a senior biology major who is interested in participating in Juniors Abroad. “It also involv[es] informational, historical, and cultural experience.”

Unsurprisingly, Juniors Abroad is one of the many things COVID-19 has shut down these last 20 months at GFU. This year, students and faculty have begun planning for the upcoming trips. David Martínez, director of Juniors Abroad, has stressed that these trips are not set in stone. However, if plans do change, he is hopeful that the faculty will provide accommodations so students can have a version of the Juniors Abroad experience. "We don’t guarantee that they can go on the trip they want to go on,” Martinez said.

Traditions like Tent City, an event in which students camp outside of the Stevens Center to get spots on their desired Juniors Abroad trips, have fallen by the wayside. Nevertheless, according to Martínez, there are 320 students signed up this year, as opposed to a typical year, when about 270 would be signed up. Martínez recognizes that many of these students will probably be unable to go in the end, but he is hoping that little by little, Juniors Abroad will be able to return to what it once was. 

While travel restrictions due to COVID-19 have stifled this program, Martínez is dedicated to giving the students the trip that so many have hoped for. He understands that plans change, but is encouraged by the willpower of the administration to get students abroad. The students are fortunate to have dedicated faculty doing what they can to ensure that students can once again venture abroad as part of their academic experience at GFU.