Cortona 2020, a summer opportunity at FCAD’s boutique campus in Cortona, Italy, is also now suspended
Ryerson University has suspended all university-related travel to China, Iran, northern Italy and the South Korean cities of Daegu and Cheongdo in light of the COVID-19 outbreak.
Charles Falzon, dean of the Faculty of Communication and Design (FCAD) at Ryerson, confirmed the news in a Thursday statement, adding that no FCAD students are currently at direct risk of the COVID-19 outbreak.
The dean also said FCAD has contacted the faculty’s students who are currently abroad to complete their exchange semester, and that those students have been informed of the travel risks and precautionary steps.
“In case any of the cities involving our students becomes on the government’s travel advisories list, we will directly and immediately reach out to the students to ask them to return to Canada,” said Falzon in an emailed statement to students. “We do not intend to cancel next year’s exchange program for 2020/2021 for the time being.”
Students who are planning to travel abroad in the upcoming weeks to complete an international internship or placement will be receiving updates from their schools in case of cancellations or postponement.
Cortona 2020, a summer opportunity at FCAD’s boutique campus in Cortona, Italy, is also now cancelled due to the COVID-19 outbreak. Falzon said students who were expecting to participate were notified and contacted and will be receiving a full refund.
“It was a difficult decision for me and my team who have worked extremely hard to plan it this past year, but ultimately the students’ health and well-being are important to us,” Falzon said, noting that the faculty will launch Cortona 2021 next summer.
Falzon said that the school is monitoring all the upcoming international intensives on a case by case basis to assess travel risks, and will notify the students who will be impacted with new information.
