Study Abroad Officials Monitor Situation in Turkey

Study abroad officials are carefully tracking events in Turkey, where large protests in Istanbul and elsewhere have led to clashes with police. Syracuse University has 20 students in Istanbul, about to finish up a semester program. Margaret Himley, associate provost for international education and engagement, said via e-mail that students are scheduled to leave Sunday and "we are carefully monitoring the situation and talking with students about what these demonstrations mean and about what precautions they should be taking." A number of other institutions have summer programs about to start in Turkey. Jim Butterfield, a professor of political science at Western Michigan University, said that he is scheduled to accompany five students to Istanbul in three weeks. He said that "we're monitoring developments." Julie Anne Friend, associate director for international safety and security at Northwestern University, which will be sending students to Turkey for a program that starts July 1, said via e-mail that "we are not considering suspension at this time, but will, of course continue to monitor the situation."