July 2, 2020

Dear 1609 Residents,

The new residence hall at 1609 Hazel is looking great! We are so excited for everyone to see it. We hope you are all staying well and preparing for a great fall semester.

We wanted to share some important updates with you, so that you can plan your travel to Cleveland. Although this message is being shared with everyone living in 1609 Hazel this fall, the information is intended primarily for those of you who are not already in the US.

As you may know, the United States still has COVID-19 restrictions in place that bar most travel from China, Iran, Brazil, the European Schengen Area, United Kingdom and Republic of Ireland. Exceptions for college students were made this spring, but CIM is still waiting for official guidance from the Student and Exchange Visitor Program (SEVP) of US Immigration and Customs Enforcement to know if those exceptions will continue.

Until SEVP makes their policy known, we strongly encourage you to keep your travel plans flexible if you are traveling from one of the restricted locations. (This may mean waiting a bit longer to book airline tickets, or purchasing refundable tickets, for example.) You should go ahead and complete any steps necessary to receive your I-20 and F-1 visa if you haven’t already – you will need those whenever you are able to travel to Cleveland. As soon as SEVP issues information about exceptions for fall, we will be in touch again. (If you haven’t documented yet or have more questions about documenting, please email International Student Advisor Kristen Zalar at kristen.zalar@cim.edu .)

All travelers from restricted areas are currently required to travel through one of the following 15 airports:

  • Boston-Logan International Airport (BOS), Massachusetts
  • Chicago O’Hare International Airport (ORD), Illinois
  • Dallas/Fort Worth International Airport (DFW), Texas
  • Detroit Metropolitan Airport (DTW), Michigan
  • Daniel K. Inouye International Airport (HNL), Hawaii
  • Fort Lauderdale-Hollywood International Airport (FLL), Florida
  • George Bush Intercontinental Airport (IAH), Texas
  • Hartsfield-Jackson Atlanta International Airport (ATL), Georgia
  • John F. Kennedy International Airport (JFK), New York
  • Los Angeles International Airport, (LAX), California
  • Miami International Airport (MIA), Florida
  • Newark Liberty International Airport (EWR), New Jersey
  • San Francisco International Airport (SFO), California
  • Seattle-Tacoma International Airport (SEA), Washington
  • Washington-Dulles International Airport (IAD), Virginia

Upon arrival at one of these airports, you will go through standard customs processing, followed by an enhanced medical screening (you will need to have the contact information for the health authorities in the city where you have been living prior to travel). Then you may continue on to Cleveland.

Any student traveling internationally before the beginning of school, including those of you currently outside the US, must send your destination(s) abroad and your plans for traveling to campus to Cicely Schonberg as soon as possible (email her at cicely.schonberg@cim.edu ).

All international travelers will be required to quarantine for 14 days upon arrival here in Cleveland. Residents of 1609 Hazel who are coming from outside the US will be able to observe this quarantine in the residence hall; we recommend arriving between July 22-25 in order to complete the 14 days before regular move-in begins on August 6. If you plan to quarantine in 1609 Hazel, you must tell Cicely Schonberg by July 20.

Quarantining is different from isolating or observing social distancing. Quarantine is used to keep someone who might have been exposed to COVID-19 away from others during the required 14-day interval, which helps to prevent spread of the disease. You can read the CDC guidelines on quarantining after travel here .

If you are not able to complete your quarantine before August 10, you will be able to take lessons and complete placement auditions online until your quarantine period is over. 

As always, our primary goal is the safety and health of you, our students. Contact either of us if you have further questions.

Stay well,

David Gilson, Associate Dean for Student Affairs
 
Cicely Schonberg, Resident Director