<p>having worked in an international corporate, who had to fund such a rescue program, I can assure you that they are extremely expensive. Moreover, HYP might even have terrorism insurance to offset the expense(s). But, there is absolutely no way a public Uni could afford to subscribe (local politics aside). Nevertheless, the endowment post maybe more correct than we would like to think.</p>
<p>As has become my custom, I agree with Marite and Driver. Americans traveling overseas need contingency plans in the same way you might subscribe to AAA or another service if you travel in the US. Traveling to high risk areas like Beirut requires even more care and planning, and I applaud schools like HYP for being accountable for the students they sponsored in Beirut. If our son were considering a program such as this - no matter where he was being sent - I would expect the sponsoring college to have considered these issues and have contingency plans such as HYP had.</p>
<p>As to the US government, it can't be responsible for every American that travels the world. The small town in which we live had 4 families caught in Lebanon. All of them were doctor's families who were visiting relatives for the summer. Most are well-to-do and all had to make their own arrangements to get home, primarily because they were in rural communities in Lebanon and did not have access to land-line phones, TVs, or other communication methods. On top of the difficulty to contact (let alone arrange transport for) people in remote locations, the US government had to contend with threats that terrorists would target any efforts to get AMERICANS out of Lebanon - by taking them hostage or exposing them to suicide bombers. </p>
<p>I don't think anyone, even the US, could easily extract 25,000 people from a hostile environment in secret. The fact that it's been done successfully, with a mixture of personal and government efforts, reflects well on the US government and especially the military. Not surprisingly, the breakdowns that did occur were in the State Department and its embassies.</p>
<p>Kudos to HYP for taking care of their students.</p>
<p>It shocks but does not surprise me that some people would read something sinister into that. I guess I just don't see it as something that is exclusively the responsibilty of the government. The feds didn't send those kids overseas - HYP did. So why not take care of them?</p>
<p>If any university sponsors students going to high risk areas of the world, parents and students need to know about any back-up programs in which the schools do or do not participate, and what is available. In reviewing some of the various policies of both state and private schools, many address evacuation procedures from countries if needed. Some appear to assume the cost, while others appear to offer the programs for a fee. I would assume that having a large pool of students who are often not in a country with dependents, generally healthy and easily moveable, etc, and living in dorms would make the premiums less expensive than for corporate families who are more scattered and may have dependents, and/or health problems. Plus the corporation may have sensitive equipment to be moved, as well. Anyway, good to ask prior to sending a loved one to a locale that may have risks. And smart of any school to have these policies in place for all. Other schools probably had these programs as well for students in Lebanon, but only HYP had the article written, as usual.</p>