The Alexander Muss High School in Israel has canceled the CESJDS Class of 2020’s senior capstone trip to Eastern Europe due to the Israeli Ministry of Health banning Israeli teen travel to Poland in light of the novel coronavirus, COVID-19. 

“There are many teen groups in Israel … so this is affecting a lot of people,” Dean of Students Roslyn Landy said. “I think AMHSI made the right decision. No one would want a group of students who have to be quarantined in Poland.”

AMHSI is planning additional, choice-based events in Israel for students currently there and is allowing the five students who were planning to attend the Eastern Europe portion only to go to Israel instead at no additional cost. 

“They [the five students] will stay in a hotel near the Muss campus because there is no room on the Muss campus,” Landy said. “They will be transported from the hotel to campus for breakfast each morning, stay the entire day with their classmates, and, at bedtime, they will go back to the hotel.” 

AMHSI is also trying to accommodate three other students who did not register for any part of the capstone trip but would like to visit Israel for the shortened period. 

Students will be allowed to stay on the campus for Passover break if their plans fall through.

According to Landy, families will most likely not receive refunds for plane tickets, because of airline policies, and for other aspects of the program because of how many other teen groups AMHSI has to juggle. However, some airlines have changed their refund policies due to the virus.

Despite AMHSI’s alternative plans, many students are upset by the cancellation.

“I feel like I definitely get a lot more exposure to Israeli culture, so I was more excited to go to Poland because I feel like that’s something I’m less familiar with,” Dylan Fox (‘20) said. “Exploring stuff I’m less familiar with is definitely more exciting to me.”