Emergency Plan

Contacting CEA

During regular business hours, 7:00 a.m. to 7:00 p.m. MST, please call our toll-free number at 800-266-4441 or 480-557-7900. At night or on weekends, please call the CEA Emergency cell phone at 480-221-7576 if you need to speak with someone immediately regarding a health or safety emergency. This number will be active between the hours (MST) of 7:00 p.m. and 7:00 a.m. on weeknights and 5:00 p.m. Fridays through 7:00 a.m. Mondays. CEA has implemented the use of an Emergency cell phone number in order to be accessible and responsive when emergencies take place during off-hours. It should only be used in the case of a real emergency.

Health and Safety Committee

The following individuals lead the CEA Health and Safety Committee:

Brian Boubek, Chairman & CEO
Caroline Walsh, Vice President, Development
Tim Boubek, Director of Student Services Administration
Arturo Jarque Íñiguez, Regional Director, Spain

Risk Assessment and Situation Monitoring

The CEA Health and Safety Committee utilize a variety of resources when making programmatic decisions. These include US State Department travel advisories, the information that our resident staff provides from discussions with local police, and study abroad providers in the area, and observations. Additionally, the Committee also refers to communiqu's from NAFSA: Association of International Educators and Interassociational Advisory Committee on Health and Safety.

Resident Directors and their staff monitor the local situation in regards to health and safety risks. The Health and Safety Committee members subscribe to the State Department's travel advisory list and receive all announcements about Travel Warnings and Advisories. These are shared with the appropriate staff members in Tempe and abroad.

In the event of a Travel Warning, CEA will send email messages to all participants' emergency contacts and home institutions within 48 hours, post a message on our website, www.GoWithCEA.com, and send an email message to SECUSS-L, the major study abroad industry listserv.

Predeparture and Onsite Orientation

All students receive thorough pre-departure and onsite orientation. Health and safety information is included in all Student Handbooks, as well as in the onsite orientation. Students are registered with the US Embassy and given all contact information for the resident staff. Local police stations are pointed out to the students during orientation along with how to report incidents.

In the unlikely event of an armed conflict involving US forces in the CEA program country:

1. The resident staff contacts all students to ensure that they are accounted for and are safe, as well as provide them with information and instructions.
2. The resident staff contacts the US Embassy or Consulate
3. The resident staff gathers information on the target of unrest, possible danger to US citizens, impact, intensity of the emergency, and the feasibility of continuing classes.
4. Depending on the situation, the On-Site Staff may or may not gather the students together. This will be dependent on the specific situation encountered.
5. The resident staff will keep a detailed log of all events concerning this situation.
6. The resident staff will immediately contact CEA Group Operations and provide a briefing on the situation, including any recommendations the Director may have regarding the program.
7. CEA Group Operations Department will contact the US State Department for further information and provide that to the Crisis Management Team.
8. The Crisis Management Team is composed of the Health and Safety Committee members, in conjunction with resident staff.
9. The Crisis Management Team will take immediate measures to ensure the health and safety of the students, including gathering additional information, tailoring an evacuation plan to the situation, and developing a daily communication plan with key organizationstions.
10. CEA will post information on its website, as well as contact the students’ emergency contacts and host institutions to apprise them of the situation and steps that CEA is taking.

Advice for CEA Students and Their Families

• Emergency Contacts: When designating emergency contacts, students should designate their parents as their emergency contacts as much as possible. This way, information regarding any emergency situation will automatically be distributed to parents.
• Communication: Students should provide accurate contact information for themselves to their parents and home institutions. Students should also stay in touch their parents or other emergency contacts in the event of any emergency.
• Tips: Prior to departure read through our helpful tips for students and parents.