By Amelia Luo ’23
Global Editor
Although domestic travel in the United States is getting safer and easier as vaccination rates increase and more airlines reopen, international travel is still widely restricted by vaccination, visa, testing and quarantine policies. Because of this, many international students, facing various challenges, have decided to stay on campus over the winter break.
On Oct. 21, 2021, Mount Holyoke College revealed its winter break housing policy, granting housing for both international and domestic students who are facing difficulties getting home. Eligible students would need to be approved to stay on campus. Mount Holyoke is charging $380 for staying from Dec. 14 to Jan. 2, but students are permitted to use student safety net funding to cover this cost. The fee that students pay will “cover meals, heating and limited building housekeeping,” according to an email sent by the Office of Residential Life. Mount Holyoke is providing housing for free from Jan. 3-21, 2022.
Yuming Wang ’22, a Chinese international student who grew up in Japan, decided to stay on campus over winter break. She hasn’t been home since the COVID-19 pandemic started. She said that she did not look into the College’s pricing to inform her decision, but it is good that Mount Holyoke is charging less than in previous years. When talking about why she decided to stay on campus, Wang said, “I don’t really have a choice. I don’t have any relatives living in the [U.S.]. It’s not realistic to move outside of school just for one month. [To do that,] you would have to research and pay for rent.” Wang said that she is not even sure that renting a house nearby for only a month is possible. “I also don’t have a car,” Wang continued, “so it would be really hard [for me to move]. [Living on-campus] is my only choice.”
Coco Zhu ’22, an international student who currently lives in a suite in Creighton Hall, said, “since this is my first year staying here for the winter, I do like [this] policy since it provides me a [familiar] place to stay.” Zhu was initially planning on going back home for winter break, but said, “since the pandemic happened, the quarantine period [in China] is so long that I cannot go back. That’s why I can only stay.” Zhu also likes the price that Mount Holyoke set, saying, “[Living on-campus] does not cost much [compared] to [renting] a house [near Mount Holyoke]. I don’t need to move.”
“The [COVID-19] situation in Japan is not doing great,” Wang said. “[Mount Holyoke] is quite secluded from the city and everything, so as long as you are staying on campus, you are safe. My home is more [urban] than [South Hadley], so it is actually safer for me to stay here. ”
Both Wang and Zhu are concerned about the impact of having limited campus facilities during the break.
“Last winter, [the College] offered meals every day during the winter break, but the winter break before the pandemic, [there was] one and a half weeks that [the College] didn’t have food on campus.” Wang said, “You have to buy [food] beforehand. [The College] also did not have shuttles for [us, except once]. I am not sure how this year is gonna be but I do hope that they [provide] meals every day … and if they don’t, I hope they [provide shuttles].”
Zhu is more concerned about Christmas, since she does not know if there will be any campus facility open during that time. She is also worried about potential winter depression.
“I’ve heard from my other friends who used to live on-campus during the winter break that [the winter break] is a very [depressing time] since no one is around. I am not sure what [not having lots of friends around] would be like.” As the winter comes, South Hadley will experience a lot of snowfall. Zhu said that “the weather [might] make people feel sad.” Still, they said, “I live in a suite, so I am not sure if [having my roommates] would help.”