Puerto Rican college students displaced by Hurricane Maria will be able to attend some of Georgia’s private colleges next semester.
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The Georgia Independent College Association struck an agreement with the Association of Private Colleges and Universities of Puerto Rico to let some students continue their degrees at Georgia schools while the U.S. territory recovers.
Because communication on the island is still spotty, GICA President Susanna Baxter says it’s a handshake agreement.
“It’s all been very difficult to put together because of the enormous communication problems Puerto Rico is still having,” Baxter says. “So, we’ve done a lot of this with texting back and forth, and one phone call, and a few emails.”
Nonetheless, Baxter says, 10 GICA colleges will be able to take students through this program. Other private schools, like Emory, have already agreed to serve students separately. Baxter estimates there may be room for as many as 200 people, if needed.
“They’ll be treated like all students, but also with some extra counseling offered to them, and other services, like, ‘How do you procure winter clothes?’ and those types of things that we will need to provide,” Baxter says.
Timing could be problematic for some students. When the hurricane hit, some Puerto Rican colleges weren’t able to resume classes for about a month. So, they pushed back the semester. That could complicate students’ programs of study.
Baxter says students will need to speak English proficiently so they don’t struggle in class.
Tuition payments will go to their home institutions. Most students are expected to return to their home colleges after the spring semester.
