Coming Out Stronger: Charting a Path Forward in a Postpandemic World

As I think back to the beginning of the pandemic and consider the future of international education, I am reminded of a quote by singer-songwriter Leonard Cohen: “Survival is success.” Most of us certainly start out with high aspirations, especially in a field that is so dedicated to the idealism (and reality, I hope) of promoting cross-cultural understanding. However, it is also necessary to recognize the difficulties that many of our colleagues have faced since early 2020.

With layoffs in organizations and institutions that seemed Teflon-strong not so long ago, I have watched good people—smart, educated, hardworking, and talented people—go back into the job market or opt for retirement. And those who have retained their jobs are often exhausted. Many have been juggling family and professional lives while working from home, or they find themselves taking up slack from colleagues who have been let go. All the while, senior-level administrators and fellow faculty and staff have questioned why we are still employed when mobility numbers are down—even when we were still doing the same amount of work to prepare faculty and students, only to ultimately find out that they could not go abroad.

Positive Momentum, but More Challenges to Come

Despite the trials of the past year, I remain hopeful. While COVID-19 has not disappeared, rising vaccination rates and a greater understanding of the virus have allowed mobility to pick up again. At Elon University, we have seen a doubling of applications for winter term 2022 versus prepandemic levels, with