Senator Bonoff Pushes for Safety Laws for Student Travel Abroad

Minnesota Senator Terri Bonoff is pushing for laws to protect students studying abroad.

Senator Bonoff was emailed about the mission of ClearCause a few weeks ago by ClearCause voice Pam Brennan. Pam wrote these words to Senator Bonoff: “Our kids are being hurt and killed abroad and we can't do anything about it.  Programs investigate themselves and refuse to disclose information to parents of the deceased or injured student.  There is no recourse.  Our children deserve safeguards…Create and enact laws to keep them safe - Traveling Youth & Students Standards of Safety, TYS SOS!”

Recently, Senator Bonoff has met with Sheryl Hill and Elizabeth Brenner to find ways to legislatively address the issue of having no laws or guidelines to protect students on study abroad programs.Bonoff released a statement, saying:

“I am proud to be a strong champion for ClearCause Foundation. I have listened with such sadness as I hear the tragic stories of lives lost, dreams shattered and pieces that cannot be put back together.

Our young people are our precious treasures. When we send them abroad, we do so with our greatest hopes and aspirations for their future.  We believe, as parents, that by opening this door of adventure, we will develop global citizens that can truly shape and change our world.  Losing our precious young people in this often preventable way is simply unacceptable. A young life is lost, a world of pain engulfs all who are connected to that life and a door is shut that was meant to be opened.

It is my commitment to use the power of my office to shape policies that prevent these tragedies from happening. I believe in the importance of young people studying abroad. Yet it is imperative that we ensure their safety. We owe them our protection. I thank Sheryl Hill and all who join her for using their tragic stories to make a difference for families in the future. I will learn from their pain and hope to diminish risk going forward. “

We applaud Senator Bonoff for partnering with ClearCause to advocate for laws to keep our students abroad safe. If you agree that there needs to be laws in place to protect students on foreign soil, click on ClearCause Voices to the right to send a message to your federal and state policy makers.

Coffee With Kare 11

Coffee with Kare 11 brings you Around the World Safely event for ClearCause Foundation featuring cultural foods, wine tasting, raffle, silent auction and music by Doo Da Day and Tim Mahoney sponsored by award winning Woodland Hill Winery in Delano, Minnesota on Sunday, June 30, 2013 from 4 PM until 8 PM.  Corporate sponsors also include Media Relations, Inc., Fly for Good, StuCard, TechNick Consulting, and University of Minnesota Global Programs and Strategy Alliance.  Special messages from Minnesota State Senator Bonoff and Minnesota United States Senator Klobuchar.

Minneapolis StarTribune

Working to Keep Students Safe Overseas by Kerri Westenberg

Sheryl Hill of Mound loves to travel — so much so that she and her husband, Allen, had explored eight foreign lands, from Scotland to Australia, with their two sons. So by the time her eldest, Tyler, had signed on for a People to People student ambassador trip to Japan in 2007, at 16, he was a seasoned traveler. But Tyler never returned home. He died in a hospital, where he arrived too late, sick and dehydrated after a hike up Mount Fuji. Since then, Hill has founded ClearCause Foundation, a nonprofit that educates youth about staying safe overseas and advocates for oversight of study-abroad programs. Meanwhile, she continues to explore our world.