UW-Madison officials announced Wednesday the suspension of the school's study abroad program in Jerusalem, following Tuesday's U.S. State Department warning to Americans in Israel of the country's deteriorating safety situation.
Six UW-Madison students were originally enrolled in the Rothberg International School of the Hebrew University through UW-Madison, two of whom decided to return to the United States in the last few weeks, prior to Wednesday's announcement.
Lina Dreyfus, a UW-Madison junior who was one of the students who left before the suspension, returned to the United States two weeks ago, mainly due to her parents' concerns.
\I could only give my parents so many ulcers,"" Dreyfus said.
After a different university in Israel suspended its study abroad program about three weeks ago, Dreyfus said her parents decided she should come home.
""Being home is a mixture of sadness and relief and the guilt for feeling relief,"" she said.
Joan Raducha, director of UW-Madison's International Academic Programs, said it is yet to be determined how students will complete their course work, considering the Hebrew University is currently closed due to Passover.
The suspension goes into effect April 11. After that, she said, UW-Madison will have no official presence in Israel.
""We wanted to make sure that students had adequate time to receive this message ... and make adequate travel plans,"" she said.
Waiting for Tuesday's State Department warning is one of several factors officials typically take into consideration before suspending a program, in addition to opinions of faculty experts and staff on site.
Jill Goldberg, a UW alumna who studied in Jerusalem during the spring 2000 semester, said officials had left it to a ""dangerous point"" in announcing the suspension Wednesday.
The decision should have come last week, she said, after a suicide bombing at a Passover seder indicated there would be an Israeli retaliation.
""These kids could be in danger just going on the 45-minute trip from Jerusalem to Tel Aviv to the airport,"" Goldberg said.
Other schools, including the University of Southern California, University of Washington and University of Colorado have action taken similar to UW-Madison in recent days.
No decisions have been made regarding next fall's program, to which only one student has applied, Raducha added.
But even during the heightened tension in the area, students who have studied in Israel say they felt safe for the most part.
""It's so hard to explain to people who've never been there that once you're there you really do feel safe,"" Goldberg said. ""I never felt that I was in danger when I was there and I put myself in some pretty dangerous situations.""
Dreyfus said she and the other students studying in Israel had to be ""a little more careful"" considering current events, but still had a great time.
""The thing about Israel is that it's not like you see on the news,"" she said.
The four remaining students may even chose to remain in Israel, independent of the suspension of their program, predicted Miri Wexler, a UW-Madison senior who studied in Israel for the 2000-'01 school year.
""Especially in a time like this, there's an ideological commitment to the country,"" Wexler said.
