Title: Ravi Thackurdeen Safe Students Study Abroad Act
Policy area: Education

Summary:
Ravi Thackurdeen Safe Students Study Abroad Act
This bill (1) applies campus-security reporting requirements to study-abroad programs of institutions of higher education that participate in federal student-aid programs, and (2) requires such institutions to implement specified policies to protect students participating in study-abroad programs.

[Congressional Bills 116th Congress]
[From the U.S. Government Publishing Office]
[H.R. 2875 Introduced in House (IH)]

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116th CONGRESS
  1st Session
                                H. R. 2875

    To amend the Higher Education Act of 1965 to require additional 
reporting on crime and harm that occurs during student participation in 
           programs of study abroad, and for other purposes.


_______________________________________________________________________


                    IN THE HOUSE OF REPRESENTATIVES

                              May 21, 2019

  Mr. Sean Patrick Maloney of New York introduced the following bill; 
       which was referred to the Committee on Education and Labor

_______________________________________________________________________

                                 A BILL


 
    To amend the Higher Education Act of 1965 to require additional 
reporting on crime and harm that occurs during student participation in 
           programs of study abroad, and for other purposes.

    Be it enacted by the Senate and House of Representatives of the 
United States of America in Congress assembled,

SECTION 1. SHORT TITLE.

    This Act may be cited as the ``Ravi Thackurdeen Safe Students Study 
Abroad Act''.

SEC. 2. APPLICATION OF CLERY ACT TO PROGRAMS OF STUDY ABROAD.

    (a) Reporting of Crime Statistics.--Paragraph (12) of section 
485(f) of the Higher Education Act of 1965 (20 U.S.C. 1092(f)) is 
amended--
            (1) by striking ``and'' at the end of subparagraph (C);
            (2) by striking the period at the end of subparagraph (D) 
        and inserting a semicolon; and
            (3) by adding at the end the following:
                    ``(E) while a student is participating in a program 
                of study abroad approved for credit by an institution 
                of higher education, distinguished by whether the 
                criminal offense occurred at a location described in 
                subparagraph (A), (B), (C), or (D), or at another 
                location, without regard to whether the institution 
                owns or controls a building or property at such 
                location.''.
    (b) Additional Reporting for Programs of Study Abroad.--Section 
485(f) of the Higher Education Act of 1965 (20 U.S.C. 1092(f)) is 
amended--
            (1) by redesignating paragraph (18) as paragraph (19); and
            (2) by inserting after paragraph (17), the following new 
        paragraph:
            ``(18)(A) Each institution of higher education 
        participating in any program under this title, other than a 
        foreign institution of higher education, shall develop and 
        distribute as part of the report described in paragraph (1), a 
        statement that the institution has adopted and implemented a 
        program to protect students participating in a program of study 
        abroad approved for credit by the institution from crime and 
        harm while participating in such program of study abroad that, 
        at a minimum, includes the following:
                    ``(i) A biennial review by the institution of the 
                programs of study abroad approved for credit by the 
                institution to determine--
                            ``(I) the effectiveness of the programs at 
                        protecting students from crime and harm, and 
                        whether changes to the programs are needed 
                        (based on the most recent guidance or other 
                        assistance from the Secretary) and will be 
                        implemented;
                            ``(II) for the 10 years preceding the date 
                        of the report, the number (in the aggregate for 
                        all programs of study abroad approved for 
                        credit by the institution) of--
                                    ``(aa) deaths of program 
                                participants occurring during program 
                                participation or during any other 
                                activities during the study abroad 
                                period;
                                    ``(bb) accidents and illnesses 
                                occurring during program participation 
                                that resulted in hospitalization;
                                    ``(cc) sexual assaults against 
                                program participants occurring during 
                                program participation; and
                                    ``(dd) incidents involving program 
                                participants during the program 
                                participation that resulted in police 
                                involvement or a police report; and
                            ``(III) with respect to the incidents 
                        described in items (aa) through (dd) of 
                        subclause (II), whether the incidents 
                        occurred--
                                    ``(aa) on campus;
                                    ``(bb) in or on a noncampus 
                                building or property;
                                    ``(cc) on public property;
                                    ``(dd) in dormitories or other 
                                residential facilities for students; or
                                    ``(ee) at a location not described 
                                in items (aa) through (dd) of this 
                                subclause, without regard to whether 
                                the institution owns or controls a 
                                building or property at the location.
                    ``(ii) The crime statistics described in paragraph 
                (12)(E).
            ``(B) An institution of higher education described in 
        subparagraph (A) shall--
                    ``(i) provide each student who is interested in 
                participating in a program of study abroad approved for 
                credit by the institution, with a pre-trip orientation 
                session and advising that includes--
                            ``(I) a list of countries in which such 
                        programs of study abroad are located;
                            ``(II) all current travel information, 
                        including all travel warnings and travel 
                        alerts, issued by the Bureau of Consular 
                        Affairs of the Department of State for such 
                        countries; and
                            ``(III) the information described in 
                        clauses (i) and (ii) of subparagraph (A), 
                        provided specifically for each program of study 
                        abroad approved for credit by the institution 
                        in which the student is considering 
                        participation; and
                    ``(ii) provide each student who returns from such a 
                program of study abroad with a post-trip orientation 
                session, including an exit interview that assists the 
                institution in carrying out subparagraph (A) and clause 
                (i) of this subparagraph.
            ``(C) An institution of higher education shall not 
        disaggregate or otherwise distinguish information for purposes 
        of subparagraph (A) or (B) in a case in which the number of 
        students in a category is insufficient to yield statistically 
        reliable information or the results would reveal personally 
        identifiable information about an individual student.
            ``(D) The Secretary shall periodically review a 
        representative sample of the programs described in subparagraph 
        (A) that have been adopted and implemented by institutions of 
        higher education to protect students participating in a program 
        of study abroad described in subparagraph (A) from crime and 
        harm while participating in such program of study abroad.''.
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