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Campuses with International students or travel prepped for Ebola outbreak

Posted at 11:06 PM, Aug 29, 2014
and last updated 2014-08-29 23:06:28-04

ALLENDALE, Mich. -  There might not be any current cases of the disease in America right now but the Ebola virus outbreak in Africa might not be as far away as it seems.

College students are heading back to campuses and there is legitimate concern about what they may be bringing with them.

"We have 800 students abroad studying in 50 to 60 different countries," said Dr. Mark Schaub, the Chief International Officer with Grand Valley State University.

He said there are also 400 international students from 82 countries currently on campus.

According to Dr. Schaub there are no students at GVSU from Guinea, Liberia, or Sierra Leone.  The CDC puts those countries at a "Level Three Alert" and recommends that no one travels to those countries.

There are no mandates that all higher education institutions must follow when it comes to contagious diseases.  Colleges with international students typically talk with one another about what to do in the worst case scenario.

Ebola is not an airborne virus and can only be passed through blood and body fluids when the infected person is showing symptoms of the disease.