Without the means to visit her family in Mozambique over winter break, Tânia Machonisse is one of the estimated 120 students who will continue living on-campus during the holidays.

“For Christmas I was invited to the home of a friend of mine,” Machonisse said. “She is from Zimbabwe, but she married an American, so she lives here. I will go there for Christmas with her family and children, and I will be there with other African friends.”

Machonisse, who is earning a masters in communications, said she doesn’t have any other plans for the holidays, but she hopes to spend time with other students who are unable to go home.

“I just hope to join other students so that we can hang out around the city,” Machonisse said.

Fatimah Almarzooq, a Saudi Arabian student, said she simply doesn’t have time to travel all the way home for the holidays.

“I will go home in the summer, but (my husband and I) cannot in the winter because it’s just four weeks,” Almarzooq said. “Half of that break would be spent trying to arrange our sleep time.”

The Intensive English Program student said a flight to Saudi Arabia typically takes 19 hours. During her most recent trip, however, the journey took a total of 35 hours.

“We had a problem where they cancelled our flight without telling us, so we flew from Saudi Arabia to Bahrain to Saudi Arabia again, then Saudi Arabia to Germany, Germany to Chicago, and Chicago to Evansville. It was a really hard trip,” Almarzooq said.

Almarzooq said she typically spends her holidays traveling. In 2014, she traveled to Florida over the holidays to visit Disney World and Universal Studios.

“During this break I could visit a different place in Florida, maybe,” Almarzooq said. “I see there’s a chocolate museum there, and I would really like to see it.”

Heidi Gregori-Gahan, assistant provost for International Programs and Services, said there are a few services provided to students who stay on campus rather than travel during the holidays.

“Although campus is closed over break, the International Office provides a shuttle that will probably run three times a week so that students can buy groceries or go to the movies,” Gregori-Gahan said.

Gregori-Gahan said the provost’s office typically organizes a dinner during the holidays as well, which gives students who are staying on-campus a place to gather and celebrate with friends. Otherwise, there are no activities planned on campus for students to take part in over the holidays.

“We have staff on-campus, but of course all the offices are closed, and everything is closed on main campus,” said Cathy Goldsborough, assistant director of Housing and Business Operations.

Goldsborough said public safety is available to students over break, as is an on-call area coordinator.

“If (students staying on-campus) have a maintenance issue, it’s the same process for maintenance as during the semester,” Goldsborough said, “and if they have to talk to the area coordinator or other staff on-campus, then they can get ahold of people.”

Goldsborough said approximately 120 students paid a flat fee of $150 to stay during break in 2014, although most didn’t stay for the entirety of winter break. She anticipates approximately the same number of students to stay on campus this year as well.