By CRISTINA JANNEY
Hays Post
Fort Hays State University communications officer said he thought the stabbing of four Iowa college instructors in China Monday was an isolated incident.
Through international partnerships, FHSU has 13 faculty teaching at Shenyang Normal University in the Liaoning Province and 33 at Sias University in the Henan Province.
Four instructors from Iowa's Cornell College teaching at Beihua University in northeastern China were attacked in a public park, reportedly with a knife, officials at the U.S. school and the State Department said.
A Chinese Foreign Ministry spokesperson said Tuesday that the injured were rushed to a hospital for treatment, and none was in critical condition, according to the Associated Press.
Police believe Monday's attack in Jilin city's Beishan Park was an isolated incident, based on a preliminary assessment, and the investigation is ongoing, ministry spokesperson Lin Jian said at a daily briefing.
"At this point, the incident in the Jilin Province in China appears to be an isolated incident. We hope that the four Cornell College faculty members and the brave Chinese tourist who tried to intervene recover quickly and return home safe," Scott Cason, FHSU chief communications officer, said in an email Tuesday.
"The safety of our employees working here in Hays and those working and teaching abroad is something that we take very seriously and constantly monitor," Cason said.
The State Department said in a statement it was aware of reports of a stabbing and was monitoring the situation, according to the Associated Press.
Cason said FHSU has not received any warnings from the State Department related to this issue, and the university has shared what it knows about the incident with its faculty teaching in China.
Citing arbitrary detentions as well as exit bans that could prevent Americans from leaving the country, the State Department has issued a Level 3 travel advisory — the second-highest warning level — for mainland China. It urges Americans to “reconsider travel” to China, according to the Associated Press.
Some American universities have suspended their China programs due to the travel advisory, the AP reported.
The Associated Press contributed to this story.