A Barnard student who agreed to quarantine herself amid rising concerns over the coronavirus epidemic was reprimanded and threatened with academic punishment after she was found to be missing from her dorm room. According to federal health agency guidelines, academic institutions like Barnard have been asking students who have recently traveled to China to submit to a period of isolation. The quarantine is entirely voluntary and students are not prohibited from leaving their rooms.

To date, there are no confirmed cases at Barnard or in New York City.

But on Thursday, Sylvia Su, a sophomore, posted an email she received from Natalie Friedman, a deputy dean of the college, in which Friedman said that she was informed that Su had not been in her room when someone tried to deliver a meal to her. "I am very concerned that you are not staying in your room during this period of quarantine," Friedman wrote. "I understand there may be appropriate reasons for leaving your room (e.g. using the bathroom), but not being present suggests you may be going to class or otherwise using campus facilities. If this is the case, you are not following the requirements made clear to you by Executive Director of Health and Wellness MJ Murphy."

"Not following such directives of a college officer may result in a conduct charge, as stated in item 6 of the Student Code of Conduct," she continued, adding later, "if you are not there when dinner will be delivered, I will need to follow-up with our Conduct office."

In response, Su told Friedman that she had gone out twice in the afternoon, once to shower and later to use the bathroom. She said she did not notice anyone trying to deliver food to her room. "If you are deeply concerned about my absence, I would love to suggest checking security CCTV if available. If basic trust and privacy cannot be given at this point, please arrange an exact time when food will be there at my door so I can arrange accordingly. A better method can also be letting the front desk of Hewitt to forbid my exit."

In publishing the email, Su posted:

i am a barnard student currently in quarantine, and people have been asking me what is happening. so here is what happened. i am helpless, angry, and this is unacceptable. my parents paid my tuition for me to study, make friends, and to see another world where i can be a freer, more unique individual regardless of my race, nationality, and sexuality. i had so many dreams, ambitions and hope when i came back for another new semester, and this is what happened. like this.

Su did not respond to a request for an interview through email.

On Facebook, the post garnered nearly 200 comments, many of whom were outraged by the dean's response to the situation. The controversy comes amid increased reports by Chinese New Yorkers about xenophobia and discrimination. On Thursday, the Columbia Spectator, the university's newspaper, reported an image circulated on social media of a blackboard at Butler Library, the main campus library, that read “Wuhan virus isolation area” in Chinese.

"I’m so so sorry you’re going through this. I fully intend to email dean Friedman and tell her how discriminatory and unacceptable I find this to be," wrote Morgan Apostle. "This institution does not have a right to make you feel less than human. I hope you know how many alums and current students support you."

Another commenter named Yang Shao wrote, "Princeton undergrad from Beijing here. Thank you for sharing. The Dean’s email is unacceptable and blatantly lacking of any human empathy."

A representative for Barnard apologized to Su on Instagram: "The email from Dean Friedman was neither appropriate nor acceptable. We recognize what a difficult time this is for you and our goal is to support you in any way we can. I know Dean Friedman reached out to apologize for the email. Dean Grinage is also available if you have additional questions or concerns."

Grinage also sent an email to all students on Thursday, which was posted online, in which she provided an update on the school's response to the public health threat and thanked those quarantined for cooperating. "This is an extraordinary inconvenience to the students involved, and an act of selflessness as they do their part to keep our community and themselves safe and healthy. We are immensely grateful for the responsiveness of the students who are affected and we are committed to doing everything we can to support them," she wrote.

She later reference "some missteps and miscommunications" and said the school had tried to address these immediately.

Reached for comment, Andrew Friedman, a public relations professional for BerlinRosen, referred Gothamist to Grinage's email.

He also sent a statement from a Barnard spokesperson saying that the college had joined other area schools "in suggesting that any students who have recently returned from mainland China voluntarily self-quarantine themselves for 14 days."

Thirteen students who live on Barnard’s campus had agreed to the self-quarantine. Of those, nine have already completed their 14-day precaution. The remaining four, none of whom were said to have exhibited any symptoms, will complete their quarantine by early next week.

Ironically, Su was featured on a special Barnard admissions site that included first-person stories from students. Su, who is from Beijing, has been a regular contributor, documenting her time at the college. "Jumping into a new country to study can be overwhelming - especially in the city of New York - but I do not regret my choice to be here at Barnard," she wrote in 2018. "The past two months have passed by without a blink, and I’ve still got so much to explore at Barnard and in the city."

She ended the piece by writing, "If you are looking for a place where you as an international student are supported, don’t hesitate to apply to Barnard!"