A) I can't speak to this from the perspective of the legal and religiously jurisprudential sides (and there are organizations that can, see below), but as a survivor of an abusive marriage, and later, a shelter volunteer :
1) I hope he doesn't know where she is staying, and that all efforts have been made to protect her and her child(ren) as they travel to and from their work/school/homesites. If he knows even one of her classes, or where the children go for daycare, and decides to enact the protective/possessive male dominance thing he could try to follow them there.
I would guess they know to be careful but one of the stresses is the continual care one must take and the fact that the stress from that care can cause slip-ups. So continued reinforcement for how important and how valuable it is to stay alert would be a message I'd send often when in touch with the person.
2) Good that you are assisting and seeking appropriate help, but do also be careful on your own. It's not your trouble directly, but by taking her part, you could be seen as coming between the husband and his property/wife/children, and you should be taking your own precautions, as well...no dark parking lots alone, that kind of thing. (Former spouse tried to "shadow me" to where I was staying once to "get in and tell those people what he thought of their helping me;" the shelter location was kept secret to avoid reprisals/kidnapping attempts; this was an especial concern where a "macho" culture existed among males in one particular population that was highly present at the shelter due to its location in the town.)
3) Abused individuals sometimes re-think their situations, or test out their own will to leave by returning in the hope/belief/wish that things might get better. This should not be seen as a relapse or taken with any degree of shock, because it's a part of the reality-testing that the individual may have to go through to strengthen their own resolve to leave.
Instead, stay in contact, don't feel "betrayed," or like your work has been for nothing; but stay in communication and help with the reality-testing to whatever degree you can...and keep referring the person to a counselor, who can likewise help with this.
4) Be very careful, perhaps especially if you're male, not to give any reason (even a handshake) for someone to think that there is an emotional connection between you and the student.
Obviously enough, for the usual reasons, but also because abusive partners have usually lost much of their perspective on "who" they are and "who" their spouse/partner is and the messy/nonexistent boundary definitions are what make the violence (sometimes) unpredictable and frightening and sometimes only too predictable.
The possibility of increased violence towards the target spouse/partner as well as any perceived rivals once the spouse makes their intentions to leave clear is not negligible.
5) Be helpful but don't "hover," since people leaving abusive situations often take some time to do so, need many different kinds of help, and may in fact only be in close contact for a short period of time.
That doesn't mean that what you do, even in a brief or seemingly disconnected way, isn't valuable. I can still recall the 30 or more different people who took me seriously, helped me find help, let me stay with them briefly, or funded a retreat/lawyer's visit/whatever, at their own discretion, over the 3 years it took me to realize what I was dealing with and how I wanted to resolve it.
It sounds like your student might not have the leisure of as much time to resolve/move on things, and with childcare issues, it's very much harder.
6) Sometimes there are things--a savings-account book, for example--for which one must risk a brief return, so as not to tip one's hand or lose access to the object. Going with a female friend when the abuser is known to be away is one way to do that.
B) But I'd also be seeking out local resources for domestic violence (there's are national centers,
http://www.ndvh.org/and
http://www.helpguide.org/mental/domestic_violence_abuse_help_treatment_prevention.htmFor women from Islamic families, there is this site:
http://www.themodernreligion.com/women/w_dv.htmand a recent interview with this individual:
http://www.cnn.com/2009/LIVING/09/24/cnnheroes.robina.niaz/index.htmland the site named in the article is at:
http://turningpoint-ny.org/There are probably others in your local area.
C) I'd, gut-level, be seeing if she could get some kind of an extension of her work here, somehow...and with their visa situation, perhaps he would be sent back, which might ease things in general...but perhaps not, I don't know well enough to know.
