p r e l u d e Stories from the <strong>Moravian</strong> community Courtesy of Gila Yudkin courtesy of Michelle guth photo by JASON BEVINGTON Photo by Sarabeth Brockley ’11 Photo by Kelly Gallagher ’09 2 MORAVIAN COLLEGE MAGAZINE SUMMER 2009
<strong>Change</strong> <strong>Your</strong> <strong>Life—Go</strong> <strong>Away</strong> By Gordon Weil, vice president for academic affairs and dean of the faculty I was excited when I first heard about it. Sometime during my freshman year at Tulane University, I learned about the Junior Year Abroad program. Because I could only speak English, I set my sights on England. I talked to some friends and they decided to apply as well. By the time my junior year arrived, I was off to York University in York, England—a town surrounded by medieval walls. Although I left my girlfriend behind and she was not happy about that, it was transformative for me (and evidently not fatal to our relationship as we married a few years later and remain married to this day). I learned as much--probably more—outside the classroom than I did inside. Inside, I studied English literature with one of the foremost scholars of D. H. Lawrence. In an economics class, I was forced to confront mind-bending questions, such as “how do you value a human life” But it was my life outside the classroom that was the highlight of my year. I roomed with Adrian, a bloke from London, who taught me about music, poetry, India, England, and much more. I spent a few weekends with his family in Hampstead, and we kept in touch for many years afterward. The English were great at soccer, but not so much at basketball. So I can now truthfully claim to have been the starting point guard on my college team. (If you know me, this might come as a surprise.) I traveled around Great Britain on weekends to visit friends, and we toured the continent together over our breaks. And we did it, as they said back then, on “five dollars a day.” I learned I could negotiate cultures I didn’t fully understand. I learned I could communicate in countries where I didn’t speak the language. I learned what nationalism really meant. For a while, I “understood deep down” that America really was the best country, just as my English and Spanish friends felt deeply that their own country was the best. I learned about different educational systems, and how amazing it was that such a large proportion of Americans had the opportunity to go to college. And I came to appreciate what Hounds abroad 2009 (clockwise from top left): An English education class led by Professor Joe Shosh took students to Shakespearean sites in England in June. In July, students helped excavate Ramat Rachel in Israel, working with Professors Jason Radine and Deborah Appler. Over spring break, a group led by Professors Moeller, Keim, and Denton-Borhaug learned about colonialism and immigration along the U.S./Mexican border. During a May-term tropical ecology class in Peru, Molly DuVall ’11 studied with Prof. John Bevington. DuVall and Sarabeth Brockley ’10 (center) were happy for the opportunity to do additional research with Dr. Bevington in Peru’s lowlands and cloud forests. Above: Dean Gordon Weil, c. 1969. a treat it was to study broadly like we do in the U.S., rather than have to specialize from day one at a university. Many years later, I would tell my young sons stories about my experiences in Europe that year. I cleaned them up appropriately, but they remained good stories. I guess I should have expected it when my oldest son informed my wife and me that he would be going to London his junior year. I don’t know his stories—these things don’t move from son to father as well as they go the other way. But I do know that he is now bilingual because of that year. He roomed with two guys from Spain, who convinced him to live there after he graduated. He lived and worked there for a couple of years, and met a wonderful young woman from Madrid. She is now to be our daughter-in-law, and I’m the one trying to learn Spanish! > A few years later, our youngest son informed us he was going to Kenya for a semester in his junior year. He arranged to spend six weeks working with the Kenya Wildlife Service studying elephants. I remember when he called to tell us, “I’ll be in the bush for about six weeks, and will call when I return.” Seven weeks later, no phone call. We were just about to phone the program when he called: whew! Those six “lost” weeks led to his senior year thesis. Now he works for an animal preservation program in New Orleans, caring for lions, tigers, and other big cats. My point is that you never know what the outcome will be when you open yourself to new experiences. And studying abroad can be as much fun as it is educational. Today the world has become so interdependent that it is practically a must for all young people to have at least one intercultural experience. <strong>Moravian</strong> <strong>College</strong> students are fortunate because they have so many opportunities to study abroad. I advise students and their parents to “go for it! It will be the time of your life, and you’ll never be the same.” And that’s just what college is all about. W This article first appeared in Globalyours, the newsletter of the <strong>Moravian</strong> <strong>College</strong> Office of International Studies. Naomi Gal, Comenius professor of language and literature, is the editor.. <strong>Prelude</strong> features stories from the <strong>Moravian</strong> <strong>College</strong> community, told in the storyteller’s own words. Send ideas or submissions to vbingham@moravian.edu. SUMMER 2009 MORAVIAN COLLEGE MAGAZINE 3
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