A&S crisscrossing the globe from Argentina to Sicily

Study-abroad programs sponsored by the College's Department of Foreign Languages and Literatures crisscross the globe from Japan to Argentina to Paris--with the center of operations in Smith Hall on the UD campus.

"The department offers so many study-abroad programs that it has its own coordinator, who works closely with us in the Center for International Studies," says the center's director, Lesa Griffiths. "That department also offers more full-semester trips than other departments do, because the emphasis is on immersion in the language and culture of a country."

Marion Bernard-Amos, coordinator of the department's far-flung programs, works with overseas directors, faculty and students here and abroad.

"In our department, we encourage those with majors or minors in foreign languages to spend a semester abroad or, if that isn't feasible, a Winter or Summer Session," Bernard-Amos says.

Last school year, after the Sept. 11 terrorist attacks, enrollment in overseas programs dropped, but student interest now has resumed, Bernard-Amos says, calling 2002-03 "a bumper year" in the number of applicants. She says UD's programs not only are successful and popular with students but also have earned high ratings from NAFSA, the Association of International Educators.

While students enjoy traveling and experiencing life in a new country, they must remember that studying overseas is not a vacation, according to Bernard-Amos. "Students have to learn to balance recreation and academics," she says. "Those who enroll in overseas programs must do so for credit, and no pass/fail grades are given. When they go on excursions, which are required, students have to pay attention because they are given quizzes on their field trips and these are part of their grades."

Students in the department's overseas programs are encouraged to spend as much time as possible with residents of the country they are visiting, speaking the language and learning about everyday life.

"What's important is that students learn about the culture of a country by actually living it, and frequently, they make lifelong friends," Bernard-Amos says. "We give students an orientation before they go overseas, but they still have to make some adjustments."

For example, she says, European families typically gather for dinner and expect their student visitors to join them. The families also want to know their guests' whereabouts, while the American students are accustomed to more independence.

"Once the ground rules are established, things generally go smoothly," Bernard-Amos says.

Of all the department's study-abroad trips, Costa Rica currently is the most popular destination, with a total of approximately 300 students enrolled in different programs this year. Other Spanish-language programs are in Spain, Mexico and Argentina, while those who wish to improve their French may chose Martinique or Paris. Students of German can participate in a program hosted by the University of Bayreuth. Another popular European destination is Italy.

Foreign languages and literatures also co-sponsors, with the East Asian Studies program and the Department of Music, a Winter Session program in China. A planned program to Cuba in 2004 has received tentative approval from the U.S. State Department, and another program is being developed in Ecuador.

"Programs in the Department of Foreign Languages and Literatures are integrated into the department," Bernard-Amos says. "A faculty member may initiate a program, but others can step in and run it. Our department is a mini-United Nations, but it's also like a family, and we work together."

When in Italy ...

The College of Arts and Science's study-abroad programs in Italy are movable feasts of culture, history and language, with different menus for different groups.

During Winter Session, UD students travel from Venice in northern Italy to Naples, the historical capital of the south, with stops in Rome, Florence and L'Aquila. Participants get a firsthand immersion in regional culture, politics, history and language, in a program sponsored jointly by the departments of Political Science and Foreign Languages and Literatures. Faculty directors are Kenneth Campbell, associate professor of political science and international relations, and Gabriella Finizio, assistant professor of foreign languages and literatures.

During Summer Session 2003, another group of students will have a totally different Italian experience, living and studying in the tiny town of Piedimonte Matese, a historical landmark near Naples, and becoming part of an Italian community.

"It's months away, but the people in Piedimonte are very excited about welcoming a group of American students to their town and already are making plans," says Finizio, who is experienced at introducing groups of UD students to the wonders of her native Italy. "As few people in Piedimonte speak English, it will be a wonderful opportunity for students to become accustomed to speaking Italian."

The group will depart in June, under the direction of Finizio and supplemental faculty member Giuseppina Priestley, and will make its first cultural stop in Rome. Once in Piedimonte, students will take courses with UD faculty and make several field trips to such locations as Naples, Pompeii and Capri.

Other options are Winter Session programs or semester programs in Siena, an ancient city known for its famed medieval square, cathedral and university, which attracts international students. Finizio already has directed a half-dozen Winter Sessions in Siena.

Two UD students were among those who spent a semester in Italy in 2001.

"It was the best experience of my life. It really opened my eyes," Stephanie Campese, AS 2003, says. "One night in Rome, I thought, 'Wow! Here I am walking down a single street, and there is the Coliseum and the Forum and all these famous places I've heard and read about all surrounding me.'"

Campese gave high marks to the excursions, which were part of the program. "It would not have been possible to see as much if we did it on our own, and we would have missed so much," she says.

She and another UD student lived in Siena with a young couple who had a 2-year-old baby. "We would meet every night for dinner, and the wife would tell us about her experiences that day as a schoolteacher, while her husband would suggest where we should go for some nightlife," Campese says.

Rebecca Reidel, AS 2003, also says she enjoyed the home stay in Siena. "My family was a young couple who worked for the police department and had a 4-year-old daughter, Sofia, who would very nicely correct my Italian," she says. "I was made part of the extended family, including grandparents and other relatives, and was invited to family gatherings and day trips to the beach. I became attached to my host family."

--Sue Moncure

A view of the political landscape

If Italy is an educational destination rich in literature, language and culture, it also is a great place to study politics, says James Magee, who has been taking UD students there since 1982.

Magee, acting chairperson of the Department of Political Science and International Relations, has led a dozen study-abroad programs to Italy. During the earlier years, Magee says, the programs focused mainly on locations in northern Italy. Today, students visit sites ranging from Milan and Venice in the north to Palermo on the island of Sicily, far to the south.

"The students have said that Palermo was not what they expected," Magee says. "They were amazed at the people there and how they went about the daily business of running a city like Palermo. Being there helped students dispel many of the myths, stereotypes and other misconceptions about the city and Sicily in general."

Students can earn six credits in courses that explore subjects including politics and literature, political problems in contemporary Italy and the Italian political culture. They visit such national institutions as Parliament, the Presidential Palace and the Constitutional Court and tour Rome, Venice, Naples and other major cities. The program also features guest lectures and cultural experiences, including attendance at a general audience with the pope.

"Winter is really the best time to study Italy and its cultural and political institutions," Magee says. "Travel is more economical, and in January, you really get a chance to see the country and the government at work."

He says a new destination next year is Abbruzzo, a region many of the people who immigrated to Wilmington, Del., and Philadelphia originally called home.

"Family is very important in Italy, and we have had students with us who have relatives living there," Magee says. "Some even visited these families during their weekend excursions and often recorded the experience in journals as part of their course requirements."

Magee became interested in Italian culture while a graduate student at the University of Virginia, where his comparative politics professor specialized in Italy as the country with which to compare other cultures. He says the study-abroad programs foster that same interest in UD students.

"I have had students tell me it was the best educational thing they have ever done," he says. "Most of them say it was a life-changing experience."

Program selects London by design

London, one of the most historically important and culturally sophisticated cities on the planet, also is home to one of the world's most celebrated advertising and design communities.

AdWeek, a major advertising-industry publication, has named three London-based agencies among its top 10.

That reputation is why Raymond Nichols and Bill Deering, faculty members in the Department of Art's Visual Communications Group, see London as the perfect place to take their students for a study-abroad summer program.

"In the United States, the top firms are scattered across the country," Nichols says. "On the other hand, visiting the hot places in London will keep you within a few square miles."

Nichols and Deering took their first group of visual communications students to England in the summer of 2001, after a preliminary visit to find out which individuals and institutions were willing to open their doors to the group.

"We wanted to see for ourselves if any of the things we wanted to do were even possible," Nichols says.

What they found was that people in the advertising and creative design community were enthusiastic.

"Not only did they let us into their businesses or studios, they also let us see what they were doing," Deering says. "When we asked them why they allowed it, they told us that no one had ever asked them before."

The next time he and Nichols went to London, they took their students with them.

One of the first to put out the welcome mat was Alan Fletcher, a top graphic designer and a co-founder of Pentagram, a 30-year-old firm with offices in London, New York and San Francisco.

"We spent the end of the first week in the summer of both 2001 and 2002 with Alan Fletcher," Nichols says. "He took us in his studio and showed us his portfolio." He also shared his ideas about life and work.

"We got to interact with Alan and absorb some of his playfulness," Claire Pasquariello, AS 2003, says. "We saw some of his fun things--the things he uses to keep him creative. He was very welcoming to us."

Fletcher's hospitality included letting his guests look through his sketchbooks and view his collection of books and other items. Because his studio was small, students often sat on the floor cross-legged, while Fletcher held forth, discussing all manner of subjects.

Daniela Montanez, AS 2003, says she enjoyed hearing about Fletcher's offbeat approach to both work and play.

"He calls it the art of looking sideways," Montanez says.

Another favorite stop last summer was a visit to the Victoria & Albert Museum, whose collections span 2,000 years of decorative arts. Margaret Timmers, author of a renowned work on the history of the poster, met with the UD students and showed them a collection of items.

"You could just walk up and look at all these special things," Nichols says. "The exhibit included everything in poster art from Toulouse-Lautrec to the posters of the 1960s."

A visit to the British Library turned up treasures that ranged from the Rosetta stone to the Gutenberg Bible to lyrics by John Lennon and Paul McCartney written on scrap paper.

A three-hour "typographic walking tour" of London allowed students to view a wide variety of signs, including some from the 15th century that were carved into the walls of buildings.

A tour of Central Saint Martins College of Art and Design gave the UD students a chance to see the work of their peers in the United Kingdom. Students also visited the Royal College of Art.

"The trip broadens your views," Nichols says. "You are seeing and visiting places that are at the top of the game. It only makes your dreams get bigger."

--Jerry Rhodes