Georgia Highlands College will be sponsoring three study abroad trips to China, Italy, and Berlin in 2018 along with other colleges part of the University system of Georgia and the European Council for Berlin.
According to Bronson Long, director of global initiatives and associate professor of history, “These trips will help students broaden their view of the world and expand their horizons and help bolster their career in a global world.”
All students with a good academic standing are eligible to participate in these trips. But first, students will have to complete a GHC study abroad application, which includes meeting with Financial Aid representatives that may lead to helping pay for the trip for students.
The trips to China, Italy, and Berlin will have summer session courses for 2018 linked to them. Long said, “Study abroad is not only a wonderful way to see more of the world, but it can help you earn college credit and further your education.”
All three trips include round trip airfare, accommodations, ground transportation, site visits, travel insurance, and most meals. These programs will mostly be all inclusive.
For the trip to Italy, students will be visiting Montepulciano in Tuscany and experience the history of Italy through field trips to Rome, Florence, Siena, Pisa, Venice, and other cities. On weekends, students will be free to explore the Italian Peninsula, with activities that include swimming the Mediterranean and hiking the Alps.
The Berlin trip will be hosted by David Hensley, assistant professor of history. According to Hensley, “This trip will bring both faculty and students together to engage in learning about a different place, while being in a different place.” In Berlin, students will be visiting Fredrick the Great’s summer palace, Checkpoint Charlie, a military base used during the Cold War, the Berlin Wall, the town of Wittenberg, where Martin Luther lived and founded the Protestant Reformation Movement, and certain places significant to the Nazi regime, such as a concentration camp.
Taking classes in Berlin will help students broaden their horizons and have a further appreciation of the classes they are taking by following the practices of those that came before, like the backgrounds in science, business, and the humanities.
One class will have a significant impact on students, the History of Nazi Germany. Hensley says, “With this class, I want to show students that Nazism was not some alien concept that took over the country, as it came from existing trends and developed through popular support.” Hensley also wants to show how Berlin today is still struggling with its past with its democratic present. The Berlin trip will cost $5,300 and the deadline is March 2, 2018.
Students will be traveling around by bus, train, and subway. While there will be bilingual tour guides in China, there will not be in Italy or Berlin. But even though most people in those countries do speak English, it could help if students knew a few simple words.
Long says, “Study abroad is a unique, once in a lifetime opportunity, especially when you are young, as it is a chance for adventure and to explore the world.”
The China trip will be a nine-day trip from May 25 to June 2, 2018. The Italy trip will last from June 28 to Aug. 2, 2018. The Berlin trip will take place on June 28 through Aug. 1, 2018.
For more information, go to hartttravel.com/ghcchina, dga.kennesaw.edu/educationabroad, and ecstudyabroad.net for each individual trip.
To see information on the China trip, go to https://sixmilepost.com/?p=4946 from the October 3 “Six Mile Post” issue.
