How Rome changes lives
Fall semester in Italy expands knowledge of students
By Joseph Kastner
Staff Writer
Rome changes everything, according
to some of the North Lake
students who studied there last semester.
Their comments come at a time
when administrators and instructors
are organizing another student
journey to Italy this fall.
Marsha A. Anderson, director
of North Lake’s Rome Studies Program,
said the experience changes
each student’s view of the world
forever.
Student Stephanie Kubin agreed
that the fall semester permanently
expanded her appreciation for art.
She finds beauty in everything now,
she said.
Kubin couldn’t name the best
work of art she visited in Italy, but
she didn’t hesitate to identify her
two favorites, both by Boticelli –
”Primavera” and the “Birth of Venus.”
Pictures in books don’t do
them justice, she added.
Larry Lehman, an instructor in
the Rome Studies Program, said
students learn how to utilize multiple
sources when they write about
history. Ancient architecture, Renaissance
art works, old manuscripts,
early photographs, today’s
dedicated historians: All are available
in Italy.
Americans remain tied to their
automobiles, Anderson noted. The
opposite is true in Rome, where
public transportation is cheap and
abundant. The difference is immediately
noticeable to everyone, she
said.
Italians work to live, while we
live to work, Anderson said. And
Romans respect what is old and durable
– even when it does not have
any artistic value.
Alex Caudill, another student in
the Rome Studies Program, said he
learned a lot about Italian culture
and that it was a great trip.
Dr. Lynn Brink, a former instructor
in the Rome Studies Program,
said her students learned to
see the world through eyes that have
never seen the United States. That’s
a life-altering lesson, she said.
Brink said Rome students sometimes
have trouble adjusting to
group activities. Americans value
individualism and are not accustomed
to doing things as a group.
Italians are more accustomed to
group culture.
Student Allison Thompson said
she recognized that difference
immediately, but added that she
learned to adapt.
The cost of the next trip is estimated
at $6,995 and includes airfare,
ground transportation, room,
board, tuition for 15 hours, and trips
to Rome, Sorrento, Capri, Florence,
Siena and Venice.
For more information, call
972-273-3584 or send an email
to Marsha Anderson at
manderson@dcccd.edu. |
