About this Event
The Study Abroad and Global Experiences (SAGE) office was excited to see larger numbers of faculty traveling abroad for Spring Break and participating in exciting Endowed Chair projects, faculty exchange and collaboration visits with our international partners. There was a total of 11 faculty traveling all over the world!
International faculty travel has a great impact on our efforts to internationalize our curriculum and promote study abroad to our students. Some of the benefits include:
- Learning new ideas and practices, developing expertise in their field, and building international relationships for future partnerships.
- Gaining first-hand global knowledge and perspectives which can be incorporated into their curriculum.
- Inspiring students to study abroad through sharing their international experiences in the classroom.
Here’s a snapshot of some of where some of our faculty members traveled:
- The Azores Islands: Portuguese Professor Richard Sansone traveled to the Azores, an archipelago of nine volcanic islands 1000 miles west of Portugal, to meet with his network of contacts to collaborate on a unique project of creating “virtual voyages” for Valencia students. Thanks to the support provided by the Howard L. Palmer Chair in Foreign Languages, each voyage will include a photographic slideshow and video clips of themes specific to the Azores, such as their volcanic geography and climate, their history as a center of whaling and fishing, their unique microclimates, and the mini ecosystems that permit the cultivation of plants, vegetables, and domestic animals. The virtual sessions will include real-time meetings with the experts who helped create the voyages. This is another great example of how we are bringing the world to Valencia students through virtual experiences.
- Nigeria: Professor Mark Guillette traveled to Lagos, Uyo, and Abuja on an Endowed Chair project to experience first-hand the culture, economics, politics, religion, family, and other social institutions in the country to share with this sociology students. His trip included meetings with CEOs of businesses, visits with state officials, tours of the Biodiversity Preservation Center and the National Space Research and Development Agency at Obasanjo Space Centre, as well as meetings with students and staff at local schools.
- Denmark & The Netherlands: Professor Dominic DiPaolo, Program Chair of Digital Media, traveled to visit our partner Saint Lucas, Eindhoven in the Netherlands for a faculty exchange as part of his Endowed Chair project, which included a semester-long virtual exchange called “Global 3D Design and Printing in Digital Media Education.” He also visited our long-standing Exchange partner in Denmark to give guest lectures, meet with faculty, and explore ideas for our Digital Media students to participate in our exchange program there.
- Grenada: Professors Coleen Cox and Roberta Carew (plus 6 Valencia faculty/staff members) traveled to Grenada for an Endowed Chair project involving a unique “Faculty Study Abroad Program” where they experienced first-hand what a student faculty-led program is like. The program was designed to expose faculty to international experiences and encourage them to become Study Abroad Advocates on campus and promote education abroad to students.
- Costa Rica: Mathematics Professor Kurt Overhiser traveled to one of our partners in Costa Rica, Universidad Técnica Nacional (UTN), using an East Campus Travel Grant, to develop a faculty exchange program. As part of his visit, he gave guest lectures in their mathematics classes, met with faculty, presented about American culture/education, and participated in cultural activities with students. We look forward to welcoming one of UTN’s faculty members in the fall.