Students from all five Alamo Community College campuses furthered their college education by partaking in two Study Abroad programs led by Palo Alto faculty this past semester.

Two separate groups of students traveled and studied overseas in the countries of Turkey and Spain with the ACC’s expanding International Studies program. This was Palo Alto’s first Study Abroad to Turkey and its fourth to Spain. Palo Alto College has also hosted Study Abroads to China and Oaxaca, Mexico, in the past.

“A study abroad experience does not compare to a regular classroom experience,” wrote Sonia Gonzales, a Palo Alto student who was one of 13 ACC students who studied abroad in Spain this past summer. “In a different setting, your perspective changes if you are keen on what to look for.”

Students traveled to Spain last summer for part of their Summer I Journalism and Humanities courses. Dr. Denise Barkis Richter, an associate professor of Communications, and Mariana Ornelas, an associate professor of Humanities, integrated their two courses, focusing respectively on the study and practice of news gathering and writing as well as the history and civilization of Spain. Students had the possibility of earning up to six hours of college credit based upon their performance in these two courses.

Both students and professors maintained an online journal, also known as a blog, as part of their coursework. The blogs may be accessed at http://denisespain2007.blogspot.com. The group chronicled their overseas experiences online while tour buses and Internet cafes provided impromptu classrooms.

Students were assigned prompts to blog about from their textbooks that related to their news writing or humanities coursework, while sometimes the students were offered the opportunity to freely express their experiences.

The blogs include every issue imaginable, ranging from differences between Spanish and American cultures to students’ first-time perceptions of Spain.

“In Spain, the air is different. My nasal passages opened and I could breathe. The air was fresh and crisp. It felt like I had never really smelled anything before. The air wasn’t clouded with fumes coming from vehicles. The sky was even a different shade of blue. The color of the sky looked pure, like it never encountered smog before,” wrote Palo Alto student Erica Silva in a blog entry titled “Catch a Ride, Reduce Pollutants,” which compared and critiqued Spain’s public transportation to San Antonio’s.

The students’ journey included visits to Madrid, Burgos, Bilbao, San Sebastian, Pamplona, Barcelona, Valencia, Granada, Torremolinos, Sevilla and Cordoba, all within the 22-day trip that spanned from June 11 through July 2.

“It was worth it,” said Krystal Marquez, a Palo Alto sophomore, noting that the experiences and memories gained justified the cost. “It was an experience I’ll never forget,” she added, proudly declaring that the differences in culture and setting have expanded her perspectives on life by introducing her to new and exotic ideas.

A second group of 14 students traveled to Turkey this past Maymester for a period of 12 days.

“It was an amazing experience to see other people’s culture,” said Monica Centeno, a Palo Alto sophomore Communications major. “Understanding others helps me better understand myself,” she continued, adding that the people of Turkey were nice, warm and friendly.

This group of students was led by Karen Marcotte, professor of History and Humanities, and Dr. Thomas Baynum, former vice president of Academic Affairs. Marcotte and Baynum integrated their English and Humanities courses for this Study Abroad.

Marcotte offered Humanities 1301, 1302 and 2323, covering the Introduction to Humanities, Reading for the Humanities and World Cultures and Global Issues. A typical class assignment ranged from Turkish geography and map reading to journal prompts and sights observed from the class’ tour bus.

“You have the familiar, the universal, which makes you feel comfortable, and then you have the unique. The differences are the true joy,” she explained, noting that she discouraged students from partaking in familiar establishments of Western origin, such as eating at a McDonald’s, so they could experience Turkish culture to its fullest.

Students participated in unique experiences by visiting select locales exclusive to Turkish culture, such as Hagia Sophia, a 1500-year-old former Christian, later Muslim, place of worship, located in Istanbul, Turkey.

In addition, the class traveled all alongside the western coast of Turkey, choosing to distance themselves from the eastern border which parallels Iraq. The group traveled and visited several cities, including Istanbul, Canakkale and Izmir.

The class also involved themselves with their Turkish counterparts, partaking in such activities as a Turkish high school graduation as well as enjoying various Turkish nightlife happenings during their free time.

Students have taken note of the possibilities presented by studying abroad and the universal consensus amongst those who have done so is that the opportunity is worth both the effort and money for such an experience.

“[Study Abroad] has altered my view of the world in many ways,” Gonzales concluded on her final blog entry. “Having traveled across the Atlantic shortened the distance of what once seemed worlds away. I now truly believe it is a small world after all.”