Domestic Global Perspectives trips offer a new look at culture
Students on the New England trip. Photo courtesy of Abbie Cribbs.
Choosing a Global Perspectives trip is one of the most daunting decisions students will make during their time at Lee. In the haze of options, it is easy to forget that Lee offers trips to domestic destinations. Students can experience different cultures without leaving the country.
Lee offers a trip to Alaska with the Education Department for May 2020, and the Sociology Department is also leading a summer trip to Hawaii.
Faculty also lead a New England trip, featuring classes in American ethnic studies. The courses focus on multi-ethnic U.S. literature and U.S. poetry. Students have the opportunity to visit the houses of the famous authors they are reading. The trip is offered every other year, with the next trip in 2021. Abbie Cribbs, a senior English literature major, experienced the trip for herself last summer.
Photo courtesy of Abbie Cribbs.
“Emily Dickenson’s house was amazing and Louisa May Alcott’s … everyone really enjoyed Nathaniel Hawthorne’s house in Salem,” Cribbs said. “There was a secret staircase in his house where the chimney used to be.”
Angeline McMullin, director of the Global Perspectives program, leads a trip to Cherokee, North Carolina.
“I run an individually arranged study trip out of this office to Cherokee, North Carolina every summer and that is only for the cross-cultural credit course,” McMullin said. “Students only pay for the hundred-dollar tuition credit [in addition to travel fees and expenses].”
Domestic trips are often appealing as a cost-effective option to fulfill the Global Perspectives requirement. However, there are still several inexpensive international trips too.
“The trip to Alaska is just as expensive as some trips abroad,” said Alan Wheeler, lecturer in anthropology and global perspectives teacher. “My trip that I’m leading to Israel and Palestine for $4,175 this December is cheaper.”
Whether stateside or abroad, the Global Perspectives program offers offers students the opportunity to be immersed in another culture. Students interested in more information about specific trips can find more information at globalperspectives.leeuniversity.edu or at the Global Perspectives office in Humanities 107.
