Ten Tusculum College students and two professors are making plans to visit the art, architecture and history of Renaissance and Reformation Europe when they take their classroom to Europe in March.
Because of the uniqueness of the "one class at a time" block schedule offered at Tusculum College, students enrolled in "Politics and Religion in Renaissance and Reformation Europe" will spend two weeks in traditional class work and then take their classroom on the road to see firsthand where the Renaissance was born and where key historical moments took place.
Leading the trip are Dr. Joel Van Amberg, assistant professor of history, and Dr. James Reid, professor of political science.
"After two weeks of traditional coursework we will travel to Europe to visit some of the major sites, buildings and images associated with the Renaissance and Reformation," said Van Amberg.
"There are historical realities that are sometimes hard to understand without traveling to the location where those realities took place," he said. Van Amberg added that in addition to the significant political science, religion and historical topics that they will investigate during the trip, they will also explore the "incredible developments in paintings, sculpture and architecture" that occurred during the Renaissance and Reformation.
"There is just no substitute for actually seeing these masterpieces."
On the itinerary for the trip are visits to Rome and Florence, Italy; Wittenberg, Germany, and Geneva and Zurich, Switzerland. The trip is planned for March and will cover nearly two weeks.
While several of the students are history or political science majors, several others enrolled in the class for the experience of learning the topic first hand and on the original sites were the movements were born.
According to Van Amberg, another positive aspect of the trip is that many of Tusculum's students have never done any traveling abroad.
"This experience will help students and reduce the anxiety associated with international travel. Hopefully it will clear the way for them to take advantage of other travel opportunities offered in the future."
The student Europe trip is part of Tusculum College's efforts to increase the number of students who have an international experience during their college career. As part of this campus wide goal, the College formed the Center for Global Studies in spring 2008, with a mission to "enhance the capacity of individuals and organizations to address local and global challenges through building relationships with communities, institutions of higher learning and organizations globally."
For more information the Tusculum College Global Studies program, contact Dr. Geir Bergvin, director of the Center for Global Studies, at 423-636-7300.
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