ir
I
W/EDNESDAY
JANUARY 20, 2016
NEWS
Study Abroad, Study USA on the rise
Christina Elias
Assistant News Editor
I iaelias(hristina4
Elon University’s Global Education
Center saw a record number of students
participating Study USA this Winter Term.
“We had six [courses] this year, three
of which were returning courses and three
brand-new ones,” said assistant professor
Mark Dalhouse, director of Study USA. “I
I have at least two new ones in the offerings
(for next year, so I’m thinking that we’ll sta-
|bilize the set around seven or eight cours-
5.”
Dalhouse is constantly looking to in-
I crease Study USA participation by offering
I something for students across all majors.
“One of the things I want Study USA
I to do is branch out and offer options for
I students from whatever major,”. Dalhouse
[said. “It’s really fun as director of Study
lUSA, because part of my job is to try to
create and dream up new courses.”
The Study Abroad program has also
[seen an upward trend of student enroll-
Iment during the winter.
Director of Study Abroad Rhonda
IWaller said that while there were not many
Inew programs offered internationally this
■Winter Term, there has been a steady in
crease in students traveling abroad in fall
land spring semesters.
"IN YOUR FOUR YEARS, WE
REALLYWANTYOUTOHAVE
A GLOBAL ENGAGEMENT
EXPERIENCE."
RHONDA WALLER
DIRECTOR OF STUDY ABROAD
With studying abroad as a core com-
Iponent of the Elon Comrfiitment, Waller
■explained that her mission is to provide
IlOO percent access to global engagement
lopportunities.
PHOTO COURTESY OF RICHARD LANDESBER6
Students in GBL 207: The Trail Starts Here: The Iowa Caucuses'Winter Term class pose with Democratic presidential frontrunner Hillary Clinton.
“We’re trying to get every student to
consider it as a way to enhance their time
at Elon and to enhance their degree,”
Waller said.
Because of major requirements. Waller
recognizes some students feel limited and
unable to spend a semester in another
country. She said Winter Term is a viable
alternative for all students.
“We’re always promoting Winter Term,”
she said. “We’re not necessarily trying to
drive people towards Winter Term. We’re
just thinking about the big picture and
going, ‘Hey, in your four years, we really
want you to have a global engagement ex
perience.’”
Sophomore Courtney McKelvey is cur
rently abroad in India and will participate
in Elon in DC in the spring. McKelvey said
Winter Term was the perfect time to im
merse herself in a culture completely dif
ferent than the one she grew up in.
While she plans to do a semester abroad,
she might not have had another opportu
nity to go to India. She said that because
full semesters abroad often align with ma
jor credits. Winter Term allows students to
have the flexibility to study issues outside
their majors.
“I’m studying education in India with
a focus in science, so as a policy and in
ternational studies major it’s cool to learn
about teaching methods and engage in sci
ence experiments with Indian students,”
she said.
According to Waller, part of the de
partment’s success can be attributed to the
popularity of the current courses among
students and its recognition in various na
tional lists.
For example, in the Open Doors 2014
report, the Institute of International Ed
ucation ranked Elon No. 1 for the total
number of students who studied overseas
during the 2012-13 academic year.
“We’re really lucky here at Elon to have
a culture where students already are really
highly aware that study abroad is an op
tion,” Waller said.
STUDENT ENROILIVIENT
study Abroad:
2012- 13:678 undergraduate students
2013- 14:697 undergraduate students
2014- 15:725 undergraduate students
Study USA:
2012- 13:70 undergraduate students
2013- 14:50 undergraduate students
2014- 15:51 undergraduate students
'Burst the Bubble'classes compete for enrollment
iMicah Spoerndle
[Senior Reporter
|@whysheeranidk
Elon University students are taking addi
tional courses outside the classroom during
[Winter Term. These courses offer no credit
ind provide no homework. Winter Term
^Burst the Bubble” classes allow students to
[ake non-academic courses that pique their
Interest.
The topics for classes this year range
f^rom beatboxing to the Middle East to
hiskey. In 2007, the first year of Burst the
lubble classes, students conducted a total of
[2 Burst the Bubble classes. This year, there
(ire 26.
Seniors Laura Orr and Dawson Nichol
son are presenting, about Southern foods
in their “Burst the Bubble” class “Biscuits,
Grits, and Pecan Pie: Food Made in the
youth.” They were both raised in the South
Orr is from North Carolina and Nichol
son is from Tennessee.
During this Winter Term, these two stu
dents are teaching eight fellow students how
to make traditional Southern dishes.
Students in this class have made butter-
Jnilk biscuits, sweet potatoes, baked mac
and cheese and green bean casserole.
I just love cooking and I think at Elon
theres not a lot of Southern food,” Orr said.
There are plenty of dishes that students can
MICAH SPOERNDLE | Senior Reporter
Seniors Laura Orr and Dawson Nicholson clean up after their'Burst the Bubble' class called 'Biscuits, Grits
and Pecan Pie: Food Made in the South/They teach fellow students howto cook classic Southern food.
easily make, but they just don’t know how
to fix them.” -
This hands-on class not only teaches
students how to cook the food but also pro
vides the supplies and equipment for them
in the Moseley Kitchen.
Other classes discuss more serious sub
jects.
Senior Emma Mankin and junior Kyle
Porro, representatives from Students Pro
moting Awareness, Responsibility, Knowl
edge and Success (SPARKS), are holding a
class on sexual assault and rape on college
campuses.
Mankin and Porro said they want to mo
tivate students to start a conversation with
friends about these topics.
Their larger goal is to remove the neg
ative connotation some people have about
taking an active role in sexual activity by
being more upfront about communicating
expectations and preferences.
A similar class about safe sex was also
held last year by Elaina Vermeulen ’15 and
T5 Matthew Johnston, which attracted
more students than this year’s class.
“There was more hype around this sub
ject last year, and consent and rape were
more of hot-button topics,” Porro said.
Lack of participation in classes this year
is common, according to junior Aislinn
Gherman, who is teaching the Burst the
Bubble class, “Psychopathology in Modern
Society: Business Leadership and the push
for manipulative behavior.”
Gherman’s class originally had 12 partic
ipants sign up before Winter Term began,
but only two attended her first class.
Gherman’s class takes a psychological
and sociological perspective on business
leadership, analyzing the growing habit of
businesses operating under selfish motives.
Recent cases from companies like Volk
swagen, Enron and Johnson 8 Johnson are
presented and discussed in the class to take
a look at why unethical business manage
ment is growing in popularity. •
“This class was more about the intersec
tion of ethics and the businesses that show
up all over the news,” Gherman said.
She explained her method of teaching
through a combination of presenting cases
about modern businesses through podcasts
like “This American Life,” videos like TED
Talks and news articles.
Like Gherman, any student has the abil
ity to start a Burst the Bubble class through
applying online in November after receiving
an email from burstthebubble@elon.edu.