Study Abroad Resumes in Winter 2021

Studying abroad shaped both the high school and college educational experiences of Morghan Lemmenes.

As the world set course for a post-pandemic world, Lemmenes is eager to help current and future St. Ambrose University students incorporate a global perspective into their college experience as well.

"To be able to go abroad and learn from other people's experiences and get a new cultural perspective on life was huge for me," said Lemmenes, newly hired this summer as the Education Abroad Coordinator. "I got to experience other cultures and be immersed in them. I got to learn how to be more independent, how to fend for myself in any city.

"Having these experiences and learning these skills can help round out any education."

Lemmenes will coordinate the University's commitment to offer a strong and varied menu of Study Abroad opportunities after year's hiatus for the program due to COVID-19 travel restrictions.
A number of potential Winterim programs are under consideration, pending ongoing changes to international travel policies as the threat of virus continues to abate. Faculty have submitted potential learning and class credit opportunities for for university-led and credit earning trips to Rome, Croatia, India, Ecuador, and Greece this coming December and January.

"We're looking at countries we are able to go to and come back from," Lemmenes said of the fast-changing landscape of travel in the latter half of 2021. "We're hoping that the new year will bring normal opportunities to study abroad, both individually and in groups."

Lemmenes will be working under the direction of Patrick Archer, PhD, Interim Dean of the College of Arts and Sciences effective July 1, to reboot the Study Abroad program. Archer said the University has a strategic commitment to supply every student a high-impact experiential learning opportunity.

Paul Koch, PhD, the University Provost and Vice President for Academic and Student Affairs, said the global pandemic was a tragic and powerful example of the interconnectedness of human beings across the globe. As such, it illustrates the importance of the shared perspective and understanding study abroad promotes.

"St. Ambrose actively promotes high impact practices for our students, as they not only promote learning for students in the moment, but also lifelong learning," Koch said. "Along with internships/practicums, and service learning, study abroad is a high impact practice that aligns with our Mission and Core Values and promotes students' readiness for a global society.

"While this has always been important, our recent experiences with COVID has made the ability to not only view the world through one's own lenses but also through the lens of another culture even more important.

"We are excited about the potential to re-engage our students and faculty in study abroad in a meaningful way beginning with the winterim session of the 2021-2022 academic year," he added. "There is nothing more exciting than to see the daily learning that occurs when students are immersed in another culture, as they come back from the experience forever changed in a positive manner."