St. Lawrence University: Sesquicentennial

St. Lawrence’s Heritage of International Study

The opportunity to study on a St. Lawrence-sponsored program in a foreign land has existed since 1964. “Junior year abroad” is now considered quaintly historic; it’s not only juniors who can participate, and the contemporary name, “international and intercultural study,” suggests a maturing of emphasis, from something akin to a tour into a true learning experience.

The program in France, begun in 1964, was St. Lawrence’s first. In those early years, it and the programs in Austria and Spain provided the opportunity to gain language fluency through a full-year experience and were sponsored by the department of modern languages.

Today, the majority of the programs are only a semester long, with the option of a year remaining in Canada, Japan, Spain and France. And the focus, particularly in the newer programs such as those in India and China, is on cultural integration in addition to language proficiency.

Other programs stress different academic areas appropriate to their unique attributes; Costa Rica, for example, looks closely at ecology. Indeed, it can be said that in general the aim behind all of St. Lawrence’s international programs has expanded from language immersion to comprehensive immersion.

For a variety of reasons, St. Lawrence students were not directly enrolled at “on-site” universities until the Kenya program was started in 1974. The first program with a resident director to be established in an African country by a U.S. university, it also introduced the home stay with native families as an ultimately successful component of other programs.

In 1984, St. Lawrence joined the International Student Exchange Program (ISEP), opening doors at universities in 35 more countries around the world. As the programs continued to thrive, with over 40% of students participating at some point in their collegiate careers, internships were added as another layer of immersion in programs such as France, Spain and London. Community-based learning as a way of giving back to the host communities and nations emerged as a fundamental part of the programs in Kenya, Costa Rica and China.

Rita Goldberg, Dana Professor Emerita of Modern Languages and Literatures (Spanish), says, “The programs not only provide students with a cultural and linguistic immersion experience, but broaden their sense of cultural and personal horizons, provide the opportunity to do course work not available at St. Lawrence, and forge bonds with the local community.” --Chinasa Izeogu ’05

Overview of Themes and Plans Art Gallery Fun Facts Planning Committee Schedule of Events Then and Now Timeline This Month in SLU History
Return to Sesquicentennial	St. Lawrence’s Heritage of International Study The opportunity to study on a St. Lawrence-sponsored program in a foreign land has existed since 1964. “Junior year abroad” is now considered quaintly historic; it’s not only juniors who can participate, and the contemporary name, “international and intercultural study,” suggests a maturing of emphasis, from something akin to a tour into a true learning experience. The program in France, begun in 1964, was St. Lawrence’s first. In those early years, it and the programs in Austria and Spain provided the opportunity to gain language fluency through a full-year experience and were sponsored by the department of modern languages. Today, the majority of the programs are only a semester long, with the option of a year remaining in Canada, Japan, Spain and France. And the focus, particularly in the newer programs such as those in India and China, is on cultural integration in addition to language proficiency. Other programs stress different academic areas appropriate to their unique attributes; Costa Rica, for example, looks closely at ecology. Indeed, it can be said that in general the aim behind all of St. Lawrence’s international programs has expanded from language immersion to comprehensive immersion. For a variety of reasons, St. Lawrence students were not directly enrolled at “on-site” universities until the Kenya program was started in 1974. The first program with a resident director to be established in an African country by a U.S. university, it also introduced the home stay with native families as an ultimately successful component of other programs. In 1984, St. Lawrence joined the International Student Exchange Program (ISEP), opening doors at universities in 35 more countries around the world. As the programs continued to thrive, with over 40% of students participating at some point in their collegiate careers, internships were added as another layer of immersion in programs such as France, Spain and London. Community-based learning as a way of giving back to the host communities and nations emerged as a fundamental part of the programs in Kenya, Costa Rica and China. Rita Goldberg, Dana Professor Emerita of Modern Languages and Literatures (Spanish), says, “The programs not only provide students with a cultural and linguistic immersion experience, but broaden their sense of cultural and personal horizons, provide the opportunity to do course work not available at St. Lawrence, and forge bonds with the local community.” --Chinasa Izeogu ’05
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