The Arts in Barcelona” (2022) was a self-designed experiential learning project with focus on the arts and culture sector abroad. This opportunity gave me full agency of my learning goals while exploring the rich history and vibrancy of the city of Barcelona. My highlights included touring La Sagrada Familia and participating in salsa classes taught entirely in Catalan and Spanish. Here, I was reminded that the arts can be translated, and can create human connections beyond spoken languages. I am extremely grateful to the CAS Honors Program for their generous funding, which has allowed me to expand my education beyond the classroom.
Allyson R. Trunzer ’23 |B.S. Public Health, B.A. Dance, Psychology Minor
Honors experiential learning funds have helped me tremendously. I have used them to gain professional membership in the Association for Applied Sport Psychology, giving me exposure to professional conventions, webinars, research, and connections in my desired career path.
I have also used my experiential learning funds to help support my travel on a GEL trip with the Biology department to Ecuador and the Galapagos Islands. The Honors Program allowed me to travel on this trip abroad and learn all about the biodiversity of the region, visiting 5 of the islands, each with their own unique differences. The 2 week experience was an amazing opportunity that I am so thankful I was able to pursue. We snorkeled almost everyday and had the opportunity to swim with sea lions, sharks, and turtles in open water. Seeing nature in such an up close and preserved environment was breathtaking. The friendships and memories I made on this trip are ones that I will cherish!
Patrick Maneval ‘23 | B.S. Exercise Science, B.S. Psychology, Coaching Minor
Through the generous honors program funding, I was able to take a Global Experiential Learning (GEL) study abroad trip to the Galápagos Islands. This was 11-day experience where we followed local tour guides and learned about so many topics including biodiversity, ecotourism, biogeography, and more. As a student who is hoping to eventually attain a master’s in public health, I found this adventure to be extremely enlightening and educational.
Grace Maciejewski ’23 | B.S. in Biology, Chemistry and Public Health Minors
I used experiential learning funds for the Inspirit A.I. program in the summer of 2022. The program provided real-world experience in the cutting edge fields of artificial intelligence and machine learning, two topics that I haven’t had the opportunity to cover at Shenandoah. The enrollment fee was $900—as a student paying for loans and household expenses, I wouldn’t be able to pay such a large amount. If the CAS Honors Program didn’t offer experiential learning funds, then I would have completely missed out on the opportunity to broaden my knowledge.”
Callista Mayberry ’24 | B.A. in English and B.S. in Information Technology