World becomes a classroom for IWU students

The world has become a classroom for 32 Indiana Wesleyan University students who are studying off campus during the fall 2009 semester.

The largest contingent of students – 16 nursing majors – are in Zambia as part of a joint program between IWU and World Hope International, a compassion ministry affiliated with The Wesleyan Church.  Pam Leslie, an IWU nursing professor, and Lisa Wright, an adjunct nursing instructor, accompanied the group to Zambia.

Students in Zambia are Estie Barnes, Keri Biggs, Megan Bollier, Alicia Cline, Heather Dawes, Lauren Douglas, Alivia East, Kara Hanny, Marianna Hauk, Alissa Keady, Brittani McCauley, Janna Peterson Alyssa Rogers, Brianna Smith, Rachel Veenema and Haley Wiles.

The Zambia experience is IWU’s first semester-long, study-abroad program. The first IWU students to participate in the program were in Zambia during the spring 2009 semester.

Four students are participating in BestSemester programs, sponsored by the Council for Christian Colleges and Universities. The programs offer 12 off-campus study opportunities at extension campuses around the world.

IWU students participating this semester include:

• Talia Andrews and Danielle Sheldon are studying at the Australia Studies Centre in Sydney. They also will travel to New Zealand.
• Geoffrey Buck is studying at the Contemporary Music Center at Martha’s Vineyard, Massachusetts.
• Danielle Faust is participating in the Uganda Studies Program, which is based at Uganda Christian University, one of the top private universities in East Africa.

Eight IWU education majors are doing a part of their student teaching abroad. The student teachers left campus the first week in October and will come home December 7. They include:

• Ka-lyn Perez, Kady Quarles and Kristen Chapman, who are at NOVA International School in Skopje, Macedonia.
• Abby Bisesi and Meghan Herr, who are at Hamilton College Elementary School in Glasgow, Scotland.
• Cameron Bradley, who is at Anglo-American International School in Moscow, Russia.
• Hannah Hess, who is Tamaki Middle School, a public school in Auckland, New Zealand, that primarily serves the country’s Maori population. Dekker’s supervising teacher is Sara Dekker, an IWU graduate.
• Caleb Doyel, who is at Qingdao International School in Qingdao, China. His supervising teacher is Kristen Bowman, an IWU graduate.

Two other IWU students, Andrew Cuthbert and Katy Schulenburg, are studying at Jerusalem University College in Israel.

Laura Vigeant is spending the semester in Spain, and Ashley Ruse is participating in a program in the Adirondacks, that is sponsored by Houghton College, one of IWU‘s sister Wesleyan institutions.