ISSUED: 17 March 2015
MEDIA CONTACT: Valerie Owens
SHEPHERDSTOWN, WV — Shepherd University’s Family and Consumer Sciences Program is offering a study tour to Hawaii, New Zealand, and Australia planned for June 20-30, 2016.
Dr. Kathleen Corpus, chair of the Department of Business Administration and Family and Consumer Sciences, is leading the trip along with Dr. Cydne Perry, assistant professor of family and consumer sciences.
Corpus said the trip is open to all Shepherd students and the public. According to Shepherd University policy, everyone who participates in a study abroad trip must register for class credit, audit a class, or sign up for continuing education credit. The Hawaii, Australia, and New Zealand study tour will be part of a class to be offered during the Summer III 2016 semester.
In addition to the class registration fee, total cost for the trip runs from $4,442 to $5,011 depending on age and when the traveler signs up. Explorica, an educational travel company, put the trip together and is taking reservations at www.explorica.com. There’s a $150 discount for anyone who signs up before March 31, 2015.
Those who take the class for credit will be required to choose a topic to study, keep a journal during the trip, and write a paper and make an oral presentation afterward.
“They might choose looking at textiles, housing, food, or different businesses if someone is a business administration student,” Corpus said. “We’re hoping some students will study cultural clothing because it’s very different from what you see here. Music majors can study the different kinds of music coming out of Australia. Lots of literature has been written about Australia and the South Pacific so this is an opportunity for anyone to come and explore this part of the world.”
The itinerary will include a full day touring historic landmarks in Hawaii, including Pearl Harbor, Iolani Palace, and the King Kamehameha statue. Opportunities in Australia include a surf lesson, Sydney Harbor cruise, and a full-day sheep ranch and wildlife sanctuary excursion. The New Zealand leg of the trip will include visits to several historic sites and a Maori Hangi feast featuring Polynesian food cooked in a pit in the ground using heated rocks.
Whether they get class credit or not, Corpus believes students and community members will benefit greatly from going on the tour.
“It helps us as citizens to learn how other cultures operate and how they do things,” she said. “I am just a firm believer that seeing the world and finding out what’s around you is empowering.”
For more information contact Corpus at 304-876-5318 or at kcorpus@shepherd.edu.
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