Drury is offering students a new location to study abroad: Egypt. Besides being primarily composed of desert, this Middle Eastern country offers students a personal encounter with the famous pyramids and a firsthand look into the cultural capital of the Arab world.
“It’s just one of the world’s greatest places to go,” said Dr. Jeff VanDenBerg, associate professor of political science. “The people there are wonderful and welcoming and I think the students will have a really great experience.”
VanDenBerg and Dr. Shelley Wolbrink, associate professor of history, are taking students to this developing world, Middle Eastern country in the winter term of 2009.
The two have created a study abroad focused on combining the ancient history of Egypt with the modern culture of the country.
“It’s the sense of history that’s four thousand years old and still is a living part of people’s lives and experiences,” VanDenBerg said. "(You have) an ability to step into different time periods and sort of see how people lived and what their values were. And also just look at contemporary Egyptian culture.”
This study abroad, which will cost approximately $4,800, offers a 3 hours GP21 credit for Minorities and Indigenous Cultures, which also fulfills a Middle Eastern studies major or history major requirement. The program is a 17 day long excursion that will begin Dec. 26, 2009 and end on Jan. 11, 2010.
Students will have a chance to view the Great Pyramids of Giza, the Valley of the Kings, Cairo, Alexandria, take a riverboat down the Nile, and visit several other Egyptian hot spots.
“It will be a good time,” said Susan Allen, a sophomore accounting major, who is already signed up to go to Egypt. “I thought Egypt would be a pretty cool place to go. And it’s different from other study abroad trips in Europe.”
It’s that difference VanDenBerg hopes to expose Drury students to.
“Drury has a lot of study abroad programs, but not that many are in the developing world,” VanDenBerg said. “Most of them are in Europe. Which is great, but I think it’s also useful for students to step out of that a little bit and have that (developing world) experience.”
He also hopes that students will develop a greater appreciation and knowledge of the Arab world, something he thinks many students don’t get to see in the media.
“I think it’s really useful for students to see it for themselves and just break out of the bad news version of what the Middle East is like,” he said.
VanDenBerg, whose emphasis is in Middle East studies, is looking forward to the trip.
“I’m very excited about it,” he said. “I lived in different parts of the Middle East and studied there. So I’ve always wanted to take students as well and have them experience it.”
So far the experience proves to be a popular one. VanDenBerg anticipates only offering 15-20 spots and as of this Monday, ten students were already registered. The deadline for registration without an additional $100 fee is the end of February.
For more information contact VanDenBerg at jvandenb@drury.edu, or Wolbrink at swolbrin@drury.edu.
