By Minh Tran ’23, special contributor
Stepping out of her comfort zone
A junior early childhood education major, Lauren Butz decided to study abroad in the summer of 2022. She went to Italy, a country where she barely speaks the language, and took a class that was not in her major.
“I was incredibly nervous at first,” she said. “I was very scared that I would not be able to do it. But, with the help of my family and the amazing Dr. Clark, I was able to make it through and not only pass the class but learn a lot of applicable skills in the process.”
The reason that made her want to put herself into a different environment was when she was in high school, her family hosted a German exchange student. She really wanted to travel abroad herself, so the study abroad program at LVC offered her a great opportunity to do it and earn some credits.
Italy study abroad program
LVC’s Global Education program provides many international learning opportunities including semester programs and short-term programs. Full-semester programs are in places like England, Germany, Ireland, Northern Ireland, Italy, New Zealand and Spain. Students can enroll in four or five courses, each three credits for 12-15 credits in the fall or spring semester. Global Education also offers students short-term programs in Canada, Costa Rica, Germany, Italy, Netherlands, Poland and Spain.
Butz chose the short-term Italy program because she was interested in certain classes offered by a partner institute – Umbra Institute in Perugia.
“While the LVC class offered was a business class, I liked the idea of studying what it meant to be ‘Made in Italy.'”
Butz had many fun experiences in the ‘Made in Italy’ class. Dr. Treva Clark had students go to different local businesses and visit several fantastic sites to see how those things fit into the idea of class.
“My favorite trip [in this class] was when we went to Florence. While we were there, we got to do a leather-making workshop, explore the city, visit some of the museums and climb to the top of the Duomo in the city. This was a cool experience and allowed us to see many different industries all at play with each other in one city.”
At Umbra Institute, Butz also took the History and Culture of Food in Italy. She traveled around town, along with the Italian professor and classmates, to the local restaurants, gelaterias and booths to experience different traditional local food, hear the anecdotes in the past from local people and learn about Italian food and how it had evolved over the years until today.
While studying abroad, students had three-day weekends, depending on the classes, to explore, travel and experience new things in a different region. Butz went to the beach on the eastern coast of Italy with her classmates on the first weekend of the program. One weekend, she and her roommate went on a day trip to Rome. Butz spent her last weekend in Bologna with her family.
“On the days I was not traveling, I was exploring Perugia, enjoying the beautiful countryside views, eating gelato, checking out the shops or watching the annual medieval festival that takes place in Perugia!”
Adjustability and adaptation in a different country
Studying abroad also allows students to experience new things within different cultures, languages and lifestyles. The trip to Europe was Butz’s first time experiencing a different culture. It took her a bit to get used to the culture during her time there. There are many differences in culture in Italy. Italian will nap around noon, and businesses will be closed during that time and reopen after 3 p.m. They spend the special Sunday for God and for themselves, so stores are closed on Sundays.
“The most shocking thing to me was how trusting people are of strangers, especially when it comes to their children.”
Butz recalled that when she was at the beach, a little toddler kept running over to her and playing in the sand with her. His family did not come to snatch him up, but quietly watched him at their umbrella. When she took him back to his parents, they were not worried at all.
“Then I had to think about why this was, which led me to the conclusion that in Europe, there tend to be a lot fewer ‘helicopter parents,’ and they value giving their children freedom, which was an idea that I saw in practice the rest of the time I was in Italy.”
Overall, to Butz, the most challenging thing was the communication problems. Most of the Italian locals do not know English, and Butz tried to practice her basic Italian. Sometimes, she had trouble speaking to them, but they caught her confusion and helped her go through to know what she wanted. When going to the restaurant, she had to first translate the menu into English, then order, which would be nerve-wracking if there were some people waiting behind her.
“I quickly figured out the Italian words for the foods I liked and did not like … It was also helpful to have my phone always handy in case I got to a word I was unsure about.”
Learning from studying abroad
Over the five-week span in Perugia, Italy, Butz brought much more fruitfulness for herself and her study at LVC. She tried to put a lot of effort into both of her classes abroad and get as much out of them as she could.
The greatest lesson she learned was how to problem-solve better and go with the flow. A very organized, type A person who likes to plan everything out ahead, Butz had to pivot because not everything followed her plan.
“There were a lot of different challenges thrown my way that required me to let go of control, which will definitely help me as I move into the realm of education.”
During the short time of studying and living abroad, Butz also learned to recognize and appreciate cultural differences better than before, which is an important skill and perspective for a future educator like her and for all people as the world today becomes more interconnected.
“Don’t be afraid to do some things alone. Not everyone is going to want to do the same thing all the time, so don’t feel like you have to always do what everyone else is doing if you really want to do something else. This is your study abroad experience!”