{"id":17680,"date":"2026-10-23T13:15:24","date_gmt":"2026-10-23T17:15:24","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/wordpress.lvc.edu\/lavie\/?p=17680"},"modified":"2026-10-23T13:15:43","modified_gmt":"2026-10-23T17:15:43","slug":"explore-czech-culture-through-lvcs-summer-prague-study-abroad-program","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/wordpress.lvc.edu\/lavie\/2026\/10\/23\/explore-czech-culture-through-lvcs-summer-prague-study-abroad-program\/","title":{"rendered":"Explore Czech culture through LVC\u2019s summer Prague study abroad program\u00a0"},"content":{"rendered":"
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By Ren Blauch \u201928, staff writer <\/p>\n\n\n\n

LVC students can explore Prague's cultural history and identity through a four-week study abroad program. <\/p>\n\n\n\n

The program, now in its second year at LVC, runs from May 24 to June 25, 2027, and is open to students of all majors. Participants will earn six credits while studying Czech culture, history and identity through coursework and excursions throughout Prague and the surrounding area. <\/p>\n\n\n\n

The program\u2019s required course, \u201cThe City of Laughter and Forgetting,\u201d will be taught by Dr. Jeff Ritchie, chair and professor of design, media and technology. The course fulfills one immersive experience requirement and the general education human diversity requirement. <\/p>\n\n\n\n

\u201cThis class aims to look at walking as a form of narrative,\u201d Ritchie said. <\/p>\n\n\n\n

Through the course, students will observe and reflect on how cultural memory is preserved, rewritten and challenged. Much of the coursework will involve creating photo essays that document students\u2019 experiences and observations throughout the city. <\/p>\n\n\n\n

The course will explore Czech cultural identity through architecture, art and storytelling. According to Ritchie, Prague provides a particularly useful setting for examining how cultural identity develops through historical and cultural exchange. <\/p>\n\n\n\n

\u201cThe Czech Republic is an area with such remarkable cultural exchange, having all this Austrian influence and with the German annexation of the Sudetenland,\u201d Ritchie said. \u201cThe goal of this class is to explore how the Czechs explain who they are in the face of all of these cultural conflicts.\u201d <\/p>\n\n\n\n

In addition to the required course, students will take an elective course through the CEA CAPA Prague Center, the program\u2019s host institute. Students can choose from a variety of courses, including art-focused classes such as \u201cArchitecture and Art in the Golden City\u201d and cultural studies courses such as \u201cCzech Culture, Food and Brewing Tradition.\u201d <\/p>\n\n\n\n

The program will also include several excursions designed to give students opportunities to experience Prague and the Czech Republic as a whole. Planned trips include visits to the National Museum and the Museum of Communism, as well as a day trip to Kutn\u00e1 Hora, a historic silver-mining town known for the Gothic Church of St. Barbara and the Sedlec Ossuary, also known as the \u201cBone Church.\u201d <\/p>\n\n\n\n

Prague\u2019s public transportation system also makes it relatively easy for students to navigate the city during the program. The city is a UNESCO World Heritage site, offering students access to historic architecture, museums, cultural sites and other attractions. <\/p>\n\n\n\n

The 2027 program differs from last year\u2019s Prague trip, which was organized through the psychology department and focused on cross-cultural psychology. This year\u2019s program is not tied to a specific department. <\/p>\n\n\n\n

Cadence Funk, a senior sociology and clinical mental health counseling major, participated in last summer\u2019s Prague study abroad program. Funk said her interest in studying abroad came from wanting to experience a culture that was unfamiliar to her. <\/p>\n\n\n\n

\u201cI chose to study abroad because I love to immerse myself in new cultural experiences and wanted to travel to a country I didn\u2019t know a ton about!\u201d Funk said. <\/p>\n\n\n\n

Funk encouraged future study abroad students to take advantage of opportunities once they arrive. <\/p>\n\n\n\n

\u201cSome general advice I would give to those studying abroad would be to say \u2018yes\u2019 to every opportunity you can once you touch down; the time flies!\u201d Funk said. <\/p>\n\n\n\n

Funk also recommended researching the country before traveling and exploring Prague beyond its most well-known attractions. She encouraged students to visit local shops and markets and recommended a riverboat sightseeing cruise on the Vltava River and a tour of Prague Castle. <\/p>\n\n\n\n

\u201cPrague has a ton to offer students of all academic disciplines as it is a hub of art, music, technology, and culture,\u201d Funk said. <\/p>\n\n\n\n

The application deadline for the Summer Prague program is Feb. 1, 2027. <\/p>\n\n\n\n

Students interested in the Prague program can contact Ritchie at ritchie@lvc.edu<\/a> or Jamie LaPine, associate director of Global Education, at lapine@lvc.edu<\/a>. <\/p>\n<\/div><\/div>","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"

By Ren Blauch \u201928, staff writer  LVC students can explore Prague's cultural history and identity through a four-week study abroad program.  The program, now in its second year at LVC, runs from May 24 to [...]<\/a><\/p>\n<\/div>","protected":false},"author":4,"featured_media":17681,"comment_status":"closed","ping_status":"closed","sticky":true,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"footnotes":""},"categories":[3,5,7,8],"tags":[],"class_list":["post-17680","post","type-post","status-publish","format-standard","has-post-thumbnail","category-campus-news","category-features","category-front-page","category-homepage"],"_links":{"self":[{"href":"https:\/\/wordpress.lvc.edu\/lavie\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/17680","targetHints":{"allow":["GET"]}}],"collection":[{"href":"https:\/\/wordpress.lvc.edu\/lavie\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts"}],"about":[{"href":"https:\/\/wordpress.lvc.edu\/lavie\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/types\/post"}],"author":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/wordpress.lvc.edu\/lavie\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/users\/4"}],"replies":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/wordpress.lvc.edu\/lavie\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/comments?post=17680"}],"version-history":[{"count":1,"href":"https:\/\/wordpress.lvc.edu\/lavie\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/17680\/revisions"}],"predecessor-version":[{"id":17682,"href":"https:\/\/wordpress.lvc.edu\/lavie\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/17680\/revisions\/17682"}],"wp:featuredmedia":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/wordpress.lvc.edu\/lavie\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media\/17681"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/wordpress.lvc.edu\/lavie\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media?parent=17680"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"category","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/wordpress.lvc.edu\/lavie\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/categories?post=17680"},{"taxonomy":"post_tag","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/wordpress.lvc.edu\/lavie\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/tags?post=17680"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}