Spring 2007 Courses Feature Study Tours to Italy and Belize

Contact:
Ray Barclay, Bumpers College Global Studies Program
rbarclay@uark.edu

Oct. 31, 2006

New courses with study abroad components to Belize and Italy will be offered this spring semester for students in the Bumpers College. The courses are Global Issues in Agriculture, Food and Life Sciences, AFLS 3313H; Recent Advances in Manufacturing and Merchandising HESC 4903; and Humanities 425V (for three credits).

The Global Issues course with a study tour to Scotland was offered for the first time two years ago, according to Dr. Raymond Barclay, director of the Global Studies Program, International Agricultural Programs Office. The course for Apparel Studies students in the School of Human Environmental Sciences has been offered several times with domestic and international study tours, including a trip to London and Paris in 2003.

“These courses add a global dimension to our curriculum in the Bumpers College and provide another opportunity for students to go abroad,” Barclay said. “For students who are unable to participate in a semester or year abroad program, shorter programs provide students with the opportunity to gain some experience in another country.”

Horticulture professor Curt Rom will conduct a three-hour credit course focusing on global issues for students in the Honors College. Studentswill meet for one-hour each week during the semester, write a research paper and participate in a 10-day study tourfrom May 14-26 to Rome, Florence and Venice.

Students interested in sustainable agriculture may want to consider enrolling in Humanities 425V. The purpose of this course is to design and implement a sustainable farm in Central America at the St. Mathew School in Pomona, Belize. Dr. Jennie Popp, associate professor of agricultural economics and agribusiness, says students will earn six hours of credit and travel to Belize from May 20 to June 16.

“For this first year students will begin research, make assessments and help set the future agenda,” Popp said. “They will help design a farm business plan, select plants and animals to be raised, evaluate irrigation resources and assist with the agricultural curriculum,” Popp said.

In addition to Dr. Popp and Dr. Nilda Burgos, associate professor of crop, soil and environmental sciences, other faculty in arts and sciences, engineering, business and education are involved in the course and Belize study tour.

Apparel Studies students have the opportunity to broaden their international knowledge of the apparel industry by participating in an 11-day study tour from May 15-26 to Italy. Students will visit manufacturers and designers and as well as local museums in Milan, Como, Venice, Florence and Rome.

“These trips take the students into realistic models outside the classroom, enabling them to visualize and conceptualize the apparel industry process,” Smith said. “Adding an international perspective gives the student an additional competitive edge in the job market after graduation.”

For further information and costs on the Apparel Studies tourto Italy, contact Mrs. Smith at kasmith@uark.edu or Dr. Laurie Apple, lapple@uark.edu. For course content and the study tour agenda about the Global Issues course, contact Dr. Rom at crom@uark.edu, and for specific information on the Belize project, contact Dr. Popp. jhpopp@uark.edu or Dr. Burgos, nburgos@uark.edu. 


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