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Excerpt from November 2007 Monthly Memo pdf.
Study Abroad Center Information / Application

Greenlee assistant professor will hold class in Poland

By Kara Naig

Adventure, culture and a unique multimedia experience are at the fingertips of Iowa State University students through a study abroad opportunity in Poland, which is slated for three weeks during the summer of 2008.

Dennis Chamberlin, visual communications assistant professor at the Greenlee School, spearheaded the innovative program. He wants students to see another set of values that can be incorporated in their own lives.

"There’s another way of living, another way of seeing things," Chamberlin said.

Chamberlin created a hands-on agenda for ISU students who may be interested in either multimedia outlets or who simply have a passion for diversity and adventure.

According to Chamberlin, the program will begin with an intensive three-day training that will prepare students for the study abroad experience through cultural orientation, historical information, Polish media norms and survival language skills.

Although for many students the language barrier may be a concern, Chamberlin said he doesn’t think it will be much of an obstacle.

"Students are going to have to be a little adventurous, if you try to communicate with someone, they will try to communicate back," Chamberlin said.

After the training, students will depart for Poland. They will spend two weeks in Sopot on the coast, including a weekend stay with a local family and another weekend stay in a 14th-century castle. Following Sopot, students will spend time in Gdanskand Krakow along with approximately five days in a mountain guesthouse.

Students will spend half a day with a well-known photojournalist, Witold Krassowski, and tour Poland’s largest daily paper, the "Gazeta Wyborcza".

Chamberlin said the castle stay will provide the setting for a "get to know one another weekend" in which each American student will be paired with a Polish photography student. Each team will then work on creating multimedia projects that will be downloaded daily to a live Web site.

Chamberlin said he wants to see the American and Polish students become friends and learn from each other.

"My goal is that when we get back (to the United States) they keep in contact," Chamberlin said.

According to Chamberlin, students will be required to submit an application to enroll in the class. Requirements of the application include a letter of reference, a portfolio of prior work and a description of the skills the student can bring to the program.

Approximately 15 students will be chosen to participate in the study abroad program.

Chamberlin said the opportunity is open to all ISU students who bring the right skills and enthusiasm. He said students studying other fields are welcome and the key is for them to have enthusiasm for the program.

For journalism students, Chamberlin said this particular study abroad experience encompasses the skills today’s employers are looking for, such as video and sound slide shows.

"It's the kind of stuff people need to get jobs," he said.

2007-10-31