Professor, students enjoy a different learning environment in study abroad

By Corrie Wann
Mass Communication senior

Buzzanell in Bassano del Grappa, Italy

From stepping outside her apartment door at the foothills of the Alps to learning not to touch the fruit at the grocery store, department associate professor Patrice Buzzanell's experiences at the Study Abroad program in Asolo, Italy, have been unforgettable.

Buzzanell is experiencing teaching abroad for the first time at the Paderno del Grappa campus of the Consortium of International Universities (CIU). She is also the first Purdue faculty member to teach on the consortium campus.

The program has gone smoothly despite problems of power outages and striking railway workers. The students and faculty have made the semester memorable, Buzzanell said.

"The classes are small and the students are curious and motivated," said Buzzanell. "The faculty are deeply concerned about undergraduate education."

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This combination of small class sizes and committed faculty has created a unique experience for Purdue students participating in the program. The small class sizes have enabled teachers to move class meetings to more comfortable settings. Venessa Mindykowski, a senior in the School of Liberal Arts, said one of her classes now meets regularly at a local café.

Despite this laid-back learning environment, Buzzanell's students point out that the workload is tough and attendance polices are strictly enforced.

"Sometimes people expect to do no real work when they're studying abroad, but that is definitely not the case here," Mindykowski said. "You will do work and have things you must do like go to class, but it's school and no one should expect any less."

Although the pace of the program is demanding, Buzzanell and her students have had many memorable experiences outside of the classroom. Students and faculty have taken field trips to historic landmarks, attended concerts, and even had the opportunity to travel through the rest of Europe on the weekends.

Buzzanell recalled visiting northern Italy's Lake Garda on one break from classes. "The lake water was aqua, the little shops and narrow streets were incredible, and the old churches with paintings and frescoes were unlike anything we have in good old Indiana," she said.

Still, Buzzanell says she looks forward to returning to the United States after the program ends on Dec. 11.

"I will miss the people of Paderno del Grappa, the coffee and pastry shops, the campus, the beauty of the mountains, the discussions with my student-colleagues in this learning
experience, and the laughter in the faculty office," she said. "But I'll be ready to come back in December. I am looking forward to seeing friends and family."