Tag Archives: summer

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Touring Ruins of Monuments in Ancient Cities of the Roman Empire Gives TSU Students Summer Vacation to Remember

NASHVILLE, Tenn. (TSU News Service) – Spending your summer vacation touring ruins of monuments of Greek gods and goddesses in the ancient city of Ephesus, part of the eastern Roman Empire, can be quite an experience. For senior Music major Requel Stegall, it was “beyond life changing.”

“I had one of the best educational experiences of my college career, said Stegall,” one of 18 students from TSU and three other TBR institutions, who visited Turkey on a three-week study-abroad program this summer. “Learning about a culture I was unfamiliar with really broadened my outlook on life and allowed me to discover myself even more.”

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Brianne Rucker, right (front), a TSU senior Music major, shares an earphone with a Turkish student during one of the students’ daily bus rides to or from class. (Submitted Photo)

Stegall and her fellow students, representing majors in Computer Science, Music, Human Performance and Sports Sciences (HPSS), History, and English, visited five cities and collaborated with students from three Turkish universities. The study-abroad program is organized through the Tennessee Consortium for International Study, and is the third to Turkey.

According to Dr. Robert Elliott, one of two TSU faculty members on the trip, this year’s visit engaged the students in academics, excursions and cultural exchanges with their Turkish counterparts. He and his TSU colleague, Dr. Ali Sekmen, professor and chair of Computer Science, taught combined classes with TSU and Turkish students as part of the academic experience.

“Teaching music, literature, and humanities in-country provided authentic learning experiences for students as they examined cultural differences and similarities,” said Elliott, professor and chair of the Department of Music.  “Along the way, students interacted with Turkish peers and learned that people of the world are not as different from one another as they had initially thought.”

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Two TSU students, Darrell Butler, left, an Architectural Engineering major; and Tim Darrah, majoring in Computer Science, study in their hotel room in Ankara, as they prepare for classwork the next day. (Submitted Photo)

Like Stegall, Sarah Needleman, an HPSS major, said the classroom settings and pairing with “our Turkish buddies” helped them to better understand the culture and traditions of the people and places they visited. “This study-abroad to Turkey was the best thing I have been a part of at TSU,” Needleman said. “I left Turkey not only with new subject knowledge in the music class I took, but also with lifelong friends – some in Nashville and some across the globe.”

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2015 study-abroad participants and their professors from TSU and three other TBR institutions join their Turkish peers for one last group celebration before heading back to the United States. (Submitted Photo)

Other TBR institutions with students in this year’s TnCIS study-abroad program to Turkey were Pellissippi State Community College, Southwest Tennessee Community College, Motlow State Community College and Jackson State Community College.

According to Sekmen, Turkish institutions that participated this year were Yasar University, Atilim University and Yildiz Technical University. Other cities visited include Istanbul, Ankara and Izmir.

“It was delightful to see how our students and their Turkish peers could develop life-long friendships in such a short visit,” Sekmen said. “With a right blend of academics, excursions and cultural exchange, the program provided a unique life-time experience for students from TSU and the other TBR institutions.”

Department of Media Relations

Tennessee State University
3500 John Merritt Boulevard
Nashville, Tennessee 37209
615.963.5331

About Tennessee State University

With more than 9,000 students, Tennessee State University is Nashville’s only public university, and is a comprehensive, urban, co-educational, land-grant university offering 45 undergraduate, 24 graduate and seven doctoral programs. TSU has earned a top 20 ranking for Historically Black Colleges and Universities according to U.S. News and World Report, and rated as one of the top universities in the country by Washington Monthly for social mobility, research and community service. Founded in 1912, Tennessee State University celebrated 100 years in Nashville during 2012. Visit the University online at tnstate.edu.

EVENTS, FACULTY, NEWS, RESEARCH, SCHOOLS AND COLLEGES

16 TSU Students Take in the Beautiful European Summer During a Study Abroad Program in Germany

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Some of the Tennessee State University students on a study-abroad program in Germany, take in the sites in Berlin on a bright summer day. (Courtesy Photo)


NASHVILLE, Tenn. (TSU News Service) – It is summer, classes are over, ….or so you would think. For16 Tennessee State University students, classes just started, but this time, with a mixture of academics, culture and fun in a faraway land. Read the account of their amazing experience, courtesy of TSU Sports Information.

BERLIN – Classes started early Wednesday morning, May 14, for the 16 students attending Tennessee State’s study abroad program in Germany. Among the topics covered was the history of the Berlin Wall, which also happened to be the first destination on the morning’s itinerary.

“The purpose of the trip is to learn about German history and culture,” Associate Dean of Liberal Arts, Dr. Joel Dark, said. “But it is also intended to help the students think about their own identity in the world.”

The group of TSU scholars and representatives boarded a train headed toward Alexander Plaza at the nearby station, and then took the subway to reach what was left of the Wall.

Dr. Dark filled the crowd in with further insight on the construction and eventual destruction of the barrier, before taking the class toward the Capitol Building.

After seeing the Capitol and grabbing lunch, the contingent rode out beyond Berlin to one of its suburbs to see a concentration camp, Sachsenhausen, firsthand.

It seemed everything in Germany was new and different, and it all had a unique story to tell.

“All of the buildings and churches are really pretty,” TSU women’s golfer Natalie Spicer said. “You can see the history just by walking past. I am so excited to see more, take a lot of pictures and learn about the German way of living.”

Outside of the new sights, a handful of students had to rely on their senses of taste and feeling when they ate at the famous Dark Bar on Tuesday night. The restaurant was pitch black to where diners could not even see the food being served to them.

“At first I was skeptical and scared about eating without seeing, but I eventually got the hang of using your fingers to feel around for the utensils. Also, being able to talk to our group while dining helped calm me down,” Spicer said.

Classes will continue on Thursday and the delegation will visit Humboldt University and see the Brandenburg Gate.

Germany Update Day 1: From Nashville to Newark

NEWARK, N.J. – After leaving the Nashville airport at 4 a.m. for a 6 o’clock flight, the 29 Tennessee State representatives arrived in Newark to await their connecting flight to Berlin, Germany.

The small passenger plane, which barely had enough room to fit the traveling party, touched down at 9 a.m., but not before giving passengers glimpses of the Statue of Liberty and MetLife Stadium. The group then went to eat at the airport food court as they waited to board another plane for their final destination in eight hours.

In the meantime, students and administrators played games, slept and read to kill some time before the nine-hour flight.

This page will serve as an update for the athletic department’s study abroad trip to Europe. Be sure to check back for updates every couple of days including pictures of many historical landmarks.

 

 

Department of Media Relations
Tennessee State University
3500 John Merritt Boulevard
Nashville, Tennessee 37209
615.963.5331

 

About Tennessee State University

With nearly 9,000 students, Tennessee State University is Nashville’s only public university, and is a comprehensive, urban, co-educational, land-grant university offering 38 undergraduate, 22 graduate and seven doctoral programs. TSU has earned a top 20 ranking for Historically Black Colleges and Universities according to U.S. News and World Report, and rated as one of the top universities in the country by Washington Monthly for social mobility, research and community service. Founded in 1912, Tennessee State University celebrated 100 years in Nashville during 2012. Visit the University online at tnstate.edu.