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For the first time, a student in Illinois Valley Community College’s study-abroad program will study in South Korea, IVCC said in a news release.
Three more students will study for a month in Spain and Costa Rica.
Study-abroad program coordinator Amanda Cook Fesperman said in the release that the trips are an exciting way to learn other languages and become immersed in other cultures.
“Our study-abroad opportunities change their lives. Students frequently list it as one of the highlights of their educational careers and a platform for further international travel,” she said.
Hope Baratta of Mendota will spend her first international trip studying language and culture in South Korea. The trip also will include calligraphy, K-pop music and spending a day at the demilitarized zone border between North and South Korea.
“I have always wanted to travel to another country,” Baratta said in the release. “My sister is a flight attendant, and she sparked my interest in traveling because I see how it impacts her and the joys that come from exploring new cultures.”
Baratta’s goal is to eventually learn several languages, and the study-abroad program immerses students in native languages, according to the release.
“Korea stood out to me because they have such a different sentence structure and alphabet,” Baratta said. “I see learning it as a way to challenge myself and learn a language that is not as common to us.”
She said she is studying accounting and is interested in international business.
“South Korea is one of the most advanced economies, with companies such as Samsung and Kia,” Baratta said. “If you want to do business with countries from around the world, you should learn about their culture and language because it helps build a better understanding of the people you are communicating with.”
Valerie Valdes said her first trip abroad also will mean a lot to the career she is pursuing as a bilingual educator.
“I am excited to visit a different country, and I am looking forward to meeting new people and gaining insight on different cultures and customs,” she said in the release.
The Mendota resident knows the trip and the grasp of language it gives her will expand the resources she will bring to teaching, and she has always enjoyed history.
“Study-abroad students attend college language and history classes while they are abroad, and the credits are granted by IVCC, so they transfer seamlessly as a student moves to a four-year university,” Cook Fesperman said in the release.
Utica resident Danica Scoma has become a veteran international traveler on her own, having been to France and Costa Rica. Lately, she was brushing up on her Spanish in anticipation of her study-abroad trip to Spain.
“I truly hope to come back better able to understand and speak Spanish,” Scoma said in the release. “I am excited to try new foods, see new places, meet new people and to experience the Spanish lifestyle, especially with the difference in mealtimes and a daily siesta.”
According to the release, becoming multilingual will broaden her way of reaching and helping people, although she is undecided whether her career ahead is art therapy, communications, political science or something else.
During their stay in Spain, Valdes and Scoma also will visit Morocco and Portugal.
Conlan Cwikla of Seatonville said Costa Rica will be a great classroom for him, since he hopes to major in biology or environmental science. In Costa Rica, Cwikla will visit volcanoes and a coffee plantation.
“Seeing the world is a dream of mine, and traveling is something I would love to do more of. I became interested in study-abroad programs from YouTube vlogs, and I was excited to learn that IVCC offers the opportunity,” Cwikla said in the release.
Cwikla said he initially hesitated to apply for the study-abroad program but is glad he did.
“I know I will enjoy it, and if you think you will too, do not miss out on the next opportunity,” he said.
IVCC offers study-abroad programs on four continents every summer, along with programs to Austria, England, Ireland and Spain in the fall and spring semesters.
Study-abroad is open to anyone older than 18 who has completed 12 credit hours of college courses and maintained a 2.75 GPA and a B grade in English Composition 1 or 2. The program is open to community members, graduating high school seniors or students from other institutions as well as IVCC students.
Cook Fesperman, too, participated in a professional exchange program that took her to the Netherlands this spring to stay with the Dutch educators she hosted last fall.
For more information on the program, call Cook Fesperman at 815-224-0203.