Northwestern students to study in Poland, Germany and England this summer

Northwestern College students will head to Poland, Germany and England this summer as part of two study abroad programs offered by the college’s global education office.

Dr. Laura Heitritter, chair of the education department, will teach a new course designed to help students understand the impact of the Holocast on modern European society.

“Our hosts are Polish and German Jewish professors and students,” she says. “Students will see this devastating event through the eyes of those who were most affected by it, including the children of survivors.”

Participants will visit Poland’s Holocaust museums and camps, as well as the German cities of Munich and Berlin, as they discuss issues such as loyalty, peer pressure, scapegoating, conformity and belonging.

The other summer study abroad course will give students the opportunity to explore British culture—past and present—through immersion in the theatre and museums of England.

Led by Northwestern theatre professors Jeff and Karen Barker, class members will spend the majority of their time in London, with home stays in Worcester. They will attend 13 plays—including one at the Globe Theatre, where Shakespeare’s plays were first performed—and visit 10 museums. They will also worship at St. Paul’s Cathedral, visit a castle ruin, and explore the city’s markets, restaurants and parks.

Both courses are worth four credits and fulfill the Northwestern Core cross-cultural studies requirement.