High Point University (HPU) has High Point in its name, but that doesn’t mean the students are trapped in Guilford County’s second-largest city.
In fact, sometimes they get to go to England’s largest city – London.
Recently, High Point University students in the School of Humanities and Behavioral Sciences, and the Hayworth School of Arts and Design, traveled to the historic city on two separate faculty-led study-abroad trips.
HPU has a lot of well-known benefits – like an on-campus ice cream truck and a free student movie theater with free popcorn. However, another benefit is the school’s study-abroad programs: HPU’s “Global Experience” and “Maymester” programs are quick, study-abroad trips that give the students a chance to learn about the history, language and cultures of other places.
Amanda Allen, assistant professor of history at HPU, led nearly 20 students through their “Maymester” experience of the Tudor Dynasty. HPU students are spending four weeks in London to learn about the place and its history.
Also, HPU students, under the direction of Jay Putnam, associate professor of theatre, recently studied “Shakespeare in Performance” for two weeks as a “Global Experience” course.
According to HPU, one goal for Dr. Allen’s group was to explore historical sites like Westminster Abbey, the Tower of London, Hampton Court Palace and other spots where students learned more about the Tudor era of King Henry VIII, Elizabeth I and how English society was structured.
In addition, the group traveled to Edinburgh, Scotland – where they visited, and studied about, Edinburgh Castle and the Palace of Holyroodhouse.
For the last leg of the trip, on Thursday, June 2, students will celebrate Queen Elizabeth II’s “Platinum Jubilee honoring” her 70 years on the throne.
The theater group in London attended a variety of performances while visiting the city – including “Much Ado About Nothing” and “Julius Caesar” at the historic Globe Theater.
They also attended workshops with actors at the Globe Theater.
During their second week, the students traveled to Stratford-upon-Avon – the site for performances of all William Shakespeare’s classics – and visited the Royal Shakespeare Company, Theater students also engaged in several workshops with professional actors there.
Who pays for this? My guess is the financial doners and taxpayers who funded the college. Sounds very like a Congressional fact-finding mission to Switzerland to learn about lakes and trains.
Their Tuition and extra fees pay for this. Look it up on line.
“Wherefore art thou?” means “Why are you?” So the title is misleading. I see you were trying to link to the Shakespeare reference but in this case it makes no sense. “Whither” might have been a better choice. It’s is an often misunderstood word, but a journalist should avoid this mistake.