Student-Produced Video Chronicles Service and Learning in Italy

March 31, 2009

Students in St. John’s Staten Island Honors Program recently took advantage of a remarkable and unique opportunity to immerse themselves in the language, culture and history of the ancient cities of Rome and Florence and at the same time perform meaningful service to the marginalized and the poor.

Their thoughts and experiences were captured in a high-quality video produced by freshman honor student Lauren Haley, who has graciously agreed to share her work with us.

Click here to view her video

While in Rome, the students stayed at the University’s Rome campus, located in the heart of the Eternal City. While there, they visited historical and modern-day sites where they learned about art, language, history, politics and global citizenship. The group was especially thrilled when they were recognized by Pope Benedict XVI during his weekly papal address.

The group also took a short trip to Florence, where they visited the Galleria dell’Accademia, home to Michelangelo’s celebrated “David.”

Crystal Vera, Administrative Assistant to the Honors Program and a graduate student in the Global Development and Social Justice Master's Program that’s offered by St. John's in partnership with Unicaritas, also traveled with the students. Through Unicaritas, she directed the students in performing meaningful service to further develop their awareness of what it means to be Vincentian while also learning about Italian society.

For more information about study abroad opportunities, contact the Office of Global Studies: globalstudies@stjohns.edu or (718) 990-6105.