Valencia study abroad embarks on initial trip

Tech's new study abroad program in Valencia offers Biology and History, Technology and Society courses. Twelve sophomores, juniors and seniors are currently studying overseas as part of the program's inaugural year.

Valencia, Spain's third most populated city, is the capital of the autonomous community and province of Valencia. It is located in the Spanish Levante, on the Mediterranean shore. Students enrolled in the program are out of the country from May 22 to July 28, each receiving six to nine credit hours.

Terry Snell, a Tech professor of biology, is the program organizer and supervisor of undergraduate research. Snell has had a research collaboration with several scientists at the Institute Cavanilles for more than fifteen years.

His personal connections and knowledge of the facilities and regional ecosystems formed the launching pad for this program. Snell also teaches Biology 4803, Mediterranean ecology for the program. Six students have opted to do undergraduate research, and twelve are taking Mediterranean ecology and HTS 3041 Modern Spain, taught by John Tone, a History, Technology and Society professor.

"Mediterranean ecology is primarily a field course with several field trips to mountains, rocky coast marshes and rivers where students design and execute short research projects," Snell said.

Some of these include the comparison of maternal and paternal contribution to nestling rearing in birds, the effects of inbreeding on spine asymmetry in rotifers, the genetics of bacterial symbiosis in insect stomachs and the characterization of parasites infecting mediterranean fish.

Snell said the students are expected to collect and analyze data, and then complete a presentation poster of their findings by the end of the semester.

The Modern Spain course also includes several field trips, such as visits to cathedrals, museums, castles, Roman ruins and sites with Neolithic cave drawings.

Sophia Fisher, a second-year Biology major, said she had originally looked into the Oxford program, but decided it was not the best fit for her major. "My advisor told me about this program, and everything clicked," she said.

Because Valencia is not a true tourist city, according to Fisher, students must really immerse themselves into the Spanish culture. In her free time she has spent a four-day weekend in Seville where she visited the Real Alzacar Sevilla (the royal palace in Seville), viewed the cathedral, and attended Mass.

Fisher said she tries attend mass daily because there she has befriended an older Spanish woman who speaks no English.

Fisher explained that much time is spent simplywandering about the city. "Valencia has this park that used to be a river until they diverted it, and it's gorgeous and fairly clean, so sometimes I walk up and down it," she said.

Though the program is clearly in its infancy, Snell had significant expectations. "My hope is that the students will gain maturity as biological scientists by observing new ecosystems, experimenting with new plant and animal groups, and observing how scientists in another country execute research. I further hope that these students will develop an appreciation for the historical events that have led Spain to its current position in Europe and the world as well as the delights of Spanish food, monuments, music, dance, landscape, beaches, and people," he said.