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Study abroad blossoms at OSU By
Misti Sloan For
five Oklahoma State University students in the horticulture and landscape
architecture department, this dream has become a reality. Two of the
students recently returned from Denmark and in spring 2003, the other
three will be studying in and enjoying the beauty of Crete, Germany
and the Netherlands. An
exchange program offered by the OSU horticulture and landscape architecture
department provides these students with the opportunity to study abroad
and learn more about the international scope of horticulture. The program,
Horticulture in the European Community and the United States, or HORTECUS,
is the first horticulture exchange program for the department. HORTECUS
was made available by a grant program through the U.S. Department of
Education and by the European Directorate General for Education and
Culture. Hogeschool
Delft in the Netherlands, the Royal Veterinary and Agricultural University
in Denmark, the Technological Educational Institute of Crete in Greece
and the Universität of Hannover in Germany are the four partnership
universities in Europe. The U.S. universities participating include
Alabama A&M, Purdue University and OSU. Faculty
from participating universities donated their ideas and decided on the
application for the program. It took nearly four years and three application
processes to gain the nonrenewable grant that funds the exchange program.
“Our
primary purpose was to establish study abroad programs among the seven
partners,” said Doug Needham, professor of horticulture and landscape
architecture. Involvement
in the program was initiated through networking. Needham, who played
a role in the establishment of HORTECUS, helped develop the idea for
the program along with Allen Hammer, professor of horticulture at Purdue,
whom he had met while in graduate school at Purdue. Hammer had the initial
idea to create HORTECUS and contacted Needham to see if OSU would be
interested in helping build an exchange program. Hammer’s idea
grew into an international exchange that sends U.S. students to Europe
and brings European students to the U.S. to study horticulture. The
three-year grant compensates the 35 students participating in the six-month
exchange for moving and living expenses while at their host universities.
Students are required to pay a program fee of $175, which covers health
insurance and the purchase of an international student identification
card. They are also required to obtain a passport. The study abroad
coordinators at the respective universities provide living arrangements
for the students. Rob
Brown of Tulsa, Okla., and Kristina Lewis of Ponca City, Okla., were
first-time OSU participants in the program. They traveled to Denmark
and studied European horticulture from February through June 2002. “Living in another country was exciting and invigorating,” said Brown. Compared
to OSU’s almost 20,000 students, the Royal Veterinary and Agricultural
University is extremely small, with only 3,500 students. “Despite
the size of the university, it had state-of-the-art laboratory and greenhouse
facilities,” said Lewis. OSU
received two exchange students during the same time period. Chris Rasmussen
and Pia Mortensen came from Denmark and studied horticulture at OSU.
“We
were the test pilots for the program,” said Rasmussen. The
program is offered to all students in the horticulture departments within
the participating universities. “We
were the ones who were most interested in the program,” said Mortensen,
Danish horticulture student and HORTECUS participant, explaining why
she and Rasmussen were selected to travel abroad as the exchange students
from their university. Along
with the study abroad coordinators, faculty also help students with
the transition and cultural changes they face when moving to a new country.
“They
really knew what we needed,” said Mortensen.
While
participating in the exchange, students take classes at the host university
and are required to complete an internship or research project. Although
students can take any course they wish while at their host universities,
one of the main objectives of the program is to keep students on track
for their graduation dates by allowing them to take courses that will
transfer to their home institutions. “We
want those courses they are taking abroad to contribute to their option
sheet,” said Needham. “If they don’t, we want the courses
to be of tremendous horticulture benefit to the students.” HORTECUS
not only challenges students to grow academically, but in personal and
cultural ways as well. “I’d
call HORTECUS a facilitator,” said Brown. “It is a facilitator
for cultural exchange and for academic progress.” Although
students are allowed to exchange throughout all three years of the grant’s
duration, during years two and three of the grant faculty at host universities
also will participate in the exchange. For one-month periods faculty
members will travel to one of the cooperating universities and teach
in their areas of specialization. “There
is tremendous value in faculty traveling abroad and bringing back vital
information to share with students and peers,” said Needham. Continuation
of the program after the grant expires is based upon the development
of a new course in international horticulture. The course is unique
because it is Web-delivered and will be provided at no charge to consortium
partners; however, universities that are not partners will be charged
a fee for the course. The intent of the fee is to develop on-going funds
to help with the continuation of the study abroad program. Although all slots are filled to participate in the exchange program, faculty continue to work to extend the life of HORTECUS. Interested students are encouraged to visit with Needham or any of the HORTECUS participants to gain more insight about the program. |
For
some, the idea of getting out of town seems like a dream, especially
with the daily routines of school, work 
Any
horticulture student who has completed his or her sophomore year and
is in good standing at OSU is eligible for the program. The first step
is filling out an application form and submitting it to Needham. He
then distributes the applications to all faculty members within the
seven universities in the program to inform faculty of the students
who are interested in the exchange. However, selection of students to
participate in the program is ultimately determined by the home institution.