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With the removal of the fall semester Pacific Rim study abroad trip came the addition of an Asian Studies summer program.
The Institute of International Education’s 2013 Open Doors Report on International Educational Exchange reveals that during the 2012-2013 academic year, a higher number of students were coming and going from the U.S.
Fortunately for the students at Oklahoma Christian University, there is a new opportunity to be added to the study abroad roster. The Asian Studies Program is a once-in-a-lifetime trip that allows students to travel to multiple countries within Asia.
The program begins in Japan with a stop in Tokyo. Students then spend a couple of weeks living with a Japanese host family while attending classes at Ibaraki Christian University.
Oklahoma Christian established a relationship with Ibaraki Christian long before the exchange program began in the mid-‘70s. When President Emeritus Mike O’Neal was a student at Oklahoma Christian in 1964, he was a member of a campus organization that raised money for Ibaraki Christian and prayed for the Japanese institution.
O’Neal commented on the positive impact of traveling to Japan and the valuable relationship the school holds there.
“This is indeed a historic occasion as it represents one of the longest and strongest continuous bonds between Japanese and American universities,” O’Neal said. “This 30-year relationship truly has enriched our lives and our campus, while giving us a greater appreciation for all of God’s creation. As we celebrate this milestone, Oklahoma Christian renews its commitment to serving the Japanese society and to nourishing and supporting this important bond between two great universities.”
Dean of Graduate Programs, Don Drew, will be leading the summer 2014 trip and said there are many different things to experience on the Asian Studies Program. The trip continues from Japan to China with its famous silk markets, Terra Cotta Warriors, the Great Wall, Tiananmen Square and the Forbidden City.
“There are unbelievable monuments, historical elements and shops,” Drew said. “You can shop in the Silk Market, where you can get a $400 suit for around $50, and to places like the Forbidden City and Tiananmen Square, where all the disruption and protests were held. There is so much in Asia that is happening and has happened, which is spectacular and challenging.”
The Asian Studies Program is a six week trip during the summer, similar to the summer European Studies Program. Senior Katherine Vasper was a part of the first group to go on this program during the summer of 2013.
“Summer Asian Studies is so different from Vienna because the Asian cultures are primarily Buddhist,” Vasper said. “Getting to experience being the minority religion enhanced my own connection with God because I saw how easily their culture remained spiritual as they went about daily activities. It’s a more compact trip than Pac Rim, but the experiences we had made it so worth it for all of us.”
According to Drew, there are many beneficial aspects to the Asian Studies program.
“I think one of the valuable things that a person can do, and a student can do, is to travel,” Drew said.
Drew seized his opportunity to lead the trip when he heard of the opportunity to travel to Asia.
“We don’t get enough of Eastern history and culture in the West,” Drew said. “We are so western-centric, with growing up learning about Western history and Europe. There is so much information and culture in which we have not been exposed to about the East, which will be available to the students.”
Vasper believes this trip is a chance for students to embrace new things.
“Embrace everything about the trip,” Vasper said. “Try foods that look weird to you. Go dance with the locals in the city square. Talk with students at Ibaraki and Xi’an Polytechnic.”
Vasper also mentioned what students can expect from the trip.
“Expect to be treated as the most amazing thing they’ve ever seen – don’t freak out if they ask for pictures,” Vasper said. “This is the trip of a lifetime.”
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