Sept. 3, 2008

Kristen Westergaard, Kendra Kock, Lauren Deichmann, Kelli Schreier, Bailey Johnson and Sarah Garrett pose in front of the Sydney Opera House and the Sydney Harbour Bridge.

Students will discuss their trip to Australia

Morningside College students who took a study tour of Australia in May will talk about their trip on Wednesday, Sept. 10, at 11:45 a.m. in the UPS Auditorium of Lincoln Center, 3627 Peters Ave.

The public is invited to the free event, which is sponsored by Morningside’s Academic and Cultural Arts Series (ACAS).

The students will share photos and tell stories about their adventures, which included snorkeling and scuba diving in the Great Barrier Reef, learning from Aborigines at the Aboriginal Cultural Park, walking through the Daintree National Rainforest and touring the Sydney Opera House. They also will talk about the research they conducted while in Australia.

“We held class for four days, conducting research and scanning the international headlines,” said business professor Pam Mickelson, who led this May Term trip that studied entrepreneurship and ecotourism. Lessons on ecotourism and entrepreneurship were integrated into formal research papers and daily interviews while in Australia, and also into the selection of tour guides and outfitters for their adventures.

“It was an incredible experience for all of us,” Mickelson said. “We had 24 students, and they would all agree – we did not want to come home!”