"The greatest experience you can have is to live from a global viewpoint. Traveling to other countries allows you to touch, see and feel how others live. Diversity is highlighted, and expanded thought is created.

"Organizations are looking for leaders who can relate to people from all cultures, show respect for differences and understand others' viewpoints. These trips to a variety of countries add an unforgettable experience to your employment portfolio that global organizations will appreciate. They also allow you to fully develop your potential as an employee, citizen and person.

"Please consider signing up for a trip with Wake Tech. It will change your life!"

The core concept of anthropology is diversity, and nothing provides exposure to the diversity of humankind more than travel. When you travel, you have direct access to encounter different natural settings, historical sites and cultural behaviors that you may have only read or heard about.

As one who grew up in the tobacco fields of eastern North Carolina, I participated in my first Study Abroad programs as an undergraduate student, first in the British Isles and then Barbados. Spending a month studying in each location taught me many things, especially to quickly adapt to different cultural settings, travel efficiently, make the most of my time and learn to live in an area with different normal and acceptable behaviors than our own.

Since I have been teaching anthropology, I have organized and led Travel Abroad tours through Ireland, England, France, the Yucatan region of Mexico, Italy, Greece, Amsterdam, Germany, and Switzerland.

For you, participation in such programs also looks terrific on a resume, as it shows potential employers that you are easily adaptable to changing conditions and can work with individuals and clients from different cultures. Equally as important, Study Abroad and Travel Abroad programs offered by Wake Tech will provide you with memories, experiences and friendships that will last a lifetime.

My first adventure off the North American continent was for an independent research project to Egypt on a Middle East Studies grant. Traveling independently, in the days before I had a cellphone or GPS, gave me a healthy dose of confidence! Since then, I've trekked across many countries, often in a rental car, seeking out the great unknown. I want to instill the same confidence and thirst for adventure in my students.

Most importantly, though, I want students to better understand themselves and the world around them. When the Greeks colonized Ionia, they met people having a far different culture from their own. This not only taught them about others, but also a great deal about what made them "Greek." Each time I travel, I learn as much about myself as I do those people I am visiting.

Students who study abroad make valuable connections, both to their classmates and to students abroad. They also have a greater chance of completing their course and program successfully. I'm always happy to share how students can make studying abroad a reality.

Teaches Intro to Business, Consumer Behavior, Marketing, Sales and Management
 
"I believe that traveling to another country gives you a perspective of who you are and where you ought to go in life more than anything else. I have been to 47 countries, including the former East Germany and North Korea.

"My travel passion began in 1987 as a foreign exchange student in Salzburg, Austria, where I lived with an Austrian family. That experience gave me focus and motivation to travel the world.

"We live in one of 195 countries on this planet, and I believe you are a changed person once you have put yourself into another culture, even if just for nine or 10 days."

Teaches Music Appreciation, Chorus 

"Music is a fundamental aspect of every human culture on planet Earth. From the ancient Sumerian Empire to 21st-century America, we have created and used music as an integral means of expressing ourselves and connecting to one another.

"By virtue of my training and profession, I have had the pleasure and privilege of sharing music with others, so far, throughout the United States, Canada, the Bahamas, England, Scotland, France, Germany, Italy, the Czech Republic, Croatia, the Netherlands, Bulgaria, Mexico, Norway and Austria. I have also studied and performed for extended intervals in Excideuil, France; Berlin, Germany; and perhaps most importantly, Salzburg, Austria. These experiences were so crucial to the development not just of my artistic sensibilities, but also to my growth as an informed, empathetic citizen of the world. In the words of the famous Maria von Trapp: "Music acts like a magic key, to which the most tightly closed heart opens."

"To study music abroad in the very environments where composers like Mozart and Beethoven lived and worked will fundamentally transform your perception and experience of the world. I hope you'll take the leap, discover the world through music and, in doing so, discover yourself!"

I believe that developing humble confidence is one of the most important qualities that will help us thrive personally and professionally as communicators.

Traveling abroad is one of the biggest influences in developing my own humility – an understanding that I can learn from others who experience the world in different ways and that my way might not be the best or only right way to do something. Going abroad has also strengthened my confidence by giving me a chance to take risks, expanding my comfort zone and helping me to find the capacity to do, listen, move and be with others in new ways.

I try to incorporate this perspective and hopeful attitude in my teaching and believe that you will benefit from taking on diverse experiences as well. I love teaching Interpersonal Communication – think family, friends, co-workers, romance – and Public Speaking – think giving presentation in class, at work or at special occasions.

My first experience abroad was spending five weeks backpacking across Costa Rica after my sophomore year in college. It was one of the best and hardest things I have ever done. Now, I seek out new places to go, including Israel, Cambodia, Belize, Turkey, Croatia, Slovenia, Italy, Spain, Mexico and more. I look forward to going on a trip with you and growing alongside of you as we deepen our abilities to relate to others and believe in ourselves.