Student Stories | Department of History

“Studying abroad…has allowed me to expand my horizons

and deepen my understanding of how history impacts the

world in which we live.”

–DJ Josso-Martin

Auschwitz, Poland

“Living and studying in Prague enabled me to grow

personally, academically, and intellectually in a way

which will not only benefit me but will also benefit

my future students.”

–DJ Josso-Martin

History-Secondary Ed Major

TCNJ Study Center Prague

“As an Elementary Education major, this experience

will help me spread this knowledge to the next generation,

who won’t have the privilege of hearing first-hand accounts.”

-Chelsea Altchek

History/Elementary Education major

Holocaust Study Tour.

“I will be going for a masters in international

relations for the next two years at the same school

I studied abroad at(Peking University), so my brief

experience in China definitely motivated me to further

pursue Chinese studies and potentially to take an active

role in bridging the gap between our two countries.”

–Joe Pezzulo

History and Chinese Studies Major

Beijing, China

“Studying in St. Andrews allowed me to develop an interest

in my eventual honors thesis topic, as well have access to

sources that would have been difficult to reach elsewhere.

I was especially fortunate to also have been able to take classes

with the author of several of my thesis sources, as he was a

leading scholar in the field.”

– Erica Morris

Scotland

“As history students, we are taught to engage with

the world; what better way to use the world as our

classroom than through taking courses in the region we study?

My classes counted towards my major and my minor,

and I put my study in to practice through traveling and

meeting so many people who experienced what I had only

read about. Study abroad changed my life, and I hope

it can change the lives of many more history majors!”

Melanie Stanek

Ben Gurion University, Israel

Currently Teaching English in Thailand

“During my time abroad I visited many

museums and lived with a host family, two

experiences that opened up my perception of how local

and national history is understood through the eyes

of cultural institutions and the French people. Study

abroad gave me the opportunity to challenge historical

narratives told from one perspective, a first-hand

exercise that strengthened what the TCNJ History

Department emphasizes in its courses.”

Joana Arruda

Paris, France

She received a scholarship to earn a Masters in

Museum Studies at Temple University

“In my courses I met and spoke with people involved with

the UN and EU and learned about the Velvet Revolution

from a man who was a part of the uprising. The experiences

in my classes and living in a new city forever transformed

my ability to think about the issues facing the world,

not only in the past, but also in the present,”

Chelsea Van Orden

TCNJ Prague, Czech Republic