Dr. Jessica Martell, associate professor in the Department of Interdisciplinary Studies and program coordinator for Global Studies, and Dr. Belinda Walzer, associate professor in the Department of English led Honors College students to Ireland and Northern Ireland to study human rights, May 28 - June 16, 2024. In this study-abroad course, students earned three semester hours of credits for HON 3515 Human Rights and Peacebuilding in Ireland and Northern Ireland. They met the Honors College international education requirement, which asks students to broaden their perspectives as they consider global interconnectedness through exploring other cultures, worldviews, and frames of reference.
Sydney Traugott ‘25, psychology major, with a social science concentration, who entered the Honors College at App State in Fall 2022 semester and graduated May 2025, joined this trip. She shared,
My trip to Ireland was fantastic. It was my first time flying…
Dr. Martell explains that this study abroad program “takes Honors students to Dublin, Ireland, and Belfast and Derry/Londonderry, Northern Ireland, which are cities across the border in the UK. Besides being fun and friendly, the island of Ireland is a great place to learn about how societies once divided by conflict have come together to rebuild and maintain a lasting peace.”
Dr. Jessica Martell lectures to Appalachian State students at Trinity College Dublin, Ireland, in summer 2024. Photo by Belinda Walzer.
Traugott further described the experience, stating:
“We spent the first week in Dublin learning about the history of Ireland and learning about key historical figures that are important to Ireland such as W.B. Yeats. After that first week, we spent the following two weeks in Belfast where we focused more on the Troubles since the majority of the conflict took place [there]. While there, we went on tours and talked to people to learn about their own experiences of being in the conflict, how it affected their lives currently, and some of the reconciliation processes they went through. We even went to Derry/Londonderry one day to learn about the reconciliation process and took the Bogside history walking tour where we were able to learn a bit about Bloody Sunday and the murals around the Bogside in Derry/Londonderry. “
Photo above features street art The Son of Protagoras in Belfast. The two arrows in the dove depict the two religions, Catholicism and Protestant, which were the two main religions involved during the Troubles. Not depicted is the church that the boy is staring at in anger. Photo submitted by Sydney Traugott.
The Honors College international education requires students to
- Reflect on their interactions with individuals and communities from cultural backgrounds different from their own and explain how these cross-cultural experiences have supported their individual personal, academic, and/or professional growth.
- Cultivate cultural competence and humility by examining the importance of understanding, respecting, and valuing difference in building inclusive communities and addressing global challenges collaboratively.
- Apply a holistic approach to global engagement that encompasses intellectual, cultural, and social dimensions as they explore, discover, learn, and grow with others.
Dr. Martell explained about the significance of this study abroad experience for Honors students, and stated,
I believe that studying abroad has many benefits for students. But traveling to a place like Northern Ireland, which experienced thirty years of violence from the 1960s through 1998, requires some extra ethical work from students and faculty alike. My approach to instruction encourages students to see themselves as critical learners, scholars, and witnesses, rather than spectators or tourists. Then, the trip becomes part of the ongoing peace process. We make the world more peaceful by showing up with a base of knowledge, learning from a variety of firsthand accounts, and reflecting on complex questions that have no easy answers, like how to bridge political divides in extremely polarized times.
Photo above features the group in front of the Giant's Causeway in Northern Ireland. Photo submitted.
One of the students on this trip, Jackson Futch ‘24, majored in political science with a minor in philosophy. He joined the Honors College at App State in the Fall 2021 semester and graduated December 2024. About this faculty-led study abroad experience, he reflected:
My time studying in Ireland and Northern Ireland has been one of the most changing experiences of my life. We were able not just to tour some of the most amazing museums and galleries in the world, but we were also able to engage with organizations doing reconciliation and peace-building work in this region. Seeing the fantastic people doing some very hard and extraordinarily intense work with former combatants, prisoners, and victims of a violent and polarizing time in recent history has reshaped my perspective on post-conflict studies.
Photo above was taken on a hike on the Giant's Causeway, which has a legend that the columns (not depicted in the photo) were made by a giant. Photo by Sydney Traugott.
Many Honors College students like Futch rely upon the Honors College’s International Education Scholarship, funded by the Ron and Marilyn Mitch Fund for Academic Excellence in the Heltzer Honors Program in International Education, to be able to study abroad. About the scholarship, Futch shared, I am so grateful to Dr. and Mrs. Mitsch for making this trip possible for me and so many other students in my position. Without their support, I would not have been able to have this world-shaking experience in such an amazing area.”
The group toured the Bogside neighborhood of Derry/Londonderry, U.K., during the summer 2024 trip. Photo by Belinda Walzer.
Traugott noted her appreciation for the many people she met on this trip who shared their time and experience with the group. She stated, “I appreciate the guides and the people we met on this trip for giving us their perspective and what they did during the Troubles and meeting up and helping us navigate throughout Belfast.”
Dr. Martell further highlighted the importance of students hearing and experiencing different perspectives, which is a focus in this course and trip. She shared,
Listening to different stories, and taking them seriously, is a useful exercise in our current era. You can always learn something from hearing a contrasting perspective, even as you maintain your own.
Dr. Martell and co-leader Dr. Zackary Vernon, associate professor in the Department of English, are taking another group of Honors College students to Ireland and Northern Ireland this summer 2025. Then in summer 2026, Dr. Walzer along with Dr. Mira Waits, associate professor and assistant chair of the Department of Art, will lead this trip again to Ireland and Northern Ireland. Stay tuned for news stories highlighting the newest experiences of our students meeting their international education requirements through these faculty-led study-abroad summer offerings.
In top photo, the group gathers in front of Belfast City Hall in Belfast, U.K., during the summer 2024 trip, "Human Rights and Peacebuilding in Ireland and Northern Ireland." Photo by Belinda Walzer.
