By Susan Lorenzana
The Study Abroad club aims to study the politics of freedom, of assembly, self governance, liberty and democracy.
They also aim to study human rights, freedom of religion, self-expression, women’s liberation, and LGBT awareness. Students explore the challenges of human trade, body trafficking, sexploitation and the administration of justice from global and international perspectives.
During the trip, the club discussed human rights issues during tours to places like Anne Frank’s house. The students also rode under bridges of canals on gondolas and took a tour to nearby Dutch windmills. Students also took local trains to locations like Rijksmuseum, the Van Gogh Museum and the Banksy Exhibit in the Modern Contemporary Museum. Political Science professor Felipe Agredano, who is the club advisor, has been with the club for only this semester.
Agredano, who was an ELAC student himself, had an opportunity to study abroad but chose to be part of ASU instead. Agredano said that he wants East Los Angeles College students to take advantage of the opportunity.
“There would be like 4-5 students that wanted to stick together and go about the plan of the day (while) the others would go straight to it and take the subways,” Agredano said.
For 2019, the study abroad club is considering traveling to Venice, Florence, Pisa, Rome, Italy. There, they plan to study the impact of the renaissance and the church reformation history setting.
“All of students don’t know about studying abroad because they don’t have the info or the resources. As an ELAC student, I never had the right information about studying abroad. I want students to know how the healthcare system, school system and architecture functions are in other countries,” Agredano said.
Felipe said that he hopes more students go to next spring break’s study abroad trip because it may be an opportunity of a lifetime. Felipe also said that the United States system is very different from Amsterdam’s system and it is important to travel and see other countries’ systems. Felipe hopes anywhere from 18 to 30 students attend next year’s study abroad trip.
The Study Abroad club held a meeting on May 7th to talk about next years study abroad club and for those who did not attend, there will be more meetings until further notice.
For those interested in studying abroad next spring break, to learn how you can travel, know how you can fundraise, access financial aid and travel scholarships, may contact Felipe Agredano via email at agredafe@elac.edu.