Tempus Fugit: Time flies.
It is only a little over a month from the time that “Bone Boot Camp” started on May 6th, to our departure from Barcelona on June 3rd. Yet, it is not the length of time that is important here but rather what we accomplished, and we accomplished quite a bit. Many of the students on the trip had never traveled internationally, dealt with customs unfamiliar to them, or struggled with a language barrier. In some cases, the personal growth that I witnessed was staggering, as was their ability to deal with adversity.
Sanisera Site, Menorca, Spain
As satisfying as it was to see many of the students experience emotional growth, it was even more satisfying to see them grow as educated people. We did not know what we would find when we started working with the skeletal collections from Sanisera, and we were forced to overcome a number of challenges. It might have been easier for the students to just put their heads down, doodle in their notebooks, and check out. Instead I saw a number of the students put their backs into the work and rise to the challenge, spending their free time reviewing data collection guidelines and “boning up” (no pun intended) on various aspects of skeletal and dental morphology. The result was that we collected valid scientific observations, some of which will find their way into conference presentations and published articles soon.
My hope for the future is that this is only the beginning a long and productive relationship between the students and faculty of WCC and the Sanisera Institute. I also hope that the students look back at the trip and feel it was money well spent; they have an awful lot to be proud of!
Tags: Study Abroad