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WASHINGTON, PA (Feb. 13, 2018) - Washington & Jefferson College (W&J) students followed a faculty panel on The Intersection of Technology and Democracy held Monday, Feb. 12 with a panel discussion that focused on their travel experiences.

Seven students, all Magellan scholars who completed their research projects abroad, led a panel titled “Democracy on the World Stage.” They discussed their individual research, ranging from the United States’s impact on Israel’s economy and culture to the Middle East refugee crisis and its effect on Great Britain, as well as their travel experiences, and took questions from audience members.

“Although this is college and you’re supposed to share your ideas, we haven’t really had a platform to discuss the hard topics,”, said junior Carmen Carroll, a Communication Arts and Spanish double major, with a concentration in American Studies. “Having this symposium, we’ll have many spectrums of ideas, and it’s going to be great to hear people’s questions and see people engaged in these topics.”

Abigail Peace, a junior political science major, had a similar perspective.

“I think the idea of democracy changing in the next few years is very prevalent right now, and a majority of students on campus are involved, whether they are political science majors or whether they’ve involved themselves in the political realm,” she said. “A lot of people have different opinions and have an open conversation on campus.”

Student panelists were:

  • Caden Meier '19, United Kingdom. Foreign Reaction to the Election of President Trump
  • Abigail Peace '19, Israel. U.S. Impact on Israel’s Economy and Culture
  • Katie Prinkey '18, D.C./Germany. Unspeakable Pasts
  • Carmen Carroll ’19, Kenya. Strong Girls, Strong World
  • Jordan Hosfelt '19, Spain. Radical Islamic Terrorism & Heightened Islamophobia
  • Harley Moyer '19, Netherlands. International Law in The Hague
  • Jonathan Weese '19, United Kingdom. Middle East Refugee Crisis and its Effects on Britain

The students said they hope audiences will take away a sense of how global society has become.

“I hope they’ll learn how big of an impact America has globally,” Peace said. “Sometimes I feel like we only see things that are happening in America and we don’t always get the global scope of what’s happening. That’s something my Magellan really opened my eyes to.”

“I definitely want to get across an idea I learned on my Magellan, which is that we really are taking part in a global community and there are so many more players to it than just the United States,” said junior Harley Moyer, a history major who plans to go into international law. “The United States is an important part, but really it’s an entire web of connections, and it seems that [all working together] is the most successful path forward.”

Upcoming Symposium events include: “Can American Democracy Survive Without a Thriving Middle Class?” by Stephen B. Young, global executive director, Caux Round Table for Moral Capitalism on Feb. 13; and “The Foundations of American Democracy: 1776-1865” by Richard Carwardine, FRHistS, FBA, FLSW, Professor of American History and former President of the Corpus Christi College, Oxford on Feb. 14.

All events are free, open to the public, and non-ticketed. Video of the Young and Carwardine lectures will be live-streamed at the time of the event at: washjeff.edu. Videos and additional coverage of all events will be posted to the W&J YouTube Channel and the W&J College website this week.

 

About the Magellan Project

Established in 2008, Washington & Jefferson College’s unique Magellan Project extends liberal arts learning outside the classroom by providing scholarship funding for students to spend the summer pursuing independent projects and internships in the United States and abroad. Learn more about the Magellan Project on the W&J website.

 

About Washington & Jefferson College

Washington & Jefferson College, located in Washington, Pa., is a selective liberal arts college founded in 1781. Committed to providing each of its students with the highest-quality undergraduate education available, W&J offers a traditional arts and sciences curriculum emphasizing interdisciplinary study and independent study work. For more information about W&J, visit washjeff.dev, or call 888-W-AND-JAY.