Saint Mary's students exiting the east doors of the Student Center and Spes Unica Hall may have noticed two new signposts near both buildings.
While one might expect the signs to point visitors towards other buildings on campus, they actually point towards the eight countries in which Saint Mary's has study abroad programs. The signs also show how far away the locations are from the College.
The signposts were purchased by the Center for Women's Intercultural Leadership (CWIL) with funds from the Lilly grant, said Elaine Meyer-Lee, CWIL director.
"[The signs] are a visual reminder of the College's many opportunities to study abroad," Meyer-Lee said.
Those opportunities include semester and full year programs in Maynooth, Ireland; Dijon, France; Innsbruck, Austria; Seville, Spain; Rome, Italy; and Pietermaritzburg, South Africa, as well as summer programs in Seoul, South Korea and Beijing, China, all of which are included on the signs.
The College also offers a semester or full year in Fremantle, Australia; Mumbai, India; Cordoba, Argentina and a women's studies semester in Europe. There are also summer programs in Ecuador, Honduras and Greece, and semester break study abroad opportunities in Jamaica, Haiti and a program called "From Poland to Prague," which takes students to Warsaw, Czestochowa, Auschwitz, Krakow and Prague.
"We felt that they could be a useful symbol for the broader internationalization called for in [President Carol Ann Mooney's] Strategic Plan [for the College]," Meyer-Lee said.
The building and grounds crew installed the signposts shortly before Christmas break.
Senior Deanna Molosky said she was pleasantly surprised to see the signpost outside of the Student Center. She said it reminded her of the Peace Pole which the Sisters of the Holy Cross have in front of the Church of Loretto on campus.
Molosky spent her fall break in Monterrey, Mexico on a service project and said there was also a Peace Pole there.
"The Peace Pole is what immediately jumped into my mind when I saw it followed closely by my memories of my recent journey to Mexico," she said.
Molosky also said the sign is a great way to showcase and remind students of the international opportunities available to them.
"It also seems like it would be a great memory jogger for those who have been to those fabulous places," she said.
Senior Angela Siler agreed, saying she wasn't sure why the signposts were installed when she first saw them, but likes that she has the visual reminder of Seville, Spain on campus since she studied abroad there in Fall 2007.
"Whenever I see the sign I think about my wonderful experience in Seville," Siler said. "And even though it says that Seville is 4,126 miles away, seeing the sign makes it seem like it's not that far."
