Office of Institutional Research
Office of Marketing Communications
The Stylus, SUNY Brockport's Student-run Newspaper
|
Press Releases
For Immediate Release
September 24, 2008
For more information, contact
Nicholas Mascari
(585) 395-2754
nmascari@brockport.edu
Students Help Polish Town Evaluate and Promote Historic Site
Brockport Summer Program Focused on Historical Sites in Wroclaw, Poland
Wroclaw City Hall Presentation
Visiting the Jewish cemetery in Wroclaw
Brockport, NY – “To see ourselves as others see us…” that was the approach taken by officials in Wroclaw, Poland when they invited 18 American students to evaluate two of their town’s most important cultural and historic sites, the Centennial Hall and the Quarter of Mutual Respect.
The students were enrolled in The College at Brockport’s “Experiencing the New Europe Summer Program" at the University of Lower Silesia in Wroclaw, Poland” worked alongside students from Poland to investigate how changing political systems shaped Wroclaw’s urban life and culture. The three-week summer program of classroom study and on-site experiential learning helped the students grasp the cultural, political and economic transformations brought about by the aftermath of WWII, ethnic and national upheaval, the fall of Communism, democratization and European integration.
Weekend excursions included visits to the larger cities of Krakow (Poland) and Prague (Czech Republic) as well as to the Auschwitz-Berkenau concentration camp.
As part of their program the students also met with a local design firm and advised them on the creation of tourist literature based on their own experience as tourists. They prepared a formal presentation given at Wroclaw’s City Hall with the mayor and local media present. Their written reports will be compiled into a book and printed in both Polish and English. In addition, their research formed the foundation a new tour guide and literature for the Centennial Hall and Quarter of Mutual Respect sites. The new tourist literature included photos and the names of each student enrolled in the course.
"It was the best learning experience I've ever had. I learned about the rich history of Poland, the city of Wroclaw, Jews in Wroclaw, and World War II in general. I listened to different points of view about the Socialist system in Poland, and insights about the system before the revolution. Creating the tourist plan for the Quarter of Mutual Respect inspired me to do something similar to help preserve the history of Hanoi, where I grew up, and Brockport, a small town with its own layers of history,” said Ly Nguyen, a junior international student from Vietnam and a student in the College at Brockport’s Delta College program majoring in communication and international studies. “This was the first time the program has been offered and it was truly remarkable in terms of the history and cultural forces that our students explored through firsthand experience,” said Donna Kowal, associate professor of communication and assistant director of the Honors Program at The College at Brockport. Kowal and Sandra Holinbaugh of The College at Brockport's Delta College were the faculty leaders of the trip.
"I was awed by the magnificence of Poland's long history; it's written in the architecture and woven into the streets,” said Michael Sullivan, a College at Brockport junior majoring in political science and international studies.
Centennial Hall is multi-purpose recreational building, situated in Wroclaw’s Exhibition Grounds. Completed in 1913 for an exhibition commemorating the 100th anniversary of the Battle of the Nations, it is a pioneering work of modern engineering and architecture exhibiting an important interchange of early 20th century influences and becoming a key reference in the later development of reinforced concrete structures. It was listed as a UNESCO World Heritage Site in 2006.
The Quarter of Mutual respect, also known as the Quarter of the Four Temples, is located in a neighborhood in the Old Town of Wrocław where Catholics, Lutherans, Orthodox and Jews live together and pray and work together. In the past it was the site of several acts of sectarian violence. In 1995 the four religious leaders met and developed an agreement of cooperation to stop the violence and vandalism. Today the area sponsors many activities to educate children and youth in tolerance and peace.
###
The College at Brockport, State University of New York
350 New Campus Drive * Brockport, New York 14420-2931
(585) 395-2754 * FAX (585) 395-2723 *
www.brockport.edu