PARAMUS, N.J. – Bergen Community College has joined a nationwide initiative to double the number of U.S. students studying abroad by 2019. More than 150 schools have signed the pledge spearheaded by the Institute of International Education’s (IIE) “Generation Study Abroad” program.
“Study abroad is a transformational experience,” Amparo Codding, the College’s dean of arts, humanities and wellness – who coordinates the school’s study abroad program – said. “In addition to the academic accomplishments, students come back with a very strong sense of self. They come back with a whole new view of the world, wanting to travel more, learn more, see more and do more.”
The U.S. Department of State’s Bureau of Educational and Cultural Affairs estimates 295,000 students studied abroad in 2011-12. Typically, six Bergen students leave the U.S. to study each semester. Spring 2014 student Blyss Molina Ayala, of Ridgefield Park, received a $3,500 scholarship from the Benjamin A. Gilman International Scholarship Program to study in Spain – making her the fourth Bergen student to earn the award. Bergen students have studies throughout the world – including Argentina, China, Italy, Japan and Morocco.
Bergen remains one of less than a dozen community/county colleges to make the commitment to the IIE. The U.S. Department of State’s Bureau of Educational and Cultural Affairs and several foreign governments, as well as key higher education associations and study abroad provider organizations, have also pledged to support the goals of the initiative.
Bergen Community College (www.bergen.edu) based in Paramus is a public two-year coeducational college, enrolling nearly 17,000 students at locations in Paramus, the Philip J. Ciarco Jr. Learning Center in Hackensack and Bergen Community College at the Meadowlands in Lyndhurst. The College offers associate degree, certificate and continuing education programs in a variety of fields.
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