Rising junior Armando Sanchez, another AnBryce Scholar, participated in NDG’s London Program the fall of 2018. Sanchez is a political science major with a minor in constitutional studies. He is from Visalia, California. Sanchez writes about his time in London, how it gave him a more global perspective, and how his internship allowed him to inspire future generations to pursue education. 

"I left the country for the first time the spring semester of my first year. I visited London through a study abroad immersion experience provided by my scholarship program, AnBryce. As many say, my first international experience gave me the travel bug. Before I knew it, I was headed back ‘across the pond’ for a semester abroad in London.

My experience abroad fortified my understanding of the importance of education. I would not have been able to study and live in an international city if it were not for pursuing a post-secondary degree. It would not have been possible without Notre Dame.

Experiential learning in London transformed my concepts of the world. I remember reading about the Roman and British empires throughout the early years of my education. However, being in the heart of the history allowed me to connect with the content in ways that transcended the text and gave me a memory connected to those tales.

Courses like Shakespeare in London and Politics of Protest allowed me to immerse myself in British culture. In Shakespeare in London, we discussed the genius of Shakespeare and saw how his plays are produced 400 years later in venues like Shakespeare’s Globe and all over the West End. In Politics of Protest, we learned about radical thinkers and ideas which have influenced the world and took a short walk to the house of parliament after discussing the Monarchy and Democracy. We even examined the current effects of Brexit on the British as a state and a people.

Beyond the classroom, Notre Dame offered excursions to different parts of England. Particularly, the Stonehenge and bath trip afforded the opportunity to see the architectural prowess of both the early man and the Roman Empire. Moments like these encouraged me to reflect and appreciate the fact that we are in our own era and are constructing a narrative to be studied and looked at in awe in future years. It also allowed me to contextualize and connect with the legends of the past. In the Roman baths, I recall stepping through the maze of tunnels and irrigation and touching the thousands-years-old foundation of the spa—I closed my eyes and I was there.

Being a student at Notre Dame has been a life changing experience in and of itself. However, my semester abroad provided me the unique opportunity to live in a foreign country and practice being a global force for good."

On top of the rigorous London study abroad curriculum, Lorenzo Howell was accepted into an internship with St John Bosco College, a state-funded college preparatory school outside central London. Howell, a product of a failing, inner-city school, was eager to experience the British education system and to work in a school who was tackling issues like social and economic inequality. While interning with a history teacher there, he was encouraged to create a curriculum that pertained to his interests.

“I was able to design curriculum that touched on history, but also race, violence, poverty, policing and the justice system,” he says, noting the students were particularly interested in the differences between England and America.

In addition to teaching four classes throughout the semester, he also served as teacher’s aide, helped grade papers, and printed educational materials, all valuable skills for the aspiring public school teacher.

“Taking on that internship definitely elevated my resume,” he says. “If I want to go into teaching, to be able to say I have experience with making a curriculum, or I have experience with being in the classroom, definitely makes me a more valuable candidate.