This past winter break marks another round of the Mason Folklore Program’s Irish Folklore and Culture study abroad program. The course was led by Dr. Debra Lattanzi-Shutika (put link to faculty spotlight article), one of the faculty members in the Folklore Program here at Mason.
Over the course of two weeks, students visited numerous cultural heritage sites in Ireland learning and documenting Irish history, culture, and traditions while also embedding themselves into current Irish folklore.
The course attracted students, both graduate and undergraduate, from a variety of majors from creative writing to sustainable tourism to disability studies as well as folklore. One of the pros about the course was that students were able to tailor their coursework to their specific fields. One student, Marco Duran-Pimentel, a documentary student, made a documentary about the course itself. In the video, students express their thoughts on the study abroad program. One folklore graduate student in particular, Kyah Eichholz, says to the audience if you are able to go on any study abroad program do it, but we hope this video will demonstrate why this one is particularly special.
Article by Stephanie Aitken
Video by Marco Duran-Pimentel
February 08, 2025