Queen's University Belfast Offers a Different Perspective
By SHARON GREER
Queen's University Belfast, the first university in the north of Ireland, was founded in 1845 by Queen Victoria, opened in 1849 and has a record of academic achievement which stretches back more than 150 years.
The Institute of Irish Studies at Queen's University offers a wonderful three-week course through their International Summer School. I was fortunate enough to attend this past summer, July 19 to August 6, and joined 50 other foreign students (mostly Americans) in the fourth year of an excellent program.
Considering its youth, it's amazing that it is such a highly developed program. I would guess it has been modelled after University College Dublin's excellent summer school program, now well into 50-odd years of establishment.
Queen's offers its own unique northern perspective and the program was jam-packed with lectures covering history, politics, emigration, environment, anthropology, literature, film, language, poetry, drama and archaeology. This was combined with field trips to Giant's Causeway and the Antrim Coast, Ulster American Folk Park in Omagh and The Barony of Lecale, Strangford Lough, the Ards Peninsula and Mount Stewart in County Down.
NOEL MITCHEL, an Honourary Fellow of the Institute of Irish Studies.
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An informative two-and-a-half hour tour of Belfast explaining the murals and interfaces throughout this remarkable city jump started the program and was beneficial as a basis to deciphering the polarization of this divisive town.
A delightful visit to the Ulster Museum, an exceptional tour of the Linen Hall Library, a very informative visit to Strandtown, divisional headquarters for the East Belfast police service and a tour of Stormont (Parliament) followed by talks from Sinn Fein and Democratic Unionist Party members proved to be one exhilarating, incredible experience.
There were several good lecturers and wonderful, helpful staff at Queen's, but one stands out in particular in the person of Noel Mitchel, an Honourary Fellow of the Institute of Irish Studies. Noel is an absolutely delightful, darling man who gave two of the lectures and accompanied the class as our guide on two of our field trips.
His patience, kindness and gentleness along with his sharp wit and sense of humour entertained and delighted the students throughout the duration of the course. Noel has a twinkle in his eye and a tremendous amount of knowledge about the north of Ireland. Coincidently he also taught at the University of British Columbia many years ago. He truly was a delight and a highlight of International Summer School.
For anyone interested in a very different experience in Ireland, check out Queen's University Belfast, Institute of Irish Studies, International Summer School at www.qub.ac.uk, or e-mail at irish.studies@qub.ac.uk.
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