A new summer session course on the American Revolution, sponsored by the Center for Military History and Strategy, will take students on a tour of the East Coast.
The trip will take place in May and will last 16 days for $200, and students will visit historic locations such as Fort Niagara, Yorktown, Valley Forge, Boston, and more.
Professor of History David Stewart said the trip is an opportunity for students to see the places they are reading about.
“I think the students understood things in a way by being there,” Stewart said. “I’ve heard that from every student who’s gone on these various trips before. Being there, seeing something, makes them understand, not just remember things, but understand things, and the complexity of things and how pieces come together.”
Transportation, lodging, admissions fees, meals, and tuition are covered by the CMHS, and students can opt to take the course as a one or three credit class. The trip is a combination and expansion of former spring break trips, also sponsored by CMHS, over the past two years.
Junior Grace Canlas attended both spring break trips and has already submitted her deposit for the summer course. She said she heard about it in class and immediately ran to her dorm room to write a check.
“I signed up because I’ve had just an incredible experience every time I’ve gone on a trip sponsored by the Center for Military History and Strategy,” Canlas said. “Not only have they created great friendships and unforgettable memories, but they’ve deepened my understanding of reverence for the American heritage.”
Despite having been on the two trips the summer course is based on, Canlas said she is excited to see the sites with a new perspective.
“A couple of places will be new, so I’m looking forward to seeing those for the first time, but then revisiting the places I’ve already been, I think will still offer a new perspective with things I’ve learned since then from my classes here,” Canlas said.
The trip offers students a chance to see places they might not otherwise get to for a great price, according to Stewart.
“In a very practical sense, you’re never going to have a better opportunity for $200 to see so many things and just the raw tuition costs,” Stewart said. “You’re never going to class for $200 in Hillsdale. But seeing these things, having access to two or three professors from an unconstrained way, the professors aren’t distracted by anything else because it’s their only class. You’re not distracted by anything else because it’s your only class.”
