By: Renee Schroeder

Joining a tight-knit community of only 20 students and 5 faculty members, Madelyn Busch, a sophomore Communication Studies major, is immersing herself into the extremely hands-on Oregon Extension program this semester. She’s learning about everything from sustainability to wood-working and more. Belmont recently expanded the Belmont USA program, venturing into Oregon for a brand-new immersive extension program.

The program is unlike any other Belmont program in that it focuses heavily on the environment. Madelyn said that the program interested her because she “wasn’t sure if environmental work was something I wanted to do past college. . . being here would help me figure that out.” A segment of the program actually focuses on sustainable forestry, which is a unique element of the program.

The Oregon Extension program is a truly immersive education experience. Students live in cabins on a country road where they don’t have access to their phones during the week but do have internet access if needed. For three hours a day, Monday through Thursday, they have lectures and discussions. After that, they are free to read, do homework and explore.

“The professors here are amazing at introducing us to so many new ideas. . . I feel like I have a lot of space to develop my own ideas here and grow.”

On Fridays they have writing assignments due and complete community chores. These chores could include anything from cleaning to being on chicken duty: “I had chicken duty this last week and at 8:00 pm each night I spent 10 minutes putting chickens and turkeys in their coups and collecting eggs.” Who would’ve thought you could take care of chickens for college credit?

But the weekends? They are free for exciting adventures, often as large groups.

Madelyn is excited for their large group trip to the Oregon coast, where they’ll get to see the ancient redwood forests along the way. Previous trips have included backpacking and visiting the Lava Beds National Monument.

The program is split into four segments, focusing on nature, community, sustainability, and a skills-track course, where Madelyn is taking a wood working class. Two segments are research-based, where they can’t even use Google as a resource! Some days can become extremely busy, where Madelyn expressed the reading load can become quite large.

But what’s the best part of the program? Freedom! Madelyn says you have a lot of freedom and that time moves slower there. As you sit with your classmates reading, you barely notice the quiet passing of time.

Students have the unique chance to distance themselves from the often overbearing world of technology, which can be hard to find while studying abroad. So, if you’re looking for an opportunity to immerse yourself into the quiet life of the Oregon country, the Oregon Extension Program may be the choice for you.

For more information about Study Abroad programs, go here or visit the Office of Study Abroad in JAAC 1009.