Location

Athens, Paros, Santorini, Glyfada, Greece

Program Description

May 18 - May 22:  classes on campus at JMU

May 26 - June 22:  overseas portion of the program

Our program will focus on Ancient Greece, with a primary emphasis on Ancient Greek philosophy and mathematics, and with attention to its history, archaeology, and art as well. We will begin with a week on campus at JMU to introduce some background material immediately after the spring semester ends.

A few days after that, we'll begin the overseas portion of the program in Athens, where we'll spend a few days. We'll have a class day, and we'll also visit the Acropolis and the Ancient Agora. We'll then take a ferry to the beautiful Aegean island of Paros, where we'll do most of our coursework and spend most of our time. While based there, we'll take a few day trips, too. First, we'll tour the important archaeological island of Delos and make a quick stop on Mykonos. Our second trip will be to a fascinating archaeological site on the uninhabited island of Despotiko. Our final day trip will be a sailing excursion to some small islands south of Naxos. After our two-and-a-half weeks on Paros, we'll ferry to Santorini for a few days, where we'll focus on some important archaeological sites during a day trip: the museum, the ancient city of Akrotiri, which was covered by volcanic ash for millennia, and the hilltop site of Ancient Thira. We'll also do some wine-tasting at one of the wineries on the island to finish out the day. Finally, we'll end our program along the coast near Athens, around the area of Glyfada. From there, we'll visit the National Archaeological Museum and the site of Plato's Academy, and if we haven't been able to work it in by then, we'll also visit the magnificent Temple of Poseidon at Cape Sounion.

In addition to the class days and day trips, students will have periodic 2-3 day breaks, during which they can relax at the hotel or the beach, review their schoolwork, or explore nearby areas on their own so they can get a better sense of what the Greek way of life is really about! Before the program starts in May, we will have a few required group meetings to introduce the course and program and to get to know each other a bit, but the dates aren't yet set for those.

Professor Bolyard will teach the Ancient Greek philosophy course, which will focus on some of the most important philosophers as Greek philosophy began to take shape. We'll talk a good bit about Socrates and Plato, but also a number of earlier philosophers as well. The questions we'll be dealing with are still with us today: What is the nature of reality? What can we know? What does living the good life consist in, and how does it relate to our duty to our country? Students will have reading quizzes at the beginning of every class and a final exam that covers both classroom and historical site visit material. And since argumentative discussion is central to philosophy in the Ancient Greek tradition, we will be spending lots of class time exploring the ideas we consider by giving reasons for our views, and doing our best to defend those reasons when challenged by others.

Professor Thelwell will help you learn math as the Greeks did -- on the shores of the Mediterranean, involved in open discussion and discourse. Modern mathematics was born in Greece. The writing of Euclid, cataloguing the tremendous contributions of the Pythagorean school, will serve as the foundation for the course. And since visual images and well reasoned argument were central to the mathematics of the Ancient Greeks, we will be spending lots of time with visual math as we unravel Euclid's arguments in areas such as geometry, algebra, and basic number theory, with the goal of building skill in constructing clear and precise logical proof. There will be regularly graded presentations, projects, and a final exam that covers mathematical and site visit material. Bring a compass and ruler, and learn as you explore the country and its culture!

Click here to read program FAQs.

Location Description

Greece is a beautiful country, with plenty of sunshine, predominantly warm and dry weather, and history just about anywhere you look. Students will begin by getting a taste of the big city in the bustling capital of Athens. After that, we'll find a slower pace of life in the Aegean islands, where we'll spend most of our time. Paros has beautiful views, nice beaches, and the iconic sugar-cube style architecture that this part of Greece is known for. Our shorter stay on the volcanic island of Santorini has breathtaking vistas from the rim of the caldera, where we'll be staying. On clear days, which are plentiful, you can see many other islands dotting the deep blue sea. We'll finish the program on the coast of the Greek mainland near Athens. The water will be close by, and there are lots of shops and restaurants as well. Our day trips will vary: we'll visit uninhabited islands, as well as important museums and historical sites.

Director

Chip Bolyard | bolyarcr@jmu.edu | Philosophy & Religion

Roger Thelwell | thelwerj@jmu.edu | Mathematics and Statistics

Accommodations

Students will be housed in 2- or 3-person hotel rooms, usually with a pool or with beaches nearby. Though internet will be available, it can be spotty in some places, especially on the islands. Drop-off laundry services will be available in the local towns for a fee.

All breakfasts will be provided, along with occasional group meals. Students will receive a meal stipend for their remaining meals, which they'll handle on their own.

Additional Items to Consider

Greece in general isn't up to the ADA standards of the U.S., and we'll be visiting ancient sites, so expect to do a fair bit of walking on hilly, broken ground. So make sure you're physically capable of that sort of thing in warm to hot weather.

Though we won't have any required in-the-water activities, being able to swim will be a plus for some of our boat trips. It'd be a shame to go to Greece without taking a plunge in the clear water! Relatedly, we'll be traveling by ferry and by boat at many points, so please be sure to bring along your sea sickness medications if you're prone to that sort of thing.

Cell service is good nearly everywhere, though there can be dead spots. Make sure you have an affordable international roaming plan before departure.

Visa requirements are in flux, but we'll let you know what you'll need to do for as soon as we know. In the past, we haven't needed them. And though most Greeks speak at least some English, we'll teach you a few common Greek expressions to help you get along there. They tend to like it when you try to converse in their own language!

On campus at JMU from Monday, May 18 through Friday, May 22. We will have a few group meetings during the spring semester as well, dates TBD. Students will begin the overseas portion of the trip in Athens, Greece, and will need to arrive there May 26.

We will teach students the Greek alphabet, and they will be required to know it before departure.

Students will need to write a short essay that explains why they want to join the program, both with respect to the areas of study and the location, and why they think they would be good members of the group in terms of adaptability, enthusiasm, and full participation in class and site visit activities.

Applicant Criteria

Applicants must have a GPA minimum of 2.0

Open to all undergraduate majors and class levels

Open to non-JMU students

Application Process

This list serves as an application preview. To apply, students will need to complete the following:

• Study Abroad Online Application ($40 fee)
• Short Essay 
• Official transcript required for non-JMU students

Further details and instructions about these application requirements will be available upon log-in.