In Beijing for her junior year, Wendy Simon-Pearson ’12 had eye-opening experiences typical of students abroad: visits to exotic landmarks, strange encounters on trains, language hurdles. But, as a participant in the UMass Amherst International Scholars Program, Simon-Pearson also made deep connections on her trip. “I was better prepared to have real conversations with Chinese people as a result of my studies,” she says, explaining how she learned to empathize with people who might accept living in an undemocratic system or agree with China’s one-child policy.

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From July 8-21, 2012 UMass Amherst is offering "Summer College" for highly motivated high school students in or about to enter their junior or senior year and who are ready to learn at a college level. 

The Department of Political Science is joining in this effort by offering the political science course "The Politics of Artistic Expression," taught by gradute student and artist Alix Olson.