Lundquist Fellow relates life changing experience

Anne Marie Miller keeps remembrances of her two-month Ecuador stay, such as handbags and colorful shirts, with her at SUNY Fredonia. She also played a guitar, similar to this one that she keeps on campus, for her students.

Lundquist International Fellowship Who can apply?  Applicants must be majors or minors in School of Music programs and have at least three semesters remaining in residence at SUNY Fredonia, including Spring 2008. What is the Deadline for the next round? Applications are due Monday, Nov. 26 for 2008 awards. Forms are available at the School of Music office in Mason Hall.

Ever have just one spoonful of, say, a deliciously rich chocolate pudding or other fancy dessert that leaves you craving for more? A whole lot more!

That’s the feeling SUNY Fredonia student Anne Marie Miller, the 2007 recipient of the Lundquist International Fellowship, brought back with her to campus this fall. But in her case, the delectable treat was an energizing two-month stay last summer in Ecuador that not only struck a chord in the life of this music education major, but also spurred a passionate desire to return to South America.

“Annie had a truly life-changing experience; she really has a different perspective on the world,” said Dr. Paul Murphy of the School of Music, her sponsor and project instructor. “She’s very adventurous,” added Dr. Murphy, an associate professor of music, and came up with the idea of going to Ecuador, despite limited travel experience.

Today, the 2004 graduate of Springville-Griffith Institute High School and Music Education major boasts a new outlook on life and brims with growing confidence, thanks to her South American adventure. “It’s hugely empowering to think of how I lived, that I didn’t know anyone when I arrived, met people and made friends when I was there,” the Western New York native said.

Her trip was made possible by the Lundquist International Fellowship, established with the Fredonia College Foundation by SUNY Fredonia Emeritus Professor Richard Lundquist, a former member of the School of Business, to support an extended stay by a SUNY Fredonia student in a developing country. A former director of the Fulbright Scholarship program for many years, Dr. Lundquist remains a staunch advocate of study abroad experiences for college students. The scholarship originated in the International Studies department, and is now administrated through the School of Music for its students.

“He’s been around the world,” Dr. Murphy, who also chairs the fellowship’s selection and planning committee, said of Dr. Lundquist. He wanted others to experience that experience, to undergo culture shock, to encounter something that they would not otherwise experience, Dr. Murphy said. That’s why only developing countries are considered, he noted. “Students can’t go to Paris, Seoul or Milan.”

Ms. Miller’s placement in Ecuador, where she served as a grade-school English teacher in the coastal fishing village of Puerto López, was arranged by Experiential Learning International, a non-profit organization that creates volunteer, internship and study abroad opportunities for both United States and foreign students. The agency secured her host family and teaching assignment.

Drawing upon her music background to teach English, Ms. Miller composed individual songs for younger students that featured numbers, colors and days of the week; third-graders gained practice in pronouns and learned to speak brief subject/verb phrases.

“They were really excited about my being there,” she said.

One of the observations Ms. Miller noted about herself was the way she responded to new situations and how flexible and adaptive she had become in a foreign land. She made a deliberate decision to retain a positive attitude, no matter what happened, and she clearly prevailed, despite hurdles that had to be cleared.

A major one, obviously, was language. Ms. Miller’s formal Spanish language study ended in high school, so all she brought with her was a limited Spanish background. She met one other English speaker, also an ELI volunteer, but he was there only during the first week of her two-month stay.

“I was the only English speaker there, so I was fully immersed in Spanish language and culture. My host family did not speak English, the other teachers at school didn’t speak English, so I’m nearly fluent in Spanish now,” she beams with pride. “It was frustrating at first, but I started to pick it up, fell in love with it, and didn’t want to stop speaking it.”

Most aspects of daily living involved some sort of adjustment. “Little things that we take for granted,” Ms. Miller noted, such as hot water for showers, washing machines and clothes dryers, paved roads and fast internet connections, were not common. “I am so much more aware of and appreciative of all the luxuries that we have in this country.”

She admired the Ecuadorians’ relaxed, easy-going lifestyle, where time is not nearly as restrictive as it is here. Fresh seafood was part of her daily diet, and calamari, a new taste sensation for Ms. Miller, became a favorite. She also toured nearby villages and the Galapagos Islands, went horseback-riding and hiking, learned how to play popular South American songs on guitar and mastered local dance steps.

There’s a great need for English teachers in Ecuador, Ms. Miller explained, so the country can more readily serve a growing number of American and European tourists drawn to its national parks and whale watching tours.

Ms. Miller’s goal after receiving her SUNY Fredonia degree is to go to Argentina as a Fulbright Scholar and serve as a teaching assistant at the university level. “I really want to be immersed in the Spanish language again. I feel like I really only got a taste of what South America is really like.”

Ms. Miller, daughter of Milan and Carol Miller of Springville, prepared for her journey through an Independent Study course on Ecuador and its culture during the 2007 spring term. Presentations on her Ecuadorian adventure are planned in several music classes at SUNY Fredonia, and she has already spoken to a local Rotary Club.

The life-changing experience gained by Ms. Miller was not unlike those of past Lundquist fellowship recipients. Michelle Deierlein, who went to Ghana and compiled extensive recordings of native music, said the experience “opened my eyes to the world.” Without this program, Christopher Jaquin, a beneficiary who studied in West Africa, would have missed out on an opportunity that “ultimately changed my life in many positive ways.”

SUNY Fredonia students who are interested in applying for the fellowship must complete and submit a form available from the School of Music office. The deadline for applications is Monday, Nov. 26. Applicants must be majors or minors in School of Music programs and have at least three semesters remaining in residence at SUNY Fredonia, including Spring 2008.