No place like Antarctica: Students take study abroad trip of a lifetime

UNIVERSITY PARK, Pa. — For the first time, Penn State students could experience Antarctica’s wonders through an embedded course, “Antarctica: Human Impacts on a Fragile Environment,” offered this past fall.

Tammy Shannon, academic advising coordinator for the environmental resource management program, was one of the faculty members who led the course.

“The Antarctica expedition was not just transformational — it was visceral, and its impact changed lives,” she said.

The ERM program and Ag Sciences Global in the College of Agricultural Sciences developed the course in partnership with the Center for Global Engineering Engagement.

To make the trip possible, Tammy Shannon and Robert Shannon, ERM program coordinator, worked with American Universities International Programs and colleagues from the State University of New York-Brockport and Virginia Tech; both have offered a similar course in the past.

During the pre-trip course in fall 2023, students attended weekly lectures to learn from experts from the University of Canterbury’s Gateway Antarctica: Centre for Antarctic Studies and Research. Students wrote essays, completed midterm projects, and submitted an annotated bibliography of their field course readings.

The course provided a foundational understanding of Antarctica’s human and natural history. It mainly focused on the continent’s physical and ecological systems, regional human activity, sustainable tourism, and fragile polar resources.

Course participant Maria Giarrusso, an ERM major with a minor in wildlife and fisheries science, said she remembered watching documentaries about Antarctica as a child.

“I’ve always been fascinated by polar regions and the unique ways wildlife has adapted to survive there,” the Schreyer Honors Scholar from Pittsburgh said. When this program was announced, I knew I couldn’t miss the opportunity.”

Participant Emma Chaplin, of Camp Hill, is a Schreyer Honors Scholar majoring in ERM and minoring in international agriculture.

“Antarctica never seemed like a place I would be able to visit,” she said. “I found out about this opportunity during my new student orientation and immediately knew ERM was the major for me because of such opportunities.”

Course participants also were encouraged to join the college’s Sustainable and Accessible Study Abroad initiative, which helps students incorporate sustainable practices into their study abroad experiences by supporting the United Nations Sustainable Development Goals.

During winter break, the students set off on a two-week field excursion by plane and ship. They explored sites such as the Beagle Channel, which is home to black-browed albatrosses, Magellanic penguins, skuas, varieties of seagulls and Alakush ducks. Other wildlife encounters included penguins, seals, humpback whales and orcas.

“My favorite part was kayaking in the Lemaire Channel,” Giarrusso said. “Everything felt still and calm even though we could hear penguins, wind, ocean and cracking ice. We paddled near the colonies to see chicks and penguins swimming past our kayaks. The entire experience was spectacular, and it all happened in a small, tranquil bay filled with stunning icebergs, nestled among towering snow-covered mountains.”

Chaplin noted that the group also saw a small pod of humpback whales, including a mother and a baby.

“They were so close we could hear them communicating with one another under the water,” she said. “At the closest, we were between 50 and 100 feet away. I’ve never seen a whale that close before, and I’m not sure I’ll ever have that opportunity again. It was incredible.”

The ship continued to the Antarctic Peninsula, where students viewed icebergs and land at various points, including coves, inlets, islands and bays. They traveled around Cape Horn, the rocky headland on Hornos Island in southern Chile’s Tierra del Fuego archipelago. Cape Horn marks the northern boundary of the Drake Passage, where the Atlantic and Pacific oceans meet.

“We were fortunate and had great weather during our trip,” Chaplin said. “The Drake Passage has frequent storms and can be unforgiving. On our way down, we experienced the calmer ‘Drake Lake,’ which was still a little choppy with 9-foot waves. On the way home, however, we had the ‘Drake Shake,’ with 15- to 20-foot waves. That was an experience I’ll never forget.”

A surprising challenge was getting enough sleep, according to Giarrusso.

“Since it never got truly dark, it was easy to stay up too late. It was also tempting to stay up to see all the beautiful sights around the ship. With the sun almost always in the sky, it was difficult to pull myself away from the observation deck,” she said.

Ketja Lingenfelter, assistant director for student global engagement in the college, commended the vision and work of course leaders Tammy Shannon and Robert Shannon.

“This course was a groundbreaking global learning program,” Lingenfelter said. “It provided students with experiences in ecotourism, glaciology, geology and environmental management. The immersive environment gave students the educational opportunity of a lifetime. Hopefully, it will help them develop skills to combat challenges in these areas in their future careers.”

Chaplin added, “Antarctica is a beautiful, strong and sometimes harsh place, but that doesn’t mean the ecosystems aren’t fragile. Coming away from this trip, I’ve affirmed my life’s purpose to continue fighting for wildlife and ecosystems like these.”