| News: November 15, 2008: Italy Trip Presents Students with Once-in-a-Lifetime Opportunity, University with New... | November 20, 2009 |
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Italy Trip Presents Students with Once-in-a-Lifetime Opportunity, University with New Academic PartnershipsFor the 20-some students, faculty and administrators from Bastyr University who traveled to Italy at the end of last summer, the trip was all business — or about as "business" as two weeks in one of the most scenic, historic and culturally rich places on earth can be.
Provost Develops Relationships with Students and Italian Schools of Medicine and Culinary ArtsDr. Tim Callahan, new senior vice president and provost, spent his first day in Italy representing Bastyr at the ceremonial establishment of the Salerno Medical School Foundation, an organization dedicated to helping the University of Salerno reconnect with its herbal medicine roots. Tracing its history back to the early 10th century, the university's school of medicine is considered the earliest medical institution of Western Europe. Its leadership is now looking for ways to re-incorporate the ancient wisdom on which it was founded into a contemporary context. Bastyr's role as a partner in the foundation, therefore, will be to educate the medical school on the modern clinical applications, scientific backing and educational relevance of naturopathic medicine, Dr. Callahan says."The contemporary political will for natural medicine in Italy is about 30 years behind the U.S.," he says. "So Bastyr, as a leading naturopathic university, can give a great deal of support to the Foundation's efforts and the study of natural medicine in Italy."
In return, the University of Salerno will continue to support Dr. DiPasquale and the students in her class with the vast resources — both in terms of course assistance and native guides — at its disposal. "The school is quite proud of the fact that we take 20 students all the way to Italy to learn from them," Dr. Callahan says. After Salerno, Dr. Callahan met with officials from the Apicius School of Cooking and Hospitality within the Florence University of the Arts. Through a new academic partnership with Apicius, Bastyr will soon offer students the option of taking a three-week immersion course in Tuscan cooking and nutrition specifically tailored to be plant and whole-foods based. Dr. Callahan says one of the greatest accomplishments of the trip might have been the relationships he built a little closer to home. Before leaving for Florence, he joined Bastyr students and faculty for a day-long hike and took the opportunity to answer many of their questions related to the future of the University and his new position as Bastyr's chief academic officer and research center director. "I had a chance to show the students I'm just a regular, approachable guy," Dr. Callahan says. The Student ExperienceThe first thing that comes to naturopathic doctoral (ND) student Jacqueline Blakely when asked about her favorite experience from the Tuscany trip: the day she hiked the Amalfi coast in Salerno, observed a number of plants she'd only read about, drank in views she describes as "spiritual" — and had a chance to quiz Dr. Callahan on everything from campus dorms to changes in the faculty."We put him under fire," says Blakely about the barrage of questions she and the other students posed to Dr. Callahan as they relaxed after the five-hour hike. "And you would think that the last thing he would want to do there in Italy was answer a bunch of probing questions, but he was very gracious and open to our questions and suggestions, and he eased a lot of our tensions." Blakely says the evening was a welcome break from the near round-the-clock academic focus of the class. "It's definitely not just a vacation," she says of the trip. She also notes, however, that for many the course went beyond mere learning; it was life-changing. Visiting the world-famous Minerva Gardens, exploring the deep quiet of a subterranean cave, seeing "amazing examples of healing" and building bonds of friendship only 14 days in tight quarters could forge helped make the trip one of the more profound experiences of her life, Blakely says. "It was just a powerful learning, spiritual and life experience," she says. "At first I was cautious about how it would work with 21 strangers thrown together in a foreign country for two weeks, but it worked. I'd recommend it to anyone." Learn more about the annual "Herbal Medicine in Italy" course. 
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Nineteen herbal sciences and naturopathic medicine students divided the September trip between the Salerno (southern coast) and Sansepolcro (central) regions of Italy as part of the University's sixth annual Herbal Medicine in Italy course. For the students, led by Robin DiPasquale, ND, Bastyr faculty member and former chair of the Department of Botanical Medicine, the three-credit class was an intense 14 days of academic excursions, field lessons and tests. It also served as a once-in-a-lifetime opportunity to make new friends, explore the roots of herbal medicine and experience sights and places previously only seen in books. For one of the University's highest ranking administrators, Tim Callahan, PhD, the trip was packed with ceremonies, meetings and handshakes. It was also an opportunity to connect with current students, bring new energy to the study of natural medicine in Europe, and build relationships that will enhance the University's student experience.
As part of the partnership, Bastyr faculty will teach four seminars — covering a range of disease conditions – over the next two years in Salerno. Bastyr will also provide free tuition each year for two students from the Italian school to attend the University's annual complementary and alternative medicine (CAM) Camp.