Venture merges teaching, travel
Jan. 11, 2011

LaGrange College is hoping to strengthen its ties with the community through a new program called “3D Journeys: Discover, Discuss, Develop through Lectures and Travel with LaGrange College.”

“We have teamed up with several members of the community to develop something we think will offer enriching opportunities and allow the college to give back to our friends and neighbors,” said Martha Pirkle, director of alumni and community relations.

Judy Boggus and Ann Beason of LaGrange are co-chairs, working alongside first lady Celeste Myall.

“We are very excited that LaGrange College is interested in reaching out to the community through a series of free lectures open to the public,” Boggus said. “In conjunction with the free lectures, we will be offering an educational trip with the destination being the topic of the lecture series.”

Faculty members from LaGrange College will be hosting the lectures in the Dickson Assembly Room in Turner Hall.

“We plan to offer the lectures at 10 a.m. on Mondays of each month during the spring and fall semesters,” Boggus said. “The talks will be presented by members of the college’s faculty and will feature a new theme each semester. The college shuttle will be available to take people from the parking lot to Dickson Assembly Room.  Reservations to attend the lectures are suggested but not necessary.”

The spring lecture series will spotlight the Georgia coast, with such topics as photography, early American history, Georgia literature and the ecology of the state’s barrier islands. That will be followed by a trip to Coastal Georgia on April 18-20, hosted by President Dan McAlexander and first lady Celeste Myall, with help from faculty member Dr. Lisa Crutchfield, Assistant Professor of History.

“The spring excursion will include a day on Sapelo Island,” Pirkle said. “Buddy Sullivan ’68 is manager of the Sapelo Island National Estuarine Research Reserve and will be our host while we are on the island.”

Sullivan is the author of 16 books about the history of Georgia and coastal Georgia.

The first lecture will be Jan. 24, with Crutchfield as the speaker.  She is a colonial history specialist with a particular interest in Georgia frontier history, Boggus said.  

Randy Colvin, assistant professor of biology, will speak about the ecology of the Georgia coast on Feb. 28, while Professor John Lawrence, Fuller E. Callaway Professor of Art and Design, will speak about photography during the March 28 talk. Following the coastal excursion, the semester’s event will conclude with an April 25 lecture on Georgia literature by Dr. Anthony Wilson, chair of the English department.

“Your attendance at the lecture series will prepare you if you choose to go on the trip, but the lectures will certainly stand on their own,” Boggus said. “You do not have to attend the talks to go on the trip, but they will offer insights that will be valuable.” 

Ann Beason said beginning the program in January is perfect timing.

“January is a new project start-up month for so many people,” she said. “To begin 2011 in a class with others who want to ‘discover, discuss and develop’ is an exciting prospect. The college is giving us the opportunity to take classes on the Hill with outstanding professors. We are very grateful.”

“3D Journeys” kicked off in December with a trip to Nashville for a holiday tour. The inaugural excursion was hosted by Dr. McAlexander and Myall, who lived in Nashville while he was provost of Belmont University.

Pirkle said the plan is to add trips as the program grows.

“Ultimately, we hope to add international travel,” she said.

Other committee members include Libba Bowling, Dr. Sue Duttera, Liz Greer, Andrea Lovejoy, Dr. Linda McMullen, Brenda Holland Welden and Wendy Boswell Zwilling.

For more information, contact Pirkle at (706) 880-8244 or e-mail 3DJourneys@lagrange.edu .