On Saturday, June 20, our students departed for a new host family and a new setting to begin their Service Term, the second half of SST. Stay tuned for more updates about the communities in which the students are living and the volunteer work they're doing with nonprofits, community organizations, and municipal governments!
News
London Immersion Begins: Brixton, History, and First Impressions
May 01 2026
by, Roy Jackson
After one bus, two planes, one train, and more than 20 hours of door-to-door travel, the Global Literature in London class has arrived safely—albeit a bit disoriented and jet-lagged. After settling in at St. Athans Hotel in Bloomsbury, a hotel with a decades-long relationship with the college, we are now comfortably situated.
Following a community dinner and a much-needed night of sleep, many of us woke with the sun at 5:00 a.m. Richard and I noticed as we roamed for coffee at 6am students already out jogging and grabbing coffee themselves. In class, we discussed the history of Brixton Market and previewed the reading before heading out to explore it.
With deep roots in Caribbean and African diasporic culture, Brixton is also a site shaped by systemic racism, over-policing, and the exploitation of Caribbean immigrant labor in post–World War II Britain. The class examined both the colonial legacy and the ongoing gentrification of the area before spending the day exploring the market and surrounding neighborhood.
Up next:
Our first weekend will continue our focus on cultural markets and historical readings of place, with visits to Camden Market—often associated with the rise of punk and alternative subcultures—and Borough Market, one of London’s oldest markets, with origins dating back to the medieval period and now known for its artisanal food vendors and global cuisine. Alongside these visits, students will engage with essays on the modernization and gentrification of urban markets, as well as Act III of A Midsummer Night’s Dream. We will also tour Shakespeare’s Globe and attend a performance of the play.
Study AbroadBeginning Service Term in Ecuador
Study AbroadBelfast: Beauty, Unrest, and Action
Our second weekend at Corrymeela, we hopped on an early bus and train to take on Belfast’s bustling streets and the Belfast Book Festival, which featured homemade ‘zines (handmade magazines) for purchase and for free. The main themes of these...
Study AbroadSaying farewell (for now) to Quito
By Hillary Harder On Friday night, June 19, our group gathered at our Quito headquarters, La Casa de Espiritualidad, to mark the end of our Study period in Quito. We were joined by our host families, professors, and many community…