Jeff in England

The University of Evansville operates a study abroad program at Harlaxton College in Lincolnshire, England, United Kingdom. During the fall semester of 1998, Jeff spent four months studying there and travelling about the British Isles and the European mainland.

The pictures below were taken by Jeff during his semester abroad. He has hundreds more pictures from England and hopes to, someday, make more available online.

Oxford, Bath, and Stonehenge

The city of Oxford on a rainy day.

Oxford's Bridge of Sighs. It seems having a structure known as the Bridge of Sighs in a city is fairly popular: Jeff also saw such structures in Venice, Italy and Chester, England.

Jeff also stopped in the ancient Roman city of Bath, where he caught sight of this sign that reminded him of his home town.

Jeff also made a stop in Glastonbury. These pictures are the ruins of Glastonbury Abbey. According to legend, King Arthur is buried on the Abbey grounds.

Trip to Dumfries

This picture was taken in November at the rail station in the city of Dumfries, Scotland. Dumfries is in the southern part of Scotland, near the border with England. The area around Dumfries is the ancestral home of the Carlyle family name.

Harlaxton Overview

Note: The following text was written by Jeff for a website with which he was once involved.

In the early nineteenth century, the self-made businessman Gregory Gregory set out build a house worthy of his new financial status. He chose a spot near his family's ancestral home in the hills of southwestern Lincolnshire, England. Along with the large and ornate building, he build a grand garden with views of the rolling fields of Lincolnshire and the nearby Belvoir Castle, the home of the Duke of Rutland. The outside appearance of Harlaxton is so awe inspiring that the makes of the movie The Haunting chose Harlaxton's exterior as the exterior for their Hill House.

Today, Gregory's Harlaxton Manor has come into the possession of the University of Evansville, and they operate a study abroad program there known as Harlaxton College. Harlaxton College is one of the University of Evansville's feature programs. From the moment you express interest in attending UE, the school bombards you with information about Harlaxton. Practically every student at the university has an opportunity to visit Harlaxton during the time at UE. Each of the school's academic programs has their own policy about when it is best for their students to attend Harlaxton. For instance, engineering students are encouraged to go during the fall semester of their sophomore year.

The Harlaxton program consists of three sessions: a fall semester, a spring semester, and a summer session. The summer session is shorter than the semester programs and only a limited number of classes are offered. The semester programs operate just like a semester at UE would work. As opposed to being a British college, Harlaxton is an American college in Britain. Instead of being a place where a student would study for four years, all students at Harlaxton visit the school for one semester while remaining full time students at another college. The majority of Harlaxton students are from UE; however, UE has arrangements with a number of other schools, including Baker University; the University of Wisconsin-Eau Claire; and others to send students, so there are also a number of non-UE students at Harlaxton each semester. The number of Harlaxton students fluctuates between around 150 to 200 students.

The academic program at Harlaxton changes each semester. The faculty is a mix of full-time British professors and visiting professors from UE and the other schools that send students to Harlaxton. The class offerings are based around the demographics of students that will be there for that semester. For instance in the fall when engineering students will attend, classes are offered that will be needed for the engineering degree. All students are required to take a class known as British Studies. The class is six credit hours, and for UE students the class counts as three hours of humanities credit and three hours of social science credit. The British Studies class provides an overview of British history and social trends. The course consists of a group lecture followed by a small group discussion with a member of the full-time British faculty. A school week consists of Monday, Tuesday, Wednesday, and Thursday. There are no classes in the afternoon on Wednesday, and Fridays are reserved for travel.

Travel is what attracts most students to Harlaxton. As they said in one of the early Harlaxton sales pitches: traveling to Vincennes or Henderson just isn't as interesting as traveling to London or Paris. The school organizes trips to many locations such as: London, Edinburgh, York, Cambridge, Oxford, Bath, Stonehenge, North Wales, Ireland, Coventry, Stratford, and Paris. There is also a long trip after the end of semester. The destination of the long trip changes from semester to semester. Students also travel independently of the school to British destinations such as Liverpool or the Scottish Highlands and to destinations on the European mainland such as Amsterdam and Greece.

The school also takes on a party atmosphere from time to time. Most nights a member of the kitchen staffs operated a pub known as the Bistro in the basement of the building. One semester, a group of students donated stereo equipment to the bistro, and now it has turned into a bit of a dance club. The Bistro is an interesting feature of Harlaxton, because it offers students the chance to sit back and drink with their professors. There are also a number of formal dinners throughout the semester. Harlaxton also has a sports hall and organized teams to compete in regional competitions. The school has a legacy of organizing a basketball that will dominate all of the British teams.

Down the mile road from Harlaxton Manor is Harlaxton Village. The Gregory Arms is the village pub and is also where a number of Harlaxton students and faculty pass the night away (until 11:00 pm when the pubs close). Harlaxton is also near the town of Grantham. Many students partake in the Grantham nightlife. Grantham is also a great place to go shopping. Isaac Newton and Margaret Thatcher were both born in Grantham.

Harlaxton isn't all fun and games though. Most students will take a lighter course load than normal; however, the classes are serious and there is a lot of work. British Studies alone requires around five short papers and a final research paper in addition to a number of required readings. Students at Harlaxton also have a tendency to face depression at Harlaxton; for some it is the initial shock of being that far away from home; for others it is the doldrums of mid-semester that cause the depression; and for others it is the sadness of leaving that brings about their bout with depression. Harlaxton also has the tendency to be rather boring throughout the week. Though you can travel all you want on the weekends, you are stuck in this one building in the country for most of the week.