Meet The Team
Moien! We are undergraduate students from Miami University in Oxford, Ohio who stem from all different parts of the U.S. For this semester, we are studying at the Miami University Dolibois European Center (MUDEC) in Differdange, Luxembourg. Here at MUDEC, we are enrolled in Journalism 350, Foreign Correspondence. Towards the end of February, our class took a trip to Porto, Portugal to learn about the future of Portuguese people. Check out our team!
Haley George
Hi! My name is Haley George and I’m 20 years old. I am a sophomore Political Science and English Literature major with a Management and Leadership minor. There were a lot of amazing moments from our
trip to Porto, Portugal. From boat tours to wine tastings, our week was packed with cultural activities. But most significantly I really enjoyed wandering the streets, taking in lots of sun, and observing the culture. Walking along the Douro River, cup of gelato in hand, watching street performers, and talking with locals was a great experience. What I hope to get out of MUDEC: From my MUDEC experience, I hope to gain a sense of confidence in my own ability to independently conquer obstacles, face adversity, and embrace adventure. I seek to gain a thorough and meaningful experience in each place I visit.
Lukas Schroeder
Hello! My name is Lukas Schroeder and I’m a 20-year-old sophomore at Miami. I am so lucky to have the opportunity to study abroad in Luxembourg: the amazing experiences I have had here will last a lifetime, and I am so grateful to have met so many great people here. I also loved Portugal: I will always remember the beautiful weather, interesting culture, and wonderful food. Overall, I hope to escape my comfort zone while abroad, learning more about the world in which I live in the process.
Charlotte Wallis
Hi! My name is Charlotte Wallis and I am a 20-year-old sophomore at Miami University of Ohio. I am currently studying abroad in Luxembourg, and I get to take classes in a castle! My favorite part of being in Luxembourg are the new experiences I am having and that I am in a great location to travel all of Europe. I recently traveled to Portugal for my foreign correspondence class and it was spectacular! The weather was amazing, the city was beautiful and the people were incredibly kind. During my study abroad experience I hope to continue to see amazing cities and meet wonderful people, good weather doesn’t hurt either!
Alexandra Phlegar
My name is Alexandra Phlegar and I am 19 years old. I am a sophomore business major with a French minor at Miami University. What I love about the Luxembourg program is the fact that they give us Fridays off and encourage us to travel on the weekends. This makes it easy to travel to surrounding countries. Portugal was an amazing experience because the people were very friendly and the food was great!
Annie Walsh
My name is Annie Walsh and I am 21 years old. I am a junior at Miami University studying Strategic Communications and Fashion Corporate Business. I love being in Europe and having the opportunity to travel and develop new friendships with people I may have never crossed paths with in Oxford, Ohio. Out of all the places I have been in Europe so far, Porto definitely tops the list with its amazing architecture, food, sangria, and beaches!
Katie Guirnalda
Hello! I’m Katie Guirnalda. I am 19 years old and a sophomore at Miami University. I am studying early childhood education. I want to be a kindergarten teacher! I am from Dayton, Ohio and I’m a long ways from home, here in Luxembourg, but I’m having a blast! I love to travel, play guitar, sing, paint, and do yoga! My favorite part of this project was getting to meet new people abroad and I loved getting to hear their stories!
Sarah Kingsbury
My name is Sarah Kingsbury, and I’m a 21 year-old junior at Miami University; simply put, I love Luxembourg! I would have to say that my favorite part about Luxembourg is the variety you can get in one little country; you can see farmland in the south, hike in Echternach in the north, and still get a great city atmosphere in the middle of Lux City. Going to Portugal felt like one great big adventure I got to go on with the best people (my class!) to meet some of the kindest people (literally everyone in Portugal). There’s a real culture of warmth and helpfulness, especially in the north region where Porto is located. During my MUDEC experience, I want to make those around me feel loved while we’re all having one of the best semesters of our lives- having more gorgeous hikes would also be great!
Anna Hafner
Hi there! My name is Anna Hafner, and I am a 20-year-old sophomore at Miami University. I am so happy to be studying abroad in Luxembourg this semester, and have had so many amazing experiences here so far. I love riding the train to the Chateau every morning and looking out the window to see such beautiful landscape with green pastures and colorful houses. In Portugal, the architectural views from so many different perspectives were different from anything I had seen before, and the people were all so friendly. I am looking forward to continuing to travel to places that challenge my perceptions and encourage me to escape my comfort zone...all while searching out some beautiful destinations!
Rachel Hopkins
Hello! I’m Rachel Hopkins and am a 20 year old sophomore statistics major at Miami University. I’m currently studying abroad in Luxembourg with the rest of these lovely folks. I’ve loved getting to meet so many people in the program from outside of my major and have loved getting to experience new cultures with them! Portugal in particular was amazing, we had the opportunity to listen to the the future aspirations of our peers in Portugal and I was blown away with some of the hard work and plans that I heard. The warm, sunny weather was definitely not to be complained about either!
Madeline Kaser
Hi! I’m Madeline Kaser, a 21 year old junior at Miami University! Like everyone else, I am spending my spring semester studying abroad in Luxembourg at Miami’s campus. So far, studying abroad has been the best experience of my life, filled with many new experiences and a ton of new friends. Since being in Luxembourg, I have had the opportunity to travel to new countries every single weekend! It has been so much fun exploring the world, one country at a time! For our class trip, we went to Portugal, and I can’t wait to go back!
Sarah Reymann
Hi there! My name is Sarah Reymann and I’m a 20 year old junior at Miami University! Just like everyone else, I’m currently studying abroad in Luxembourg! Honestly, classes are so much more fun when you get to take them in a castle. I’ve loved making a whole new group of friends here at the chateau and slowly exploring the world, this is a once in a lifetime opportunity I don’t want to waste! Our class trip to Portugal was incredible, we experienced so much culture, beauty, and food in five days and got the chance to interview locals about their lives. I can’t wait to return one day!
Jordan Gilligan
Hi I’m Jordan! I’m a 20-year-old Miami University sophomore studying psychology and journalism. I have absolutely loved my time here in Luxembourg so far. Not only have I had some amazing Luxembourgish dishes, but it’s been great getting to know my host family. Traveling to Porto, Portugal was a memorable experience. I learned so much about Portuguese culture and it’s the kind of place I can’t wait to go back to. Porto is so far the best city I have been to.
Will Thomas
Hi! My name is Will Thomas, and I am a Junior at Miami University. I am a Strategic Communications major with a double major in Professional Writing. I took a big step and am studying abroad in Luxembourg for my second semester, and I’m loving it so far. I have always loved to travel, and it feels great to be somewhere so central; it feels as if I can go anywhere in Europe from Luxembourg. Visiting Porto, Portugal was one of the most incredible and eye opening experiences of my life. The city is beautiful from any angle, and there is so much to do. If you ever get the chance to go to Porto, I would tell you one thing: Do it.
Rian Sondag
Hey! My name is Rian Sondag and I’m a sophomore studying theatre and arts entrepreneurship at Miami University. This semester I took a leap of faith and decided to study abroad in Luxembourg and have loved every second of it! Although barely noticeable on a map, the opportunities I’ve found here in Luxembourg are endless.I have traveled to more countries in the past month than I have in the past twenty years of my life. Portugal is definitely up there as one of my favorite countries I’ve been to. Most people end up going to Lisbon if they travel there, but don’t sleep on Porto!! The beaches are breathtaking and I still dream about the food, but in my opinion the must see Porto attraction is the Pixote Karaoke
Sophie Pavluk
Hi, I’m Sophie! I am a junior Strategic Communication and Fashion Corporate Business double major. I am from a small town on the Jersey Shore and study at Miami University in Ohio. This semester I am studying abroad in Differdange, Luxembourg. Studying abroad has always been something I had dreamed about doing and I am so lucky to finally be doing so. During my first six weeks here, visiting Porto, Portugal was easily my favorite experience. My journalism class and I had the opportunity to explore the amazing area and learn about Portuguese culture first hand from the natives that we interviewed. If you never have the chance to visit Portugal, at least you have the opportunity to read a blog written by twenty students who have!
Will Gorman
Hello! My name is Will Gorman, I’m 20 years old and I’m originally from Alexandria, VA. It probably won’t surprise you that I’m a student at Miami University currently studying abroad in Luxembourg. I’m a sophomore Journalism major with a second major in Creative Writing, and I plan to declare a French minor. Getting to visit Porto and Aveiro was incredible – I definitely appreciated being somewhere warmer than Luxembourg – and the people were so nice and gracious. While I hope to gain a better understanding of myself and the world around me while I’m abroad, the main goal is really just to visit all the cool places I’ve seen on The Amazing Race.
Clare Quinn
Hi! My name is Clare Quinn and I’m 20 years old. I am a sophomore Psychology Major with a Political Science and Marketing minor.
I have had an amazing time while being here and especially during our time in Portugal. From boat tours to wine tastings, I loved all of it. The copious amounts of sangria and wandering through the streets were some of my favorite memories. There are many things that I hope to learn from my experience here at MUDEC, but mostly I hope to learn about myself through the things I experience and also interact with others to learn about the commonalities between everyone. Lastly, I hope to gain lifelong friends and unforgettable memories.
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Annie Blair
Professor Blair has been teaching journalism at Miami University since 2004, including locations in Luxembourg, Italy and Costa Rica. She loves to engage students in telling cultural and environmental stories. Her interest in Portugal stems from organic farming reporting she has done there - with the occasional nata treat!.
Kelly Burns
Hey, I’m Kelly Burns, a 21-year-old journalism, marketing and Spanish student in my third year at Miami University (shocker). I’m from Algonquin, IL, and I’m currently abroad in Luxembourg (another shocker). By far my favorite thing about Luxembourg is the weird inspiration I’ve found here for my writing, but honestly, I liked Portugal way better. It was louder and more colorful and close to what I imagined it to be. While I’m here (Luxembourg) or in other countries in Europe, all I really want is to make enough memories and meet enough interesting people that I can look back and think “Yeah, that was pretty worthwhile.”
Caroline Eifert
Hi! I am Caroline Eifert, a 19-year-old, sophomore who studies at Miami University in Oxford, Ohio. Coming to study abroad in Luxembourg has been a great challenge for me, and continues to be a challenge on some days. That being said, I have thoroughly enjoyed making friends with those whom I never would have met in Oxford had I not studied abroad. Also, of course, I have loved seeing various different countries and cultures-- although traveling itself can be very stressful! My favorite thing about Portugal was the beautiful weather. My class and I were greeted by four full days of sun and warmth, which is the opposite of what we experience in Luxembourg. While abroad, I hope to become better at getting out of my comfort zone.
Caitlin Dunnett
Hello, everyone! My name is Caitlin Dunnett, and I am a junior Diplomacy and Global Politics Major with a French minor. As an Illinois-Ohio-Luxembourg resident, I am really enjoying the opportunity to travel and meet people from all different backgrounds. This semester has been an amazing opportunity to work on my French skills and navigate around Europe. While it isn’t always easy residing in a new culture, it’s always exciting! Portugal was incredibly sunny and full of warm-hearted people. The interviews we have conducted shed new light into Portugal’s emigration patterns and give the people who chose to stay or leave an important voice. Enjoy!