BETH SPENCER HELPS STUDENTS FIND ANOTHER MINUTE WITH MAGIC

Beth Spencer leads a group of 20 undergraduates from the University of Mississippi off a bus, up a steep hill and to a small stone circle. Passing sheep and fields that roll out into the distance, she hikes ahead of the group, encouraging her students to keep moving through the chill of early March in northern England.

For seven years, Spencer has led the Fantasy Fiction in the UK program that allows students to stay in Alnwick castle in Northumberland. They also get a chance to go on excursions to other places such as London, Edinburgh, Oxford and other sites in northern England. The course focuses on authors like C.S. Lewis, J.K. Rowling, J. R. R. Tolkien and others.

“Some of these books were the background to one’s childhood,” Spencer said. “I want students to have another minute with that before they move out into the world. A minute to say it’s still there, it’s still in you, the magic is still working in you. You can take that magic wherever your career or calling will take you. I think we all deserve that.”

Spencer said that on one of her trips she had a student that was a medieval studies major. She said that one of the most memorable moments was when they were able to go to the British Library.

At the British Public Library, they had a first edition of Beowulf. Upon seeing the first edition of Beowulf, Spencer said that the student started sobbing. She said that watching her student’s emotional connection to different pieces of work has made an impact on her.

She said that it is incredible to watch students get in touch with something that speaks to who they are.

“This trip made me think about the fact that there is an inspiration for everything,” Junior Abby Miller said. “All of these authors, poets and writers had inspirations and while you were there you could follow along and imagine their creative thought process.”

The course Literature on Location also emphasizes a connection between the environment and the readings for class.

Alnwick castle, where student’s stayed, was the site for some fo the Harry Potter filming for the quidditch scene in Harry Potter and the Sorcerer’s Stone. In addition, students had tea at the Balmoral hotel where J.K. Rowling finished writing the last Harry Potter book. They also went through Oxford to see the places that inspired Tolkien and Lewis.

“I really enjoyed being at Hadrian’s Wall,” Miller said.”I like being in a place and imagining all the people that were there before me, people that walked in the same steps I did. I think its fun to image what it was like and the people that would journey and what it looked like to them.”

In the Lake District, the class stood huddled together in the sleet listening to Wordsworth’s poem “To The Daisy,” at the site that inspired its creation.

“I think Beth makes the trip more magical because of her energetic nature and her love for the country of England as well as her knowledge of the history and people there,” Junior Shrader Griffith said. “She was always excited which made us excited, even really early in the morning.”

Spencer has lead the program for seven years and she still gets excited for each trip.

“This go round I just throughly enjoyed with the number of students that I had,” Spencer said. “It’s the expressions that you all don’t see on your faces. Each time I go I get a deeper appreciation.”

At the origin of this program, the study abroad director back in 2011 approached Spencer about leading this trip.

“I said ‘what’s your vision,’ and she said ‘oh make it up,’ and that is where it started,” Spencer said.

Spencer said that the program has changed over the years.

When the program started, Spencer said that most students did not have cell phones and the trip has changed since now nearly every student has a phone. She said that it has become a more collaborative experience now that students have cell phones.

She said that now students can search for things that they want to do and deals that are available. For example, she said that if students are able to find discount tickets for shows in London, she is always excited to find a new opportunity.