From: Phil deHaan (dehp@calvin.edu)
Date: Mon Dec 09 2002 - 11:37:42 EST
December 9, 2002 == FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE
A semester-long partnership between Calvin College students and World War II
veterans will come to a conclusion on Friday, December 13 when the college hosts
a party for the vets.
That event, to be held in the Willow Room of the school's new Prince Conference
Center (beginning at 11 am) will see each Calvin student present his or her
veteran with that veteran's personal history, based on interviews the students
have been conducting all semester.
About 40 students and 30 veterans will attend, plus other members of the Calvin
community.
The students are members of English 101 classes at Calvin taught by professors
Jennifer Holberg and Chip Pollard. And during this fall semester they have been
conducting interviews and videotaping them for permanent archiving at the
Library of Congress.
Holberg hatched the idea this summer after reading about the Veterans History
Project at the Library of Congress, an attempt to get oral histories from vets.
World War II vets often have been hesitant to talk about what they did for their
country, but as they age their thoughts return more and more to their
experiences as soldiers. And so Holberg, Pollard and their students gave those
old soldiers and sailors a chance to talk.
The Calvin students interviewed the veterans several times and videotaped each
encounter. They also were assigned to write papers based on the interviews. Both
the papers and the videos will be on file and available to others at the Library
of Congress.
Students found the experience added excitement to what could otherwise be a
pretty standard intro English class. They interviewed soldiers who were on the
beaches of Normandy on D-Day, blew up bridges over the River Kwai and had their
boat sunk by Japanese pilots. Students also like the idea that their work will
be available to others. But it adds a little pressure, knowing that more people
than just the professor eventually will read their work!
For more information contact Jennifer Holberg at 957-6598 or Chip Pollard at
957-6466
-end-
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