Words cannot express how impactful this program was to me. It was an incredibly moving experience that helped to enhance my understanding of Jewish life in Krakow during the interwar period and WWII.

Travelling to Poland had been something I wanted to do for a very long time, and getting to visit Krakow and the historic sites nearby, including the site of the former Krakow Ghetto and Auschwitz-Birkenau in Oświęcim, which is about an hour outside of Krakow, was an unforgettable experience and it helped to greatly enhance my understanding of this topic. Programs such as this one that explore modern history and relate it to contemporary issues and in particular this program, which focuses on the Holocaust, are incredibly important and vital in today's world, especially with the increasing spread of misinformation and Holocaust denial. After getting to visit Auschwitz and the sites of other Nazi war crimes, I think that visiting one is something that every human should do. It is incredibly moving and really implants the fact that these atrocities really happened in your head better than any picture, movie, or book can.

Getting to study abroad was an amazing experience and is something that I think everyone should try and do during their time at college.

• Name: Marguerite “Maggie” deReyna
• Status: Junior
• Major: Social Relations and Policy
• Hometown: Northville, Michigan
• Program: The Jews of Poland, 1917-1945