Ceiling Unlimited! Spring 2026 Newsletter of FSC’s Study Abroad Office - Welcome message and Summer 2026 study abroad opportunities

Oct 3, 2026

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Spring 2026 newsletter from FSC’s Study Abroad Office featuring an introduction from Study Abroad Manager Eric C. De Sena. The message reflects on two transformative years of archaeological study abroad in Italy and Romania research leadership, then shifts to helping students take their first leap overseas. It highlights student outcomes, locations visited, and expands summer 2026 offerings with faculty-led programs across thirteen countries on three continents, including business, engineering, nursing, and liberal arts options with course codes and destinations.

LanguageEnglish

CategoryLifestyle

FormatPDF

Pages19

Reading Time29 min

AccessFree to download

Greetings from the Study Abroad Office

Personal background and impact on students

Study abroad growth and destinations

Summer 2026 Study Abroad Opportunities

Faculty-led programs by discipline and country

Ceiling Unlimited! Spring 2026 Newsletter of FSC’s Study Abroad Office Greetings from the Study Abroad Office When I was a Freshman at the University of Albany (SUNY), I was one of about ten students majoring in Mediterranean Archaeology, an innovative program that merged Classical Studies and Anthropology. One of my professors, who was part of an archaeological team investigating an Etruscan town in Tuscany, opened an invitation to join the project in the summer. You don’t hesitate when fate cracks the door open like that, so a friend of mine and I jumped at the opportunity. Those six weeks in Italy transformed my life. I knew that I would become an archaeologist and that I would explore the world as much as time and money permitted. In my Senior year I decided that, rather than go straight to graduate school, I’d spend a whole academic year studying atthe University of Rome. By that time my Italian language skills were good enough forme to take archaeology classes alongside Italian students. It was a challenge, but I passed the classes and even got a perfect 30/30 in one of them. On top of that, I worked on an excavation on the Palatine Hill, where we uncovered the foundations of a hut dating to the time of Romulus. I literally revealed Rome’s origin story with my trowel! Those experiences didn’t just give me stories to tell over drinks. They changed the trajectory of my life. Both study abroad experiences set me apart from other people when it came time to apply to graduate school and, eventually, find a job. And I met so many fantastic people, some of whom are still good friends after all these years. While working on my PhD, I moved to Italy, since that is where my research was based. I had the great fortune of remaining there for 15 years, working for the American Academy in Rome and teaching for several study abroad campuses. Eventually, I was hired full time at John Cabot University where I served as Dept. Chair of Art History and Studio Arts. I am proud to say that is still one of the strongest departments at JCU and is a testimony that we still need the Arts and Humanities in Higher Education. But that is another story… Year after year, I witnessed the metamorphosis of hundreds of students from the USA. They all arrived to Rome wideeyed and naïve with fresh haircuts and clean clothes, as I had years prior. By the end of their semester abroad, clothes worn to rags, they were more worldly, knowledgeable, and confident. Italy was not the only place I came to know and love. In 2003, I was invited by a Romanian archaeologist to co-direct a project he was managing. Porolissum was a Roman city with a fortress located one mile from what was the border of the Roman Empire. How could I refuse? Between 2004 and 2011, we led seven summer seasons of the Porolissum Forum Project. I created afield school, like the one in Tuscany I had joined when I was 19, and over the years nearly 100 students participated. My explorations and interest in Southeastern Europe led me to direct the American Research Center in Sofia (Bulgaria) for a three-year term. Each year, we hosted a small group of graduate students from the USA and Southeastern Europe. We led them on excursions in Bulgaria, North Macedonia, Serbia, Greece, and Turkey. We financed several major cultural heritage projects and developed our own publication series. Eventually, I returned to research and teaching, but what I really wanted was to help students take that first leap abroad. I was very fortunate in the summer of 2024 to begin working at Farmingdale State College. In the last 18 months, I have met more than 300 students who are eager to study overseas. Fifty studied abroad during my first year here (Australia, Cyprus, England, France, Greece, Italy, Japan, Madagascar, Scotland, and Taiwan) . So far, in the 2025-26 academic year, FSC students have been to Australia, Brazil, Cyprus, Egypt, England, Greece, Italy, Portugal, and Spain. And in summer 2026

FAQs

How can students learn more or ask questions about studying abroad?

Contact the Study Abroad Office using the provided email address in the newsletter.

Oct 3, 2026

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