From left: Donovan Scott, Thomas Lynberg, Emma Ward, Brandon Pruitt and Associate Professor Jaclyn Michael sitting in front of the Taj Mahal. Photo courtesy of Dr. Jaclyn Michael.
A three-week study abroad trip to India gave four University of Tennessee at Chattanooga students the chance to experience the country’s rich culture, vast population and unique challenges firsthand.
Following the conclusion of the 2024-25 academic year, the students—led by Dr. Jaclyn Michael, associate professor of religion in the UTC Department of Philosophy and Religion—traveled across the country to iconic historical sites and landmarks while focusing on interacting with locals to experience their culture.
The students, Michael said, had taken philosophy and religion courses and were able to gain a better understanding of what they learned.
“The purpose of the trip is to extend their learning in the class and to gain in-country experience,” she said, “and learn about new aspects of the countries, cultures, religions, economies and politics that maybe we didn’t have a chance to do in class.”
Michael has spent a large portion of her life visiting India and mentioned that “it can be an overwhelming experience.”
“You’re having a full sensory overload,” she explained. “India has one of the world’s largest populations. It’s very crowded. I’ve been coming to India for 15 years now on a yearly basis, but still, it’s super different when you’re confronted with the heat. The sheer number of people is something that is really, really challenging to how you experience the space.”
In addition to the cultural shock, Michael and the students were flying into the country while India and Pakistan were in an active military conflict.
“That was a wake-up call for a lot of the students because often in the United States we don’t have to think about those kinds of things,” she said.
During a day trip at an NGO that works on sustainable farming, the UTC group had an impromptu conversation with about 25 local farmers. Photo courtesy of Dr. Jaclyn Michael.
Knoxville, Tennessee, native Thomas Lynberg, majoring in philosophy and religion with a focus on pre-law and a minor in environmental studies, explained that he didn’t want a normal study abroad experience.
He got his wish when only 20 to 30 people were on the commercial flight to India.
“I was so nervous,” Lynberg said. “I’m going to be insanely cramped in this airplane. I’m going to hate the 16 hours of flight time. I got on there and I’ve got my own row and thought this can’t be that bad.”
Lynberg wanted a different experience and said he found it in India.
“I wouldn’t get that much of a different experience if I went to Europe,” he explained. “I went to India. The experience was delightful. It was wonderful. I managed to learn a lot of new things—partially a new language, which was very hard.”
The trip was split into two parts, Michael said. The first part was based around learning the culture, history and society of India. The second part was more interactive, where the group interacted with different constituencies.
She compared Delhi to another famous city steeped in history, Rome. She said it’s a place where “everywhere someone turns, there is a historical monument.”
Lynberg said he was fascinated by the religious customs and rituals.
“We visited loads of historical sites, 14th-century monuments, temples, shrines and tombs,” he said. “We got to see the Taj Mahal. We got to meet a lot of great people. They showed us many great things. We were immersed in the culture, not only in the popular sites. We got to see street shrines. We got to use their modes of transportation.
“We had the opportunity to go to rituals, spiritual connections, almost like Sunday at a church here in the United States. We got to go to their church and their prayers, which was a really great experience.”
Lynberg described the Taj Mahal as breathtaking and an experience he’ll never forget.
While in Delhi, Michael took students to two different universities to witness the differences in class and resources available to them.
She also introduced them to a local non-governmental organization (NGO).
“This NGO works on water sustainability and harvesting because the area is semi-arid; it’s like a desert,” Michael said. “The students actually went to some of the field sites to see how that NGO works on harvesting water and keeping it safe. We had an impromptu meeting with about 25 farmers who work with that same NGO.”
Lynberg was impressed with their agricultural infrastructure and the differences in how they grow crops. Instead of massive one-crop farms, they had a variety of crops growing at a time.
“They said, ‘Let me show you what I grow. I want you to try it. Let me get you some milk from our cow and then we’ll get our tour started,’” he explained. “It was awesome. They were insanely welcoming. They treated us like their home was our home.”
Michael hoped that these experiences would make a lasting impact on her students.
“It’s super important for my students to recognize the commonalities that they share with Indians and Asians through the common humanity that we share,” she said. “It is not like what happens there doesn’t impact us.”
Lynberg echoed Michael’s sentiment.
“With all of their differences from me and from the United States, they’re still open and welcoming,” he said. “It’s heartwarming and all of these things, it’s definitely one of the largest gifts.”
He also recommended that students seeking a different experience find this trip ideal.
“If you want to branch out and get out there and not do something normal, it’s definitely for you,” he said. “You’ve got to see how they lived every day, day to day, and it was nothing like us. Every problem we have, they don’t have. It has a specific beauty that we don’t have, and I feel like every country does.
“For a first experience, it’s insane. It is life-changing to know how I live, the privilege that I have to be where I am in life.”
Michael explained that these trips are what UTC students can do to experience other cultures.
“UTC aspires to be and is a part of the global conversation of learning,” she said. “I have been told many times about the emphasis that the administration wants to place on internationalizing the curriculum. This is a way to do it.
“It’s not something that’s just geographically over there and not a part of my life here in Chattanooga, not a part of my life at UTC. We’re much more connected than we think that we are.”
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The UTC group—Donovan Scott, left, Dr. Jaclyn Michael, Brandon Pruitt, Emma Ward and Thomas Lynberg—stands in front of the Red Fort in the Old Delhi area of Delhi, India. Photo courtesy of Dr. Jaclyn Michael.
