Tamara Williams, executive director of the Wang Center for Global Education, discusses PLU’s holistic approach to global education and its role in an increasingly interconnected world amid conflict and uncertainty.

An undocumented PLU student shares her experience going back to Mexico — for the first time since her family relocated to the United States — as part of the Oaxaca Gateway program. She opens up about her identity struggle and the valuable lessons learned abroad.

Locals embrace Lutes as they meet living legends, learn about vibrant events such as Carnival and Panorama, and develop valuable racial consciousness within a multicultural society that celebrates difference.

PLU maintains an open door with a world superpower, empowering students to learn about politics and culture off the beaten path in a distinct region of the country.

Immersive experience in classrooms on the other side of the world teach PLU students how to learn on the fly, one of many skills they bring home with them. Two of those Lutes, who credit Windhoek with their vocational paths, say the experience is also responsible for their marriage.

Globally, Pacific Lutheran University alumni come face to face with the international conflicts that are defining the modern era. Some by accident, others by choice. Two Lutes share their firsthand experience from two different places in the Middle East.

For two decades, the Makah people have welcomed PLU students to Neah Bay to learn about the tribe’s culture and history. Read about the introductory anthropology class and how the relationship fostered by a longtime professor has tribal members saying “welcome back” each year.

Yannet Urgessa ’16 has lived on three continents and speaks five languages. But it took coming to PLU for her to feel comfortable in her own skin for the first time. Learn how she’s helping other international students at PLU adjust to life away from home.

Study away programs don’t just take students to countries around the world. Some Lutes stay right in PLU’s backyard. This semester, five PLU students are living in the Hilltop neighborhood of Tacoma, as part of a new semester program.

Two of PLU’s most important Gateway programs — Telemark and Oslo — connect PLU to its roots while also teaching students about contemporary Norway.