Sarah Farley
  • Public Relations
  • Wayzata, MN

Wayzata Native, Sarah Farley, to Study in Italy with Marquette University's Digital Storytelling Program

2012 May 17

Sarah Farley, a Wayzata, Minn. native and sophomore at Marquette University, will study in Cagli, Italy this summer with Marquette's digital storytelling program. Farley is studying in the College of Communication at Marquette.

Marquette's digital storytelling program teaches students how to digitally create stories about their surroundings and use multimedia communication in an intercultural environment. Students also learn how to communicate in Italian, with language lessons, excursions and lectures about the Italian culture.

At the end of the month-long trip, students present web documentaries they have worked on since the beginning of the program to Marquette faculty and Cagli residents. Students utilize the storytelling techniques and knowledge of Italian culture they have learned throughout the course to complete their web documentaries.

"One of my most memorable experiences in Cagli occurred when the newly elected mayor of Cagli went out of his way to give his first video interview to one of our students. He later told me that the people in Cagli view Marquette's program as a significant addition to life in Cagli and its festivals. This came after we had a showing of our work to the people and political leaders on the night before we returned home," said Dr. William Thorn, program director and associate professor and chair of journalism at Marquette's College of Communication.

The Cagli program is worth six course credits and counts as credit for both intercultural communication and digital storytelling classes. The course consists of lectures led by Marquette faculty and open labs where students work independently. The program also includes various field exercises in digital storytelling such as story and script, and photo and video.