Global Eyes celebrates milestone: 25 years of scholar images exhibiting research overseas experiences

Saint Michael’s College locations an emphasis on world engagement and worldwide training, encouraging college students to participate in experiences each on campus and overseas. 

Studying overseas has been an choice to college students for many years, permitting them to broaden their studying in a brand new nation by lessons, internships, service, and different experiences. However, it’s not at all times simple for returning college students to share how their experiences affected them.

The Global Eyes Photography Competition at St. Mike’s has served as that outlet – permitting college students to indicate, not simply inform, tales about their journeys overseas. In April, the competition celebrated its twenty fifth anniversary.

“Jesus Alatorre Avina” by Olivia Miller-Johnson, winner of the “People and the Human Spirit” class within the 2026 Global Eyes images contest. The picture was taken throughout Miller-Johnson’s travels in Maricopa County, Arizona, and Mexico.

Looking again

The images competitors was began by Kelly Cullins, former Director of Study Abroad, and Professors Jon Hyde and Kimberly Sultze within the Digital Media and Communications division, previously Media Studies, Journalism, and Digital Arts.

“Professor Hyde and I were really interested in promoting study abroad,” Sultze stated. “To me, it’s one of the best things a student can do at St. Mike’s. To go abroad and get the cross-cultural experience that shifts you out of a lot of things you assumed were universal here in the U.S.”

They took time to think about classes and judging standards, and have been supported and inspired by Mark vanderHeyden, who was President of the faculty at the moment.

“It was about promoting those experiences for students, and giving them an additional forum to share stories of what they did, the courses they took, and what they learned about the culture while they were abroad,” Sultze stated.

At its core, the competitors has remained the identical, however there have been notable shifts in research overseas and scholar work, Peggy Imai, the present Director of Study Abroad, stated.

“In the beginning, there were very few students who went abroad in the summer,” Imai stated.
“Now, it’s the opposite; our summer numbers have gone up.”

“Morning Stroll” by Erin Boyd, 2026 winner of the “Culture Most Distinct from SMC” class of Global Eyes. The picture was taken throughout Boyd’s travels in Hà Giang Province, Vietnam.

Evolving choices

There are many various paths college students can take when discovering a research overseas program lately, whether or not it’s a full semester in a selected nation, a summer time internship, or a 2-week faculty-led journey. 

In the summer time, college students who meet the standards can select to finish a French or Spanish internship program in France or Spain, respectively, which is sort of solely paid for by the Institute for Global Engagement. 

Another summer time choice is an internship in both Ho Chi Minh City, Vietnam, or Seoul, South Korea, absolutely funded by the Freeman Foundation. 

These cost-efficient choices, which additionally enable for work expertise, have develop into well-liked lately. 

Sophie Burt ’26, a Digital Media and Communications main, is without doubt one of the college students who accomplished a summer time internship in Paris, France, and subsequently took half in Global Eyes. 

“When selecting images for Global Eyes, I wanted to choose those that would not only have visual impact but also tell a story of my journey of self-growth,” Burt stated. “To live alone and navigate a foreign country where I barely spoke the language was incredibly life-changing, and my photographs were a small sliver of that” 

Imai shared that extra individuals who research overseas have the power to take pictures now, particularly as expertise has advanced. Some contributors, like Burt, research and have an curiosity in images, however that’s not a requirement for the competitors.

“You have more people taking photos because now, we have phones,” Imai stated. “You’re not having to lug around huge cameras.”

“Paris Painter Painting Paris” by Sophie Burt, winner of the “People’s Choice Award” for Global Eyes in 2025.

While not all of those submissions will likely be professional-level pictures, the competition nonetheless offers extra college students the chance to share their expertise.

“As time has gone on, more and more students are taking time with the description, and the quality of the photo may not be prize-winning, but the judges wanted to acknowledge that the written descriptions were quite impressive,” Imai stated. “There’s now a category of best written description that was not in place in the very beginning.”

The locations college students go and the expertise might have modified, however what hasn’t is the community-building Global Eyes permits for. 

“Judges in the early days got the printed binder; now you can have that, or there’s a digital display of the images and the captions,” Sultze stated. “Each of us ranks photos in the category, and then the points get tallied up. There is a dinner meeting where we go through the results and work out any tie breaks, and talk about the photograph. It’s a really amazing time.”

Judges come from totally different backgrounds and departments, together with professors of Digital Media and Communications, Sociology and Anthropology, and Art and Design. 

“The best part for me over the years has been the social interactions with faculty in the judges meeting,” Sultze stated. “Talking about the photographs, the captions, and students’ experiences. Also, at the ceremony, the social interactions with students.”

Celebrating 25 years

On Thursday, April ninth, the twenty fifth Global Eyes awards ceremony and reception have been held within the Dailey Room in Durick Library. Former Study Abroad Director Cullins, her husband, and lots of members of the St. Mike’s group attended to indicate assist for scholar contributors and to listen to their experiences from touring overseas.

“We had the former president of St. Mike’s, Mark vanderHeyden, and his wife, Dana, there,” Sultze stated. “They were always great supporters of both the visual arts and cross-cultural experiences and international education. It was quite fitting. VanderHeyden was the president when we started this 25 years ago, and Dana was one of the judges from the very beginning.”

“Illumination” by Liam Simard, taken throughout his expertise overseas in London, England. The {photograph} gained a number of awards throughout the 2026 Global Eyes contest, together with first prize within the class “City Life,” the Kroger-Krikstone Best of Show Award, and the People’s Choice Award.

Burt, who gained the People’s Choice Award in 2025, felt honored to have had {a photograph} that impacted her friends.

“I wanted to bring back and share just a fraction of what I experienced,” Burt stated. “To know that my peers saw my love for the city and my newfound confidence through my photograph was one of the biggest joys.”

This, Imai stated, can encourage different college students to go overseas.

“When you see the photos and read the descriptions, you understand that these students have had sometimes life-changing experiences, certainly a broadening of what international means,” Imai stated. 

The twenty fifth anniversary was a celebration of all issues St. Mike’s: the group, scholar work, and broadening views.

“25 years of anything is a good thing,” Imai stated. “Students who are here now weren’t even born yet when the exhibit began. We considered it a milestone. When you look at the thousands of photos that have been submitted to the contest over the years, it’s impressive for a little place like this.”

View this yr’s Global Eyes winners right here.