You can talk about the culture and the history and do the readings, but it is so much more powerful being there and experiencing the culture first-hand.
Traveling to the Azores was much more than an academic journey for Sophia Vitorino, ’26. It was an opportunity to connect with their family’s history.
Sophia’s grandparents immigrated from the Azores to the United States in 1971, but Sophia had never visited the Portuguese islands before enrolling in the Bridgewater State study tour.
“It was just amazing,” said Sophia, who is majoring in biology and minoring in chemistry, sustainability and Spanish. “I have been wanting to go to the Azores for a long time and it was never the right time. Through BSU, I was finally able to go.”
Sophia, who is from North Attleboro, was among 11 students who traveled with Professor Yulia Stakhnevich and administrator Greg DeMelo. Students immersed themselves in Azorean culture while visiting schools, sampling foods and exploring geological, agricultural, and religious sites in a region where cows outnumber people.
“You can talk about the culture and the history and do the readings, but it is so much more powerful being there and experiencing the culture first-hand,” said Dr. Stakhnevich, a professor of TESOL (teaching English to speakers of other languages).
The trip is part of BSU’s efforts to strengthen ties between Portugal and the university, which serves a region of Massachusetts with a large Portuguese population.
“Being of Portuguese descent, it has always been one of my hopes to connect the Azores and mainland Portugal to BSU through education,” said Dr. DeMelo, director of travel services and special projects.
Sophia’s grandparents left the Azores when it was under a dictatorship. Today, the chain of islands is part of Portugal but has political autonomy and is led by President José Manuel Bolieiro. The BSU contingent even had a lengthy conversation with the leader and toured his palace.
“Meeting the president was really fascinating,” said Sophia, who enjoyed sharing the journey with relatives. “My grandparents grew up poor and weren’t important figures. They were very impressed.”
Bolieiro told the students that they “are the main actors of tomorrow,” noting that “the future depends on young people, their energy and creativity.” Building connections to their ancestors’ land is an important way to preserve the Azorean cultural identity, he said.
The trip was also personal for Thalita Madeiros, ’25, a childhood studies major (with minors in marketing and integrated communications) from Tewksbury. Thalita’s great-great grandparents were from the Azores.
“I really wanted to learn where my family came from,” said Thalita, who was surprised by how peaceful and quiet the region was. “I think it’s really important to learn how they grew up in comparison to how I grew up.”
Each student kept a journal and wrote a paper about Azorean culture. Thalita wrote about the spelling of her last name, which she learned differs from the more common spelling “Medeiros” due to evolving pronunciations and cultural factors.
While Jagger Bryant, ’25, G’26, has no family ties to the Azores, the aspiring police officer wanted to explore a different culture and learn more about the ethnic backgrounds of those with whom he will interact on the job.
“It is important to understand where they came from and their background,” said the criminal justice major from Mashpee. “My goal going over there was to be a sponge and take in as much as I could.”
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