On Wednesday, March 21 the 2012 International Awards Ceremony was held where Richard Bellon won an Award for Outstanding Service to MSU Study Abroad.

Richard D. Bellon is an assistant professor of history, philosophy and sociology of science in Lyman Briggs College at Michigan State University. Soon after joining the faculty in 2004, Bellon set out to develop an innovated study abroad program that would eventually become a model for Lyman Briggs’ programming for more than a decade.

The program, titled “History of Science in Europe” first ran in the summer of 2006 and was designed to focus on science, industrialism and the empire of 19th century England. Bellon also planned to have students spend all of their time out of the classroom, going to historically significant places for lectures and discussions on location. This out-of-classroom teaching  has allowed students to explore history and science first-hand.

Thanks to Bellon’s unique program design other Lyman Briggs faculty members have been able to be involved in the program. The program proceeds on a three-year rotation, with different staff members taking students to different European countries to focus on different science-related subject areas. Additionally the rotation from year to year provides variation and multiple, rich opportunities for students to gain from the study abroad experience.

Today Lyman Briggs offers study abroad courses in London, Paris, Germany and Italy, with different faculty teams taking the lead in each country based on Bellon’s model. His use of creative, experiential and team-based teaching methods during the course have had a tremendous and lasting impact on faculty and students alike.

Richard D. Bellon has impacted both domestic and international students across campus and the world, promoting understanding and broadening intellectual and scientific perspective, making him an excellent choice for the MSU Award for Outstanding Service to Study Abroad.