Trinity Magazine: Fall 2005

ICCAE Scholars

Meet more Trinity students who traveled abroad as part of the Intelligence Community Center of Academic Excellence program.

Tanjier Belton '06

Tanjier Belton studied French since junior high and traveled to Paris as an Intelligence Community Scholar. She thought that a study abroad experience in France would be the best of all possible ways to enhance her language skills, which will be invaluable in her future career. She eventually wants to attend law school, with the goal of working for the CIA.

Currently, her major is political science and she has been an active participant in campus life. She is a photographer for the Trinity Times and the Trinity College Democrats, and also speaks at events for Young People for the American Way, a non-partisan advocacy group.

“My trip to Paris, France, allowed me to gain the cultural experiences abroad that everyone deserves.”

Eileen Denny '07

Eileen Denny, a junior at Trinity, has a family from New England but spent many years in Indiana. She currently works for Campus Ministry and is a tutor with Upward Bound. She hopes to one day work in the field of human trafficking prevention and use her knowledge of Spanish and Hispanic culture to her advantage.

Denny soaked up the Spanish culture this summer in Granada, Spain. Having visited Nicaragua and studied Spanish in high school, she was able to practice her Spanish during her immersion experience. She appreciated the opportunity to expand her knowledge of Mexican and Latin American people and culture to include that of Spain. Currently pursuing a major in history, she has always had a keen interest in international affairs.

“Traveling to Spain affected my views on the rest of the world, and how others communicate with and view the United States.”

Johanna Herman '07

Johanna Herman took classes about East Asia at Trinity and found this area particularly interesting, so when the opportunity arose for her to study abroad, she chose China. She visited this summer, and was so excited to be going because it was somewhere completely new to her. This trip held great fascination for her, as she wants to work for the CIA when she graduates and to pursue area studies in East Asia.

Herman was impressed by the way the Chinese people live their lives and are trying to shape and modernize their country. It was a fulfilling experience that sparked her interest to learn more about China's politics and where it stands on the world stage.

“Going to China was amazing; it opened my eyes to a totally new culture and made me want to get involved even more in international affairs, especially with an increasingly important country such as China.”

Estefani Rondon '07

Estefani Rondon, a political science major with a minor in international affairs, studied in Brazil for three weeks this summer. She already speaks fluent Spanish and intends to specialize in Latin America. She wanted, however, to be exposed also to Portuguese-speaking Brazil, which has a totally different culture, language and political structure than the rest of Latin America. She visited Rio, Salvador and Ipanema, and her program included an intensive array of activities, readings and lectures.

Currently she works for the Foreign Agricultural Service in the Department of Agriculture, and has worked for Blue Cross Blue Shield, The Democratic Grassroots Action Institute Network, Senator Daschle, Congresswoman Stephanie Herseth, Congressman Ben Chandler, and Senator Kerry.

Law school is her post-graduation destination, and she plans to study international law, perhaps at the John F. Kennedy School of Government at Harvard. Her goal is to pursue a career in the intelligence field, either at the CIA or the DIA.

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