Emily Mills travels to Israel

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Emily Mills (left) with fellow Centre College student

DANVILLE, KY (07/13/2010)(readMedia)--  Emily Mills of Hendersonville, a rising sophomore at Centre College, hadn't planned on traveling to Israel this summer. Instead, she was scheduled to take part in a trip to Israel during CentreTerm 2011, when Centre College students often take advantage of the College's unique three-week winter term to study abroad.

Mills's desire to travel to Israel was sparked by the two religion courses she has taken at Centre; both of which were taught by religion and history professor Dr. Tom McCollough.

"Religion is fascinating to me," Mills says. "The religion courses are ones I always look forward to, and I enjoy the discussions. When I heard Dr. McCollough was taking students to Israel, I immediately wanted to go. I'm Catholic, so obviously the Holy Land holds a great deal of religious significance for me. And how often do you have the opportunity to go to Israel?"

Mills says she was also inspired to travel to the country "to learn more about the land and the history of the people who call it home and fight for their right to live there. When Dr. McCollough asked me if I'd like to come along to visit the excavation site he's working on in Galilee this summer-rather than waiting to visit the country next January-I jumped at the chance."

Mills and McCollough spent three days in Jerusalem and four in the Galilee region, where they observed historical sites and studied archaeological techniques. "Dr. McCollough explained how excavation sites are found and cleaned, how artifacts are aged and the process one must go through to be able to 'dig' the site. We were also able to handle some artifacts from sites Dr. McCollough himself had excavated."

Though only one week long, the trip was "deeply educational," Mills says, "not only in archaeological ways but also in political and religious ways. It was amazing to see the way in which members of three major world religions interact and live together on a daily basis, each of them holding claim to a part of the land."

She adds that it was "sobering to see some of the devastating effects that terrorism and war have had on the city of Jerusalem. Speaking to both Israelis and Palestinians also afforded me a broader view of the underlying issues that run throughout their society."

Mills is the daughter of Kendrick and Vikki Mills of Hendersonville and is a graduate of Pope John Paul II High School. 

Founded in 1819, Centre is ranked by U.S. News and World Report among the country's top 50 national liberal arts colleges and is the most affordable college in that group. Centre is ranked by Consumers Digest as the No. 1 educational value among U.S. liberal arts colleges, and Forbes magazine ranks Centre No. 14 among all colleges and universities. In addition, Centre leads all colleges and universities in the percentage of alumni who give annual financial support.