The El Camino de Santiago walkers
Colgate faculty members will join together to walk the Camino de Santiago, the route to the shrine of the apostle St. James who is said to be buried in the Cathedral of Santiago de Compostela in Spain.
The interdisciplinary experience is made possible through the Kallgren Fund, an endowed fund created to support faculty members at Colgate.
Taking the trip are Elizabeth Marlowe, assistant professor of art and art history; Mark Shiner, university chaplain; Alan Cooper, associate professor of history; Antonio Barrera, associate professor of history and Africana & Latin American Studies; Pilar Mejia, senior lecturer in Spanish; Abby Rowe, director of outdoor education; and Doug Hicks, provost and dean of the faculty.
The walkers began training in the fall, and left today (May 19) to start their journey.
They will be exploring ways to incorporate the Camino into coursework for students.
“From our respective and varied backgrounds, we have valued this opportunity to build a faculty community around shared interests in the Camino,” said Hicks. “We’ll have plenty of time on the trail to share and debate ideas!”
Along with the lively debate, they will be photographing and archiving the event during the 18-day trip.
The group will walk two segments of approximately 100 miles each along the Santiago pilgrimage route, one segment in France and one in Spain. They anticipate allowing seven days for each segment (walking an average of 15 miles per day.) The two-segment approach has the advantages of potentially doubling the curricular reach of the trip, and of honoring the international spirit of the pilgrimage.
The walkers will be outfitted with cameras, and a special GPS unit that will continuously track their journey. They also will provide updates from the walk at news.colgate.edu.