Hi everyone!  My name is Sarah Maurer and I am a sophomore in ACE with a concentration in Agricultural Accounting.  Being in ACE has taken me international two times in the past year.  I was first encouraged by my advisor, Ann Finnegan, to travel internationally with the discovery course, ACES 298, after she realized my passion for traveling.  ACES 298 is an 8 week course available to first semester freshman, which travels to the Dominican Republic for 10 days over winter break!  This was such an incredible experience for me!  Not only was I able to see different kinds of agricultural production practices in the DR, but I was also able to get to know a few of the other freshman in ACES really well!  Going on that discovery trip sparked my interest of studying abroad early on.  After talking with the ACES study abroad advisor, Meredith Blumthal, I decided to apply for an 8 week program during the summer in France.  This program consisted of 4 weeks at a university in Toulouse and 4 weeks interning on a vineyard and living with a host family!  I truly believe this is one of the best experiences I will have in my life!  I learned so much about French culture and lifestyle that would not have been possible through any other study abroad program.  I would not take back either of these experiences that I got through the College of ACES and my advisor in ACE.