Assignment 2 Informative Writing Assignment

Greyson Jones

MCOM 2320

October 4, 2019

Texas Tech University goes to Belize

(LUBBOCK, Texas) – Once again the Texas Tech University’s Field School in Maya Archaeology Study Abroad program is gearing up for an excursion into Belize, and the Mayan ruins in that country. As before this expedition begins in May.

For 12 years Professor Brett A. Houk, program director of the Department of Sociology, Anthropology, and Social Work, has led excursions to the Mayan cities of Belize for over ten years. With the last seven being held at the Chan Chin ruins with a select group of students.  The program director, Professor Brett A. Houk, has directed 16 summer field schools with 25 years of experience in Belize.

These expeditions provide students with the rare opportunity for field experience in the  Chan Chich Archaeological Project (CCAP), and will learn field and laboratory methods for archeology. Students will learn about archeology and research in the field.

Speaking with Mason Jones, a geography major from Austin and current TA who has experienced this trip to Belize, he had many things to say about the time he spent there. “I went as an instructor for a course in GIS tech for the University of Belize at the capital of Belmopan. I was teaching a class on  Openstreetmap a crowdsource mapping software useful in natural disasters, since people can update it on the spot”.

He says that one of his favorite memories of the trip, had to be the cave systems of Actun Tunichil Muknal. Housing sculptures, and ancient skeletons from the Mayan people. Jones also talked about the Mayan chocolate maker and his family that he had met.

 He talked at length about how cocoa pods taste like citrus and bananas, which he thought surprising. He learned from the chocolatier that the ancient Mayans had mixed chillies with cocoa to make a spicy hot chocolate drink.

The FSMA study abroad program only takes in a select few students each year. These students must have completed a year of course work and have above a 2.5 GPA. These students must pay certain fees as well as fill out the proper paperwork, and have passports.

This was a bit of a humbling assignment. I was tricked up by AP style several times. I think what I learned most was just how unique AP style is, and how without even realizing it I can tell if a story is a news story from just how it is formatted. I also think I need to work a bit more on the inverted pyramid and what information is important.