Have you ever noticed the British telephone box in front of the International Center?
It’s hard to miss. So, what is a piece of England doing in the middle of a campus that sits 4,500 miles west of Britain?
The answer goes back decades and is tied to the University of Southern Mississippi’s British Studies Program through the Office of Study Abroad.
The box was shipped from England in 1990 as a symbol of the program.
“It actually got shipped over here from England, so it is a true English telephone box, which is pretty cool,” said Jessica Bunales, assistant director of the Office of Study Abroad.
At USM, the telephone box was originally displayed at the old English Language Institute building, which stood next to McCain Library. When the building was demolished, the phone box was placed in storage and faded from view.
Years later, it was rediscovered and restored.
“It was rediscovered, at some point, over at the Physical Plant. And we set off on a mission to have it restored because it definitely needed it,” Bunales said. “So it was restored to its former glory. And we had it put out in display back in 2019.”
The box now stands permanently outside the International Center.
The British Studies Program itself is the longest-running study abroad program at Southern Miss. Over the years, it has taken hundreds of students to the United Kingdom to experience British culture firsthand.
While the telephone box originally came to campus through the British Studies Program, Bunales said it now represents something broader for the university’s international programs.
“Our mission in our office is to make sure students, faculty, staff and people get opportunities for these types of experiences to go overseas in some capacity and learn from other people and other cultures,” she said. “I think that’s important today, and I think that is some representation of that.”
The box is also there to remind students of the study abroad program.
“I hope it’s at least a reminder that they have the opportunity to study abroad while they’re here at Southern Miss,” Bunales said.
Today, the Office of Study Abroad offers programs in destinations across the world, from Spain and Austria to Japan.
“This summer, we’ve got a new program that is about energy and natural resources, going to Africa,” Bunales said. “We have our business and culture program in Japan.”
