2014 Rutgers South Africa Initiative: Pre-Departure Introduction

As a member and co facilitator for the 12th Cohort of the South Africa Initiative, I am exceedingly thankful for the opportunity to travel within our diverse and dynamic group of professional, graduate & undergraduate level students from Rutgers University.
It has been one of my long standing objectives to travel to Africa with US college students, particularly students of Color. As a soon to be "crowned" Student Affairs professional, my unique aim it to expand the field to be more inclusive of international education related college student affairs. As a former student of anthropology and English teacher, I am most eager to create, improve, and document the avenues through which US students are able to connect with the African continent. To the point, I want US higher education institutions to heighten their emphasis on study abroad and provide quality service learning programs in Africa. Knowing from previous experience the beauty, joy, spiritual growth and mental/physical challenge that is intrinsic to traveling in Africa for the first time, especially for people of Color, I look forward to facilitating conversations surrounding the sensitive themes, such as race, identity, colorism, privilege, national identity, gender roles, human rights and more with the group. Each participant applied to be a part of the mind-expanding adventure in South Africa South for varying reasons. With academic backgrounds and interests in politics, education, mathematics, city planning, self-exploration and community activism, our conversations and collective energy will undoubtedly be growth-inspiring and powerful. Five Questions that I seek to answer by the end of the trip are: 1. What are the advantages and disadvantages of studying abroad in South Africa/Africa as an affiliate of a US higher Education institution- as opposed to an independent traveler? 2. How is my theory of African-American racial and US national identity development enhanced and reshaped as a result of co-facilitating discussions with the SAI group regarding perceptions of self and nation within the foreign/African context? Furthermore, how can I incorporate non-African- American (Latino & White) experiences into my research? 3. From the combination of what I have experienced in Korea , in the US, and learned from Dr. Jonathan Jansen’s writing (Knowledge in the Blood) regarding received knowledge, the importance placed on protecting cultural symbols and customs, and the general history of race relations in the South African school system, specifically the University of the Free State, I want to observe the impact of cross-cultural exchange, between South African and the USA (S.A. is the #1 study abroad location in Africa), and South Africa and Korea ( SA is only African nation recruited for English teachers by the Korean government EPIK program) within the university culture at UFS? 4. I am curious to learn about the socio-economic role that Asians (Chinese & Korean) play in South Africa from entrepreneurial, government contracted and social perspectives. 5. Lastly, I am curious to observe the differences between South Africa and West Africa as it relates to landscape, religious overtones, food, textiles, traditions and infrastructure. All this being said, I look forward to all the unknown occurrences that will shape the trip and expand my view of the Africa. * The group will travel primarily within Johannesburg, Pretoria, and Bloemfontein taking note of the status of the SA education system, NGOs that fill educational gaps, and I personally will be interning in the International Affairs Office of University of the Free State. Cheers to the next great Adventure!

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