{"id":25958,"date":"2018-08-28T13:58:53","date_gmt":"2018-08-28T17:58:53","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/college.unc.edu\/?p=25958"},"modified":"2024-07-02T16:56:24","modified_gmt":"2024-07-02T16:56:24","slug":"india-and-malawi","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/collegearchive.unc.edu\/?p=25958","title":{"rendered":"Study Abroad Old and New: India and Malawi"},"content":{"rendered":"

One study abroad program celebrated its 20th<\/sup> anniversary this summer; another deployed its first students. Both were transformative for the Tar Heels who took part.<\/em><\/p>\n

\"Allie
Allie Day (left), standing in front of the Taj Mahal, participated in the 2018 UNC Summer in India program. (photo courtesy of Allie Day)<\/figcaption><\/figure>\n

Asian studies faculty members Afroz Taj and John Caldwell reached a major milestone this summer \u2014 celebrating two decades of taking UNC-Chapel Hill students on a study abroad experience to India.<\/p>\n

The UNC Summer in India program is one of the longest-running faculty-led programs offered to U.S. college students. Taj and Caldwell have led about 300 students through the program over 20 consecutive years.<\/p>\n

Taj first left his home country of India 37 years ago, but he says the experience of returning there with students never gets boring. Each year is fun and different.<\/p>\n

\"Professors
Professors John Caldwell (far left) and Afroz Taj (far right) have led the UNC Summer in India program for 20 years. (photo courtesy of Allie Day)<\/figcaption><\/figure>\n

\u201cWhenever I go, I see India as if I\u2019m seeing it for the first time. I don\u2019t get burned out because I take different people with me, and I see India through their eyes,\u201d he said. \u201cWhen I enter a temple with students, I see it as if it is new.\u201d<\/p>\n

The two colleagues first met in the mid-1980s while doing graduate work at the University of Michigan. Years later, they both came to UNC. In 1999, they took their first 14 students to India. They were looking for a way to create a meaningful immersion opportunity for students to practice the Hindi language.<\/p>\n

\u201cAs an educator, it\u2019s the most rewarding thing to watch students go through this life-changing experience,\u201d Caldwell said. Many of the students have never been outside the United States. \u201cStudents get a radical re-evaluation of what they\u2019ve been thinking about India.\u201d<\/p>\n

The course structure has evolved over the years. Fourteen students took three courses during this summer\u2019s six-week experience \u2014 \u201cContested Souls: Introduction to Indian Literature and Culture,\u201d \u201cJournalism and Society in India\u201d (a highlight is a visit to the BBC bureau in Delhi) and \u201cHindi Conversation and Script.\u201d The language course is designed to be accessible for beginners as well as challenging for more advanced learners.<\/p>\n

\u201cThis trip deepened my global experience immensely, more than I ever could have imagined. We didn\u2019t see a filtered India, and I think our entire group is really proud of that,\u201d said Alex Zietlow, a senior journalism and political science major. \u201cWe didn\u2019t see all of India, but what we saw, undoubtedly, was authentic \u2014 from the ashrams in Haridwar to the street markets in Aligarh to the Taj Mahal in Agra.\u201d<\/p>\n

Junior English major Madison Haynes participated in the program through a Phillips Ambassador scholarship. It was her first time leaving the country; she didn\u2019t even have a passport until a few months before the trip.<\/p>\n

\"Students
Students visited the BBC bureau in Delhi. (photo courtesy of Afroz Taj and John Caldwell)<\/figcaption><\/figure>\n

\u201cI now know more of Indian history, journalism and Hindi than I did before I went on the study abroad experience, from the perspective of simple knowledge acquisition,\u201d she said. \u201cHowever, on a deeper level, I began to appreciate the difference between knowing and understanding.<\/em> I could have taken those three classes back in Chapel Hill and gained the same knowledge, however I think through experience we understand better.\u201d<\/p>\n

Students spend about three weeks in New Delhi, the vibrant political and cultural capital of India, with multiple excursions, including an extended stay in Jaipur (the \u201cPink City.\u201d) They also participate in two-night homestays with Indian families.<\/p>\n

Allie Day, a junior psychology and sociology major, especially enjoyed the homestays: \u201cRadical hospitality was apparent in all of my interactions with Indian families.\u201d<\/p>\n

\u201cThe best experiences for me involved meeting strangers who quickly became friends,\u201d she added. \u201cMy classmate and I stayed with a husband and wife, and our \u2018auntie\u2019 took us in to make sure we were comfortable, well-fed and properly dressed. They also took us around their village, welcoming us into their house and showing us around the market.\u201d<\/p>\n

Even though Rohan Patel is of Indian descent and had visited Gujarat, India, when he was 6, he said this study abroad experience forced him to step outside his comfort zone \u2014 something the professors say is important.<\/p>\n

On each excursion, the students were required to engage strangers in Hindi conversation.<\/p>\n

\u201cMy upbringing in America made it a small challenge to talk to others on a whim,\u201d said Patel, a sophomore biology major who is pursuing minors in Hindi and neuroscience. \u201cBut I learned the value of taking risks in experiences abroad.\u201d<\/p>\n

Zietlow said the ultimate highlight was getting to know Taj and Caldwell not only as scholars, but as people.<\/p>\n

\u201cWe ate with them every day. We had conversations with them every day that ranged from random trivia about Indian fashion and Bollywood films to in-depth discussions about how gender equality\/human rights fit into deeply embedded Indian cultural realities like romance, religion and politics.\u201d<\/p>\n

\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0 ***<\/strong><\/h3>\n
\"Students
Students in the new UNC Summer in Malawi program visited UNC-Project-Malawi, a research, care and training program established by Carolina and the Malawi Ministry of Health in 1999. (photo courtesy of UNC Project-Malawi and Eunice Sahle)<\/figcaption><\/figure>\n

Senior political science major Aja Crayton calls her time in Malawi \u201cmagical.\u201d<\/p>\n

It was the first study abroad experience for Crayton, who is interested in careers in both medicine and politics.<\/p>\n

\"Professor
Professor Eunice Sahle (left), pictured with student Angum Check, has been doing research in Malawi for over 20 years. (photo courtesy of Angum Check)<\/figcaption><\/figure>\n

\u201cAcademically, personally and professionally, I learned something new every day,\u201d Crayton said. \u201cAmerican media often try to put all African countries in one box, as if they make up one big country, when in reality Africa is a continent filled with diverse, rich and breathtaking cultures and people.\u201d<\/p>\n

Thirteen students experienced the new six-week UNC Summer in Malawi program, led by Eunice Sahle, associate professor and chair of the department of African, African American and Diaspora Studies (AAAD). The program was split between Lilongwe and Zomba, with students taking courses in \u201cHuman Rights in Africa: Theories and Practices\u201d and a regional seminar, \u201cTransitions to Democratic Governance in Malawi and Other Parts of Southern Africa.\u201d<\/p>\n

While in Lilongwe, they were based at the Center for Human Rights and Rehabilitation (CHRR), one of Malawi\u2019s leading NGOs. In Zomba, they were hosted by the University of Malawi\u2019s Chancellor College. Students had internships and visited sites including Parliament and UNC Project-Malawi, a research, care and training program established by Carolina and the Malawi Ministry of Health in 1999.<\/p>\n

Crayton, who is pursuing a minor in African American and Diaspora Studies, had internships with UNC Project-Malawi and CHRR. At CHRR, she and other students worked on drafting ideas and writing a proposal for a \u201c50:50\u201d campaign aimed at increasing women\u2019s representation in politics as Malawians gear up for next year\u2019s general elections. The proposal was recently awarded a $100,000 grant.<\/p>\n

\u201cI saw what I\u2019d learned [in my coursework] shine through during the proposal writing,\u201d Crayton said. \u201cMy time there helped me become a better person and human rights activist through class discussion, firsthand experiences and being surrounded by people who truly want to and are making a difference in the world.\u201d<\/p>\n

Sahle has been doing research in Malawi for over 20 years. She said creating the new study abroad program was a collaborative process, and she had lots of help from UNC and Malawi partners. She received support from Bruce Cairns, director of the North Carolina Jaycee Burn Center, Bob Miles, former associate dean of study abroad, and colleagues at the University of Malawi\u2019s Chancellor College early on in the planning process. A key goal was to make the program affordable, and a number of campus entities contributed to that effort so that each student received financial help.<\/p>\n

\u201cWe have a very strong UNC footprint in terms of the health sciences in Malawi, but there was a gap in the social sciences and humanities,\u201d she said. \u201cWe wanted to complement what we are already doing in the country.\u201d<\/p>\n

\"Karly
Karly Smith interned at the Southern African AIDS Trust. (photo courtesy of Karly Smith)<\/figcaption><\/figure>\n

According to Sahle, this long relationship was very helpful during the students\u2019 time in Lilongwe and Zomba.<\/p>\n

\u201cThe opportunities that we had, such as internships for students and outstanding guest lectures in both seminars, would not have happened without that history,\u201d she said. \u201cThroughout our stay, we received tremendous support from UNC-Malawi Project\u2019s Country Director Innocent Mofolo and numerous Malawian intellectuals, policymakers and civil society leaders.\u201d<\/p>\n

Angum Check, a senior philosophy and American studies major, said her summer in Malawi transformed her intellectually. She interned at the Women\u2019s Legal Resources Centre.<\/p>\n

\u201cThe courses I took during this program were some of the most challenging yet refreshing courses I have ever taken in my life,\u201d said Check, who is also pursuing a minor in philosophy, politics and economics (PPE). \u201cThe entire experience transformed the way I view academia as a discipline that does not have to be separate from advocacy and activism. The trip taught us to be critical and analytical about our presumptions and the lenses by which we view the world.\u201d<\/p>\n

At the end of the experience, sophomore Karly Smith said she felt like a real scholar. She appreciated the intellectual leaders and human rights activists who served as guest speakers for the program.<\/p>\n

\u201cMeeting people like that really reminded me how much one person can impact things,\u201d said Smith, who is double majoring in sociology and AAAD with a minor in social and economic justice. She interned at the Southern African AIDS Trust. \u201cIt really impassioned me to continue to fight for justice even when I feel my voice is not being heard. \u2026 I am more confident in my ideas as an intellectual and how I can contribute to a conversation.\u201d<\/p>\n

Sahle said students were not the only ones who benefited from the trip \u2014 daily dialogues with Malawian colleagues enriched her teaching and research, too. She is also proud of the students\u2019 contributions during their internships.<\/p>\n

\u201cOne of my Malawian colleagues commented, \u2018Wow, the students are so engaged. They are asking very good questions,\u2019\u201d she said. \u201cThey were able to translate what they were learning in class, to make a difference and to flourish as scholars.\u201d<\/p>\n

By Kim Weaver Spurr \u201988<\/em><\/p>\n

View more photos of the India trip on Facebook.<\/strong><\/a><\/p>\n

View more photos of the Malawi trip on Facebook.<\/strong><\/a><\/p>\n

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 <\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"

One study abroad program celebrated its 20th anniversary this summer; another deployed its first students. 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