May 18, 2015 - A group of students from King’s College will participate in a three-week study abroad experience to Uganda, East Africa. The program includes stays in Entebbe, Jinja, Fort Portal, Masindi, and Kampala.
King’s College students participating in the program are Serigne Fall, Jennifer Jean-Jacques, and Laura Ortiz. In addition, Mairead Rose Tuttle from Mount Holyoke College in Massachusetts, and Brenda McCleary, a retired teacher from Philadelphia, will join the group from King’s.
The program, titled “Educating Hearts and Minds in Uganda,” features a number of activities, including a seminar with faculty and students at Kisubi Brothers University College in Entebbe, projects with students at Holy Cross Lakeview Senior Secondary School and Holy Cross primary schools in Jinja; a tour of a tea plantation and processing cooperative with King's alumnus Joseph Rwabuhinga near Fort Portal, a visit to the Sisters of the Holy Cross sponsored Kyembogo Holy Cross Health Centre in Kirinda, interactions with staff and clients of non-governmental organizations focused on school construction, access to water and sanitation, and women's empowerment through writing, as well as encounters with wildlife and environmental resources at Mabira Reserve, Ziwa Rhino Sanctuary, and Murchison Falls National Park.
This program is designed to broaden students’ cultural perspectives; recognize the benefits and costs of investing in education, eco-tourism, and access to water and sanitation; educate the group on global dynamics in terms of the political and economic life in Uganda; and recognize the impact of the Holy Cross community on Ugandan education, health care, and religious life.
In addition, the King’s College community donated more than 700 school supplies and over $1,200 in funds which will be distributed to the Holy Cross schools in Uganda. The school-supply fundraising campaign was coordinated by Dr. Joan Blewitt of the McGowan School of Business as part of a service-learning project in her Business Communication class.
Dr. Margarita Rose, professor and chair of the economics department at King’s College, is program director. Renata Evan, coordinator of short-term faculty-led programs abroad, assisted in developing the program.
Participating in the short-term study abroad experience to Uganda are, pictured from left: Dr. Margarita Rose, professor and chair of the economics department; King’s students Jennifer Jean-Jacques, Serigne Fall, and Laura Ortiz; and Mairead Rose Tuttle, Mount Holyoke College.