Many students planning to go overseas generally think, “We are going someplace to educate or teach others.” As our students recently learned, the reality is that you go someplace else to learn and become better global citizens.
Cal Poly Humboldt’s new International Service Learning Program (ISLP) is modeled after the award-winning ISLP at the University of Louisville. The experiences it offers are deeply engaging, expand learning, and even lead to new career opportunities for students. At the same time, the students who participate can lead us in creating the type of model global community that we aspire to be. The experience can be very transformative.
The program began in the classroom here on campus, where students learned about the culture and history of the location, as well as the expectations of the program. Students instantly become part of an ambassadorial delegation representing the campus and the United States. The students design a cultural exchange curriculum to engage high school students. While it might seem we are doing the teaching, it is always the other way around.
There were 13 participants in the inaugural program, led by professor Matthew Dean. The students included Starsong Brittain, Octavio Vergara, Marcus Bensen, Cynthia Luna, Matthew Gerber, Johanna Lanaro, Griselda Valdez, Alyssa Flores, Jason Arcilla, Carter Daniel, Jazea Smith. The trip also included Associated Students President Gio Guerrero and Humboldt’s College of Professional Studies representative Julian Pelayo Bracamontes. Our student representation was diverse, ranging in age from 20 to nearly 80 years old.
Fiscal support for students was provided by Associated Students as this was also a major initiative within the AS strategic plan.
The program also relied on a team leadership approach that will serve as a model for future programs. The delegation traveled more than 25 hours from Arcata to Cebu, Philippines. The delegation initially enjoyed the warm climate and ocean during the first couple of days to adjust to the 16-hour difference in time, then worked with Sudlon National High School. This remote, rural, and agricultural area was deep in the mountains. The group was greeted by 1,000 students, and then work began with the 11th- and 12th-graders. The students facilitated classroom activities clustered as cultural or thematic. The cultural content included topics meant to draw comparisons between our two countries and to lead to engagement: Humboldt/redwoods, sustainability/environment, culinary exchange, music/dance, and pop culture. The thematic content included photography, art, SMART goals, emotional wellbeing, and public speaking through poetry. All the topics were designed by the students with the support of the teachers and principal at Sudlon.
Lastly, the participants spent time seeing several different cultural attractions and even meeting with college students from our sister campus, Cebu Technological University. The cultural tours included meeting the curator and touring the Sugbo Museo (Museum), Fort San Pedro, Taoist Temple, and many other sites. The program ended with relaxing time trying different foods and again enjoying the very warm climate.
At Cal Poly Humboldt, this program adds to a relatively wide range of international options for students and recent graduates. We have been well-known for many years as a top university for placing graduates with the Peace Corps. We have faculty-led study abroad programs at various places around the world including Belize, Costa Rica, and France. We have exchange programs with universities in many countries. Many of our faculty bring international perspectives to their teaching.
This program, and the next one that we plan to start in central Mexico, serves the region along with our students. Cal Poly Humboldt aspires to help this region of California to become a model global community, and our graduates need education and skills to be competitive throughout the world.
Teaching and learning with an international perspective is becoming more and more important. Many years ago, the emphasis on student success was largely about reading, speaking, writing, and math. It was unimaginable that a school, let alone a university, would produce a graduate who was not proficient in these areas. In the 1990s, universities began focusing on technology skills and then digital literacy. Today, it is unimaginable to graduate students who aren’t able to use a computer.
International competency is now seen as very important, and may even become a core competency of graduates in the near future. Anyone who has graduated in recent years, or who will graduate in coming years, will be at a severe disadvantage if they do not have some global experience or engage with those from other nationalities. Gaining global competencies will provide substantially more opportunities and job prospects for students.
Throughout higher education, educators and students recognize the power of studying abroad. Students who study abroad are more likely to graduate in four years and even have slightly higher GPAs. The graduation effect is more pronounced for first-generation students and traditionally underrepresented students, both of which make up a large portion of Humboldt’s student body.
International study helps students feel comfortable with change, discover new strengths, and expand their problem-solving skills. It teaches them to work with others who have very different points of view and, of course, it often helps them learn to communicate in other languages. Demonstrated educational effects include understanding global complexity, applying knowledge in a global context, linguistic competency, cultural competency, ability to work with people from other cultures, and comfort working with people from other cultures.
The short-term program like we are offering is unusual, but the format means we can provide greater access. The shorter programs are significantly more affordable than a full semester or even year abroad, and they are also more likely to be acceptable to the families of many students.
At Cal Poly Humboldt, our goal is to provide a positive, meaningful educational experience. We help students explore new ideas, gain a better understanding of themselves and others, and broaden their horizons. Internationalizing our programs will be an increasingly important part of that effort, and our graduates will increasingly impact the world. Be well.
Dr. Tom Jackson Jr. is the president of Cal Poly Humboldt.
