For the first time, the McAnulty College will offer the opportunity for study abroad courses in Ghana through a collaboration with the Center for African Studies.
Dr. Gerald Boodoo
Nearly a dozen undergraduate and graduate students will be in West Africa from Monday, May 12, to Monday, May 26, learning and living in the first African country to become independent (1957) from its colonial power (Britain).
As part of the learning experience, Dr. Gerald Boodoo, director of the Center for African Studies, will teach Faith and Reason, and Dr. Emad Mirmotahari, assistant professor of English, will teach Ghana and the Black Cultural Imagination while students absorb pertinent information from an unusual feet-on-the-ground experience in Africa.
This travel-study opportunity to Ghana aligns with the University Strategic Plan priority to place special focus on Africa and the global African diaspora, and to strengthen links between Duquesne and the worldwide Spiritan mission.
“The Center for African Studies is attempting to institutionalize and make more regular the opportunity to do work and study abroad in Africa,” said Boodoo.
Students will visit Accra, the seaside capital city; Adenta, which is known for its secondary school; Ejisu, where Spiritan roots run deep and Spiritan schools are well-established; and Cape Coast, which offers a look at colonization and slavery.
The trip will be rich with traditional African perspectives and could include an audience with the Ashanti king and a look at his palace in Kumasi before returning to Accra and examining contemporary Ghana through museum and embassy visits, said Boodoo, who visited Ghana last year in preparation for this trip.
Westerners often travel and study in Ghana, which is considered a safe site for students from other American universities, Boodoo said. The country’s security record, plus the close relationship with Spiritans throughout Ghana will enhance the students’ visit and encourage other students to join future study-abroad trips.
“The McAnulty College has a variety of professors who may be willing to do this on a regular basis, giving greater opportunity for Duquesne to have avenues of interaction with faculty, students and ideas,” Boodoo said.