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Study abroad gave alumna new perspective

When L’Oreal Kennedy came to UW, she did not imagine that study abroad would be a part of her education. Today, she is completing an accelerated second bachelor’s program in nursing at Johns Hopkins University, having engaged in clinical internships in St. Croix and the United Arab Emirates. This autumn, she will begin doctoral studies at UW School of Nursing.

Working with children in Namibia Photo: L'Oreal Kennedy

“I knew that [study abroad] was out there, but I didn’t know it was an option for me,” L’Oreal explains.  However, with the help of supportive professors and advisers at the UW School of Social Work, she discovered an exciting study abroad program in Namibia.

While in Namibia, “we saw how social work works in a different environment,” L’Oreal says, “we rode our bikes to an after-school tutoring center in a small township every day and worked as teaching assistants. It was a chance for hands-on application of the skills she was learning in her social work major, and it also convinced L’Oreal that she wanted to study abroad during her graduate studies. “I saw how important it is to get out there while you’re in a learning environment, to meet and develop relationships with local people.”

Taking in the view
Taking in the view Photo: L'Oreal Kennedy

During her nursing program at Johns Hopkins, she engaged in two international clinical rotations. Working directly with medical providers, women, and families in St. Croix and the United Arab Emirates, L’Oreal had the chance to see nursing practice at work in very different cultural contexts.

Now entering the Doctor of Nursing program at UW, L’Oreal sees clear connections between study abroad and her future career. “I’m interested in focusing on under-served populations. [Study abroad] has helped me understand that there’s always another view, something else that I need to consider. I can’t just look at it from my perspective.”

 

Provost’s Grant enhances Zambia study abroad program

Learn more about funding for faculty and programs! Grant applications are due April 11.

A Provost’s Grant from the Office of Global Affairs will further enrich an exciting UW study abroad program to Zambia in summer 2013.

Developed and led by Dr. Leslie Ashbaugh, Director of UW Bothell’s Center for University Studies and Programs, the month-long interdisciplinary program began in 2010 and introduces students to the socio-economic, political and health challenges faced by Zambians 45 years after the end of British colonial rule. While in Zambia, undergraduates from all three UW campuses retrace the steps of Dr. Ashbaugh’s own previous research on urban-to-rural migration pathways and outcomes. Along the way, they gain exposure to the complex problems facing individuals and institutions in a country where the government and the international donor community struggle to meet citizens’ basic needs.

Traveling by foot
Traveling by foot Photo: Rabeka Anne Randall

Program activities include collaborating with University of Zambia students promoting healthy practices on their campus, observing at health clinics and children’s centers, conducting a health education workshop, and spending 10 days in Luangwa National Park, working in local clinics by day and viewing game by dusk.  “We’re on the go from 7am to 7pm every day”, says Dr. Ashbaugh. The program’s packed schedule is designed to provide many opportunities for cultural exchange with Zambian students, professionals and local residents.

The Provost’s Grant has allowed Dr. Ashbaugh to add a completely new field experience to this summer’s program. With grant support, the group will embark on a five-hour journey, by bus and then on foot, to visit a rural village and volunteer-based goat farm where HIV positive individuals raise goats for milk and pasteurize goat milk for consumption by babies. Goat’s milk is a better substitute for breast milk than cow’s milk, so the enterprise provides community members with a livelihood, a safe and healthy infant feeding solution for HIV positive mothers, and a chance to overcome the stigma of HIV infection. Dr. Ashbaugh sees the visit to this village as a chance to witness best practices in development work, but also as an opportunity for students to experience and learn from the strength of Zambian communities and the generosity, kindness, and family-orientation of the local people.

Hearing local stories
Hearing local stories Photo: Misty Provenzano

With the support of the Office of Global Affairs, Dr. Ashbaugh’s study abroad program allows students to engage in meaningful international field work, learn first-hand about the challenges faced by members of another culture in an increasingly globalized world, and test career interests in global health and development. Just as importantly, she says, students gain humility and “recognition that [Americans] have much to learn from Zambians. I’ve done my job if students leave for Zambia thinking they have some answers, and then return home humbled and able to recognize the complexity of issues related to development.”

-Sara Stubbs