VCU news

By Joan Tupponce

Everything fell into place for Jasmine Edwards when she was considering a study abroad program to India during this past winter break.

“I had just gotten my passport, my son was with his dad for winter break, and the trip was focused on social work. So I thought it was the perfect opportunity,” said Edwards, a junior in Virginia Commonwealth University’s School of Social Work.

This winter, 61 VCU students agreed with Edwards that the recent break was a good time to study abroad.

“We had more study abroad programs over this past winter break than ever before, so therefore, we had more students participating,” said Stephanie Tignor, director of global learning in VCU’s Global Education Office.

The faculty-led programs visited some nontraditional destinations, such as Cuba, China, Qatar, India and Guatemala, and represented five diverse academic disciplines: nursing, political science, education, social work and leadership/VCU Transform.

Winter and spring break study abroad opportunities can be more advantageous for students than their summer options – for both financial and logistical reasons.

“Students can tap into spring semester financial aid,” Tignor said. “In the summer, financial aid may be maxed out. We want to help them have the best chance to get the funding they need to go abroad.”

And at one to two weeks in length, winter and spring break programs can be easier to accommodate than summer options, most of which span four weeks.

“That makes them more accessible for students who have other commitments in their lives,” Tignor said. “Many students have jobs, and some work to help support their families.”

The shorter span this winter worked perfectly for Edwards. While in India, she and 12 other VCU students visited a variety of child care facilities for youths with differing abilities. Ages in the schools ranged from daycare to high school, and lessons included developing life skills that could help them thrive on their own.

Edwards and her fellow students stayed in an international hostel near the campus of the Rajagiri College of Social Sciences in Kerala, India. They also attended a global social work conference, where participants from around the world discussed their efforts to improve lives.

“It was so amazing. All of these people spent years working on how to help different cultures and people,” Edwards said.

Professor Denise Burnette, Ph.D., a three-time Fulbright award recipient and the Samuel S. Wurtzel Endowed Faculty Chair in social work, established the India program with the help of her connections in the country.

“One of my Fulbrights was to India, and I lived there for a year,” she said. “It was the natural place to do a study abroad program.”

The winter session was the first undergraduate trip that Burnette had hosted. It focused on human rights and justice, and she said the students embraced both the new environment for their studies and the chance to learn about a different country’s history and social work structure.

“That helps them transform their own world view,” Burnette said. “There was a lot of transformational learning, trying to understand why things are done differently” in India compared with the U.S.

“Kerala has an exceptional social development model. It prioritizes human welfare and equity. Students could see how it was implemented and practiced,” she said.

The trip to India was a life-changing experience for students.

“A number of the students who went had never been out of the country or been on a plane, and they did great,” Burnette said. “It took a lot of courage. I am looking at doing this again next year.”

The GEO’s Tignor emphasized that study abroad is something every VCU student can experience.

“There is a misconception among students. They think they can’t study abroad if they don’t have a specific major like international studies or foreign languages,” she said. “But there is a diversity in academic majors. Our offerings change from year to year.”

Tignor added the more faculty are proposing study abroad programs to her office. “They are coming to us once again like they did before the pandemic,” she said.

For Edwards, the impact was immediate. After she returned to the U.S., a friend asked her if she would go back to India.

“I said yes. I appreciated the whole experience, and now I am very open to a new culture,” she said, adding that she has become more mindful of how she – and even the U.S. – can improve.

“I think of my food and try to waste food less,” Edwards said. “Also, everyone bands together. There is so much love in India. Everyone is looking out for each other. I feel like in the U.S., we could do better.”

Contact the Global Education Office to learn more about VCU’s faculty-led study abroad offerings.