from VCCA Journal, Volume 5, Number 1, Summer 1990, 14-17
© Copyright 1990 VCCA Journal
[This project received a 1989 Excellence in Education Award from the College of Education at Virginia Tech.]
Student development classes are offered at Southwest Virginia Community College to assist students in their adjustment to life in a post-secondary educational setting. Also known as STD 100 Orientation, the one-credit, thirteen week course is considered a graduation requirement for a degree or certificate program of study. The course provides students with information on the various services available on campus, offers mentoring opportunities with faculty advisors, study skills workshops, and video cassettes on a variety of personality development courses. Activities are also offered to clarify vocational goals and reinforce the responsibility for learning. Aside from class attendance, participation in workshops, seminars, or presentations is also required.
For many area residents living in Buchanan, Dickenson (partial), Russell and Tazewell counties, the college is perhaps their last experience with formal education. This rural mountainous terrain presents a geographical barrier for opportunities to higher education and cultural diversity. An absence of intentional programming to educate these students to diverse cultures and issues of a global nature suggests that they may complete program requirements for graduation without a fundamental understanding of their role in an interdependent world.
A program involving out-of-country travel was developed last year as a culminating activity of this college transition course. Seen as an opportunity to provide experiential learning and overcome geographical barriers to cultural diversity, "Spring Break in Toronto" was an attempt to provide selected students an opportunity to visit a foreign country, interact with a similar yet distinctly different culture, and develop an appreciation for a pluralistic society.
Selection
Participants for the activity were selected based on the following criteria. First, students had to be enrolled for a minimum of twelve credit hours or have full-time student status. Second, they had to submit an essay on the subject of "Why I Would Like To Visit Canada." Third, they had to complete a student development course. Aside from STD 100 Orientation, students who have completed STD 105 Personal Development From a Women's Perspective were eligible. This course addresses the psychological and educational adjustment needs of the female student. Topics covered include personal development, career education and study skills. Fourth, they had to have U.S. Citizenship. Fifth, they could not have any previous foreign travel. This was necessary to have all the participants experience first time out-of-country travel. Sixth, they had to have a letter of reference from a faculty member. Seventh, applicants had to reside in the four-county service area. And lastly, each of the interested students had to have a personal interview.
Applications were received from students residing in Tazewell, Russell, and Buchanan counties. After the interviews were completed, the final selection of the students included two students from Tazewell, six from Russell, and two from Buchanan counties.
Training Sessions
There were three sessions to prepare the participants for the study tour. During the first session, the students were requested to write a one-paragraph biography of themselves. This was sent to Humber College as part of an itinerary package. Each biography included the student's college major, past experience, future goals, and trip expectations. Each received a training manual that was designed specifically for the trip.
The following topics were covered during the first day: entry into Canada, customs, currency and banking, public transportation, driving, and metric conversion. Samples of paper and coin currency were passed around to the students. A travel video cassette on the province of Ontario was available through prior loan arrangements with the Canadian Embassy.
The second session involved a discussion of the postal service, sales tax, tipping, and climate, and of the history, geography and economy of Ontario and Niagara Falls. A video cassette on Niagara Falls was also viewed.
During the third session participants discussed the journal writing section of the manual and completed release forms. Students who did not have health insurance coverage completed a travel accident policy provided through the Bluefield Automobile Club. A final departure time and place was designated. Due to limited luggage space, suggestions on what to pack were offered. A video cassette on Toronto was also viewed.
The Trip
Sensitive to the current economic conditions of the service area, planners held costs for three-night's of lodging at $75. Transportation was provided by a college vehicle at no cost to the participants. Also, to familiarize the students with other sister institutions and develop a broader definition of "community," the program received support and cooperation from Niagara County Community College (NCCC) in Sanborn, New York, and Humber College of Applied Arts and Technology (HC) in Etobicoke, Ontario.
During the first day as guests of NCCC, student government representatives provided a campus tour for the group, a cafeteria dinner, and lodging at $5 per participant in their leased apartment housing. Through collaboration with the International Projects officer at HC, the participants received similar hospitality the following day with a buffet lunch, a lecture on the Huron Indian language and an introduction to the multicultural diversity of Toronto. Room accommodations at a downtown hotel were reserved by the college at reduced rates.
The next day there were tours of a community center that offered English language classes to Chinese immigrants, a herbalist shop, a Chinese newspaper, and a fast food emporium that sold a variety of ethnic delicacies. The afternoon was spent visiting a social services office for recent Greek immigrants, a Greek Orthodox church, and a pastry shop. The rest of the evening was spent visiting notable landmarks of the city such as the CN Tower--the largest free-standing structure in the world--and Eaton Centre, a department store that has access to metropolitan Toronto's underground city, the world's largest subterranean complex. The last day was spent traveling back to Southwest Virginia
Student Evaluation
Participants were required to complete an evaluation form that requested comments on the value of the trip, on the "similarities and differences between the people you met and those that represent where you live," and on improvements for next year's trip. Some of the responses on the value of the trip included such statements as:
Yes, the trip was a worthwhile experience. It was great to be able to travel to a foreign country. Meeting people of different cultures and backgrounds was very interesting and educational. . . . I had never eaten Chinese food or anything like it. I thought it was a great experience getting a chance to try all those different foods. We learned that their delicacies were very different from ours.
Responses to the question concerning similarities and differences included the following:
After my visit to Canada, I have come to the conclusion that the people here are not actually that different. The main differences are the obvious ones: their accents, their fashion statements (purple hair), and unlike southwest Virginia they don't seem to speak just out of friendliness.
The general consensus concerning suggestions for next year's trip indicated the following: first, that the trip be extended as travel took two full days; second, that a luggage rack be standard equipment for the college van; third, that funding to support the trip be arranged through a fund raiser; and lastly, that the absence of prior out-of-country exposure as a requirement be limited only to the country visited.
Implications for Practice
Programming international education activities at a rural community college requires a sensitivity to the local economic conditions, internal support from administrators, and cooperation from other sister institutions. Through these efforts, participant costs were kept to a minimum. Institutional commitment included the use of a college vehicle for transportation, fuel expenses, and released time for counselors to develop, plan and execute the activity. Cooperation from two other colleges was beneficial and welcomed in the planning process. An evaluation was completed to determine whether the activity did in fact accomplish its stated purpose. Responses of the participants indicated that the activity was a "peak experience," one that was very meaningful.
Quintin S. Doromal, Jr., is Project Director for International Education and a Counselor for the Student Support Services program at Southwest Virginia Community College.
Cindy N. Miller will complete the Associate in Applied Science Degree majoring in Computer Information Systems. She also was a participant in the activity.