Zulu Word of the Day:
Sawubona - Hello
We arrived in South Africa on Sunday and after having a few days to shake off jet-lag we are ready to start blogging. Our experience here will include an academic portion, where we're focusing on global health, identity and HIV/AIDS in a South African context, as well as what we are calling a cultural engagement portion. For this part we'll be exploring different parts of the KwaZulu-Natal Province (major city: Durban) and drawing connections between our classroom and the parts of the culture we've become immersed in.
But First!
Who are we???
Where are we???
Our highly connected, top chef, director: T. Garey Davis
Garey Davis studied and lived in South Africa for six years, during which he pursued a master's degree in education, organized peer-educators around HIV/AIDS and initiated
service learning in high schools on a number of issues. He is now leading U.S. students to do the same. His passion and drive comes after years of military service and traveling all over the world. His service years combined with the work that he's done in multicultural learning and education brought him to George Mason University first as a student in the Individualized Studies program, and then the Program Coordinator for students in the Multicultural Research and Resource Center (MRRC). In the years since he has returned from South Africa, Mr. Davis has continued to foster his knowledge and commitment to Zulu culture in Durban, and issues surrounding HIV/AIDS from his home in the U.S. to his adopted home in South Africa. Mr. Davis is the prime catalyst for the emergence of the Building Bridges Program.
Our fearless, chocolate craving, professor:
Dr. J. Dewitt Webster Dr. J. DeWitt Webster is Assistant Professor in the Department of Global and Community Health at George Mason University. He teaches courses in Community health, health behavior/health education, and international health. His research addresses culture and identity in the context of health behavior; program planning, implementation, and evaluation; and health promotion initiatives through community-based participatory research (CBPR) approaches. He has collaborated with UNAIDS, USAID, WHO, CDC , international foundations, federal and state ministries of health and NGOs on efforts around HIV/AIDS prevention and care, maternal and child health, and cancer prevention in Nigeria, South Africa and the United States. Dr. Webster earned his PhD in Biobehavioral Health from the Pennsylvania State University and his MPH in Community Health Education from the University of Minnesota School of Public Health.
THE BLOG MASTERS...
Whitney Gecker, Class of 2009
Whitney is a senior at George Mason University studying Interdisciplinary Studies at New Century College. She is creating her own major entitled "Race, Gender, and Activism." Whitney is a student staff member at the MRRC, and has received numerous awards for her dedication to social justice, including the Vision Award. In her spare time, she volunteers with Helping Individuals Prostitutes Survive (HIPS), a D.C. based harm reduction and HIV prevention and outreach organization. Whitney has co-led a service-learning trip to New York City, focusing on HIV/AIDS, peer-based community building.
Alex Sims, Class of 2009
Alex, also a senior at George Mason, studies Anthropology and is fulfilling requirements for entrance into medical school. Her interests in Anthropology extend into the realm of structural violence, indigenous health, HIV/AIDS and race/ethnic relations. She has recently been a finalist for the Truman Scholarship, where she presented a policy proposal concerning needle exchange programs in Washington, D.C. With Whitney Gecker, Alex was a co-leader in the HIV/AIDS service trip to New York. Alex works in the MRRC, and is active with the Freshman Center as a Senior Peer Advisor, where she co-teaches a transition course for first year students, and also supervises other student-teachers. A fierce student, Alex engages both her peers and professors in classroom discussions.
John Robinson, MA in Sociology
With a BA in Sociology from Hampton University, John has come to George Mason to focus on cultural sociology, including constructions of identity, religion, and oppositional knowledges. John serves as a teaching assistant in the Sociology Department, a research assistant for the Diversity Research Group, and a graduate assistant in the MRRC. In addition, John has founded and currently serves as Vice-President for the Black Graduate Student Association. Recently, he has also done work as a Cultural Diversity Fellow at James Madison University.
About the University of KwaZulu-Natal, our home...
Taken from their web-site (http://www.ukzn.ac.za/)
The new University of KwaZulu-Natal unites two major educational institutions in KwaZulu-Natal – the University of Natal and the University of Durban-Westville. The University of KwaZulu-Natal aims to be a truly South African university that reflects the society in which it is situated – not only in terms of race, gender and class – but in terms of how it structures its values and priorities and how it responds to social needs. As an institution of higher learning, it is committed to academic excellence, innovation in research and critical engagement with society. With its vision to be the Premier University of African Scholarship, the University of KwaZulu-Natal draws inspiration from an African identity and takes seriously its responsibilities to the development of the African continent.
For the majority of our stay, we will be residing at the University of KwaZulu-Natal in Durban. Students here are on their Winter Break, but there are still students around campus taking classes and using their break to study for exams. During our time here, we will be engaging with student who are on campus, as well young people in the surrounding townships and rural areas. As we go through our journey, we will be sharing more as our experience continues.
If you ever have questions about words we use, things we post, or experiences we discuss, feel free to post a comment.
service learning in high schools on a number of issues. He is now leading U.S. students to do the same. His passion and drive comes after years of military service and traveling all over the world. His service years combined with the work that he's done in multicultural learning and education brought him to George Mason University first as a student in the Individualized Studies program, and then the Program Coordinator for students in the Multicultural Research and Resource Center (MRRC). In the years since he has returned from South Africa, Mr. Davis has continued to foster his knowledge and commitment to Zulu culture in Durban, and issues surrounding HIV/AIDS from his home in the U.S. to his adopted home in South Africa. Mr. Davis is the prime catalyst for the emergence of the Building Bridges Program. 
Our fearless, chocolate craving, professor: Dr. J. Dewitt Webster 
1 comment:
Congratulations to all of you for the work that has brought you this far! I am excited to follow your accomplishments via blog. Thanks for forwarding the link.
Best to all!
Heather
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