Students at Southeast
Community College who are interested in Global Studies had the opportunity to
take a new class this semester called “African Civic Engagement.” The class,
co-taught by SCC instructors Cara Benedict and Danvas Mabeya, interacts with
African students via Zoom as the students learn about different cultures.
“I love how diverse it is and
how helpful the professors are,” said Hanan Smoqy, an SCC student from Northern
Iraq. “I hope to get the help needed to understand the world around me in terms
of diversity.”
According to Benedict, half of the class is time spent on the SCC campus
learning about globalization, which includes understanding culture, history and
political concepts. The other half is spent with Africa, which provides
lectures and other engaging activities to learn more about African cultures and
globalization.
“The world is
becoming much more globalized, and the more we become globally and culturally
engaged with people of other cultures, the more knowledgeable and competent we
can be with our interactions,” Mabeya said. “However, many of our students do
not have the resources to travel across the world, so we are bringing people of
other countries to our classroom. This way we can still have a globally
engaging experience without having to fly overseas.”
Benedict said
this class will likely be offered once a year at SCC. For more on the Global
Studies curriculum and study abroad opportunities, click here: https://www.southeast.edu/globaleducationcurriculum/