Benin
The BSW program offers a unique opportunity for students to do two travel study opportunities within one three credit course. The program takes students to Benin, West Africa for ten days in January during winter break and then to Africatown and Montgomery, Alabama over Spring Break. The course is divided into two 1.5 credit courses, one in the second seven-week session of the Fall semester tied to the travel to Benin and the second in the first seven-week session of the Spring semester tied to the travel to Alabama. It is recommended that students do both courses and experiences for maximum impact, but students are not required to do both.
The courses focus on the themes of identity and legacy and use the book Barracoon by Zora Neale Hurston as a foundation for class discussions. Barracoon tells the story of Cudjo Lewis, one of 110 people taken from Benin in 1860, 52 years after the US outlawed the slave trade, and brought to Mobile, Alabama where he was enslaved until emancipation. Once free and unable to return to Benin, Cudjo and many others from Benin saved money, bought land from their former enslavers and built Africatown, the only place in the US built by Africans born on the continent. Their descendants, as well as the descendants of their enslavers, continue to live and work in Africatown today.
This course challenges students to think about how they identify themselves, how society identifies them, the legacy their ancestors have left to them and the legacy they hope to leave behind. It is a powerful opportunity for any student wanting to better understand themselves and to engage in challenging conversations that encourage growth and connection.
Travel to Benin, West Africa takes place in January for ten days during winter break and applications open in the Spring of the prior academic year. Students must complete the study abroad application through the Global Engagement Office prior to registering for the Fall course. Travel to Alabama takes place over Spring Break. When students register for the course they are committing to the additional fees associated with the Spring Break travel.