Conference Activities and Sessions
The 26th Annual Conference—Preparing Today’s Students to Uncover Local Realities in Latin America and the Caribbean—was held February 18-21, 2015, at the Fundación Global Democracia y Desarrollo (FUNGLODE) in Santo Domingo, Dominican Republic.| Wednesday, February 18 | |
| 9:40 AM | Transportation leaving Crowne Plaza Hotel |
| 10:00 AM - 1:00 PM | Tour of Colonial Zone Known colloquially as "Zona Colonial," the Colonial Zone of Santo Domingo was the first settlement established in the New World by Christopher Columbus. The Colonial Zone was declared a World Heritage Site by UNESCO; many of the original buildings are still intact today. The tour will focus not only on what can be found in the history books about this area, but also the human history, including little-known anecdotes about early leaders as well as the country's founding fathers. Monuments and places of interest to be visited include: Calle Las Damas, the first street in the New World; the Alcázar de Colón, the family home of Christopher Columbus; the Cathedral of Santa María la Menor, the first cathedral in the Americas and the National Pantheon. Cost: $35 |
| 1:30 - 4:30 PM | AAPLAC Board Business Lunch followed by Board Meeting Restaurante Adrián Tropical en el Malecón (Avenida George Washington) |
| 5:15 PM | Transportation leaving Crowne Plaza Hotel |
| 6:00 PM | Plenary Speech/Welcome Cocktail FUNGLODE (Calle Capitán Eugenio de Marchena 26) Dr. Marcos Villaman, Rector, Instituto Global de Altos Estudios en Ciencias Sociales (IGlobal) Lcda. Ligia Amada Melo Vda de Cardona, Minister of Higher Education, Science and Technology |
| 7:00 PM | Welcome Cocktail and Networking with Global Dominican Academic Exchange Participants Café Filo (behind FUNGLODE), Calle César Nicolás Penson #127, Biblioteca Juan Bosch |
| Thursday, February 19 | |
| 8:20 AM | Transportation leaving Crowne Plaza Hotel for FUNGLODE (Calle Capitán Eugenio de Marchena 26) |
| 8:45 - 10:00 AM | Opening Words Mark Odenwelder, AAPLAC President; Mandy Sciacchitano, Local Arrangements Coordinator; and George Ann Huck, AAPLAC Executive Director Session 1 Moderator: Steven Gardner (Illinois College) Latin American Cultures: Moving from Awareness toward Competence Callie DeBellis (Meredith College) and Jean Silk (Yale University) |
| 10:00 - 10:30 AM | Coffee Break sponsored by Culver-Stockton College |
| 10:30 - 11:45 AM | Session 2 Moderator: Scott Giltner (Culver-Stockton College) Fifty Years of Good Intentions: What Has Changed After Half a Century of International Service-Learning? Lydia Sampson (Lasell College) Alternative Approaches to Experiential Learning: Using Popular Education to Accompany, Not "Serve," Street Children in Xalapa, Veracruz, Mexico Robert Kruger (BCA Study Abroad) |
| 12:00 PM | Transportation leaving FUNGLODE for the Universidad Autónoma de Santo Domingo (UASD) |
| 12:15 - 1:30 PM | Lunch at UASD |
| 1:30 - 2:30 PM | Lecture on Carnaval in the Dominican Republic Profesor Dagoberto Tejeda, Fundación Instituto Dominicano de Folklore |
| 2:30 - 2:45 PM | Water Break |
| 2:45 - 4:00 PM | Session 3 Moderator: Stephanie Athey (Lasell College) Building Culturally Competent Health Professionals through Research Practicums Rocio Billini-Franco (Universidad Autónoma de Santo Domingo) Pioneering a Sustainable Medical Spanish Program in Rural North Carolina Ann Ortiz and Tiago Jones (Campbell University) |
| 4:15 - 5:30 PM | Session 4 Moderator: Laura Wise (Tulane University) Creating Cultural Awareness in Students on Short-Term Programs: My Experience with J-Term Abroad Courses for Students Minoring in Spanish Rita Tejada (Luther College) Incorporating Study Abroad into the Home-Campus Curriculum through Civic Engagement Steven Gardner (Illinois College) |
| 6:00 PM | Transportation leaving UASD to return to Crowne Plaza Hotel |
| Dinner on your own | |
| Friday, February 20 | |
| 8:00 AM | Transportation leaving Crowne Plaza Hotel for Instituto Dominico-Americano (Avenida Abraham Lincoln #21) |
| 8:45 - 10:00 AM | Session 5 Moderator: Callie DeBellis (Meredith College) Mobility and Stagnation, Trade Lingo or Learning?: "Global Citizenship" in US Higher Education Stephanie Athey (Lasell College) Does the Term "Study Abroad" Contradict Building Intercultural Respect, Relationships, and Reciprocity? Katie Heird (University of Maryland, Baltimore County), Kathleen McInerney (Saint Xavier University), and Mark Odenwelder (Fundación Centro de Estudios Interamericanos) |
| 10:00 - 10:30 AM | Coffee Break sponsored by Central College |
| 10:30 - 11:45 AM | Session 6 Moderator: Tiago Jones (Campbell University) The Heritage Speaker's Quandary:
Reshaping Teaching Methods and Approaches in Caribbean Communities Jeffrey Zavala (York University) |
| Transportation leaving FUNGLODE for Cappuccino restaurant immediately following session | |
| 12:00 - 1:45 PM | Business Lunch Sponsored by the Ministerio de Educación Superior en Ciencia y Tecnología (MESCyT) |
| 2:00 PM | Transportation leaving restaurant for Universidad Iberoamericana (UNIBE) (Avenida Francia #129, Gazcue) |
| 2:15 PM | Brief Campus Tour of UNIBE |
| 2:30 - 2:45 PM | Presentation about UNIBE Loraine Amell (Universidad Iberoamericana) |
| 2:45 - 4:00 PM | Session 7 Moderator: Jean Silk (Yale University) Constructed Fictions and Local Realities: How Universities Can Help Students Discover Latin America on Its Own Terms Peggy James (University of Wisconsin-Parkside) Rio de Janeiro of Yesterday and Today: The Historic Cultural Context in a Study Abroad Program Marta Almeida (Yale University) |
| 4:00 - 4:30 PM | Coffee Break sponsored by UNIBE |
| 4:30 - 6:00 PM | Session 8 Moderator: Robert Kruger (BCA Abroad) The Long-Term Impact of International Exchange Programs in the Field of Education Trudy Hermann (Amity Institute) Understanding People's Perspectives through Interdisciplinary Collaboration: An Example from the Field of Intergenerational Research Simone DeVore (University of Wisconsin-Whitewater) and Jobita Anguisaca (Center for Interamerican Studies) Teaching the Teachers: How Today's Generation Challenges Current Pedagogy Methods Flavia Cortés (Universidad de La Salle) |
| 6:15 PM | Transportation leaving UNIBE for Crowne Plaza Hotel |
| 7:45 PM | Transportation leaving Crowne Plaza Hotel (restaurant is also within walking distance) |
| 8:00 PM | Conference Dinner El Conuco (Calle Casimiro de Moya #152, Gazcue) |
| Saturday, February 21 | |
| 8:20 AM | Transportation leaving Crowne Plaza Hotel for FUNGLODE (Calle Capitán Eugenio de Marchena 26) |
| 8:45 - 10:15 AM | Session 9 Moderator: Lydia Sampson (Lasell College) Leveraging Institutional Change through Study Abroad Success Scott Giltner and Lauren Schellenberger (Culver-Stockton College) Interdisciplinary Liberal Arts Approaches and Challenges to Study Abroad Brian Jennings, Adam John, Margaret Rakus, and Kim Justeson (Albright College) |
| 10:15 - 10:45 AM | Coffee Break sponsored by CEDEI |
| 10:45 - 11:30 AM | Introduction of New Site and Closing Remarks |
| Transportation back to Crowne Plaza Hotel immediately following closing remarks | |
| Lunch on your own | |
| 2:00 PM | Transportation departing from Crowne Plaza Hotel |
| 2:30 PM | Tour of Ingenios Boca de Nigua As a place of multiple slave uprisings, Boca de Nigua is part of the UNESCO Slave Route. Among the most relevant events that occurred in Boca de Nigua was the first black rebellion in the New World, in December 1521, led and carried out by slaves. Again on October 30, 1796, another insurrection involving more than 200 slaves took place, marking the most significant African slave resistance in the Spanish section of the island. The abolition of slavery and establishment of a popular government comprised of the island's existing ethnic diversity rose out of these uprisings. Participants on the tour will visit the ruins of Ingenios de Boca de Nigua with an expert on the subject who will talk about the cimarronaje (quality or ethos of an escaped slave) during the colonial period. They will also learn about the history of the sugar industry and the importance of African heritage in the Dominican Republic. Following a drumming exhibition, participants will visit the Chapel of Our Lady of Consolation, also known as the Sistine Chapel of the Caribbean, which is where Dominican dictator Rafael Leonidas Trujillo was first buried. The tour guide will share anecdotes about this period of the dictatorship and the assassination of the tyrant Trujillo. Cost: $42 |