On Wednesday, November 15th, Hampton University’s School of Liberal Arts and Education, as well as the Department of English and Foreign Languages, hosted a Global Awareness Day to advocate for the importance of a global education. The event consisted of a poetry performance, short films, panel discussions, and educators encouraging students to take advantage of opportunities to study abroad. There are numerous opportunities in the upcoming 2018-2019 academic year to study abroad for one semester and engage in Spain’s language and culture.
Before preparing to study abroad, professors encourage interested students to take a proficiency test to see how well one knows the language and which area of studying abroad would be the best fit for that individual. Current opportunities include internships at the Spanish Embassy and International Relations. There are many different options that can be taken advantage of to help pay for these trips such as Pell grants and scholarships. Those interested should contact Ms. Hopson in the International Office to further discuss all that is available. Ms. Hopson encouraged those who attended the event to study abroad because, “education is beyond the classroom.”
In addition to the study abroad program at Hampton, faculty members are excited to announce the Hispanic and Latino Initiative which aims to serve the community through professional development, education, and training. This initiative aims to engage individuals and gives them the chance to thrive mentally and emotionally. Hispanics and Latinos experience a lot of barriers that do not allow them to succeed and take advantage of amazing opportunities. They often times lack the support of family members to start pursuing an education in hopes of enhancing their lives. Hampton University hopes to make a difference by offering ESL courses, cultural inclusive training and citizenship courses that were started in 2015.
The Global Awareness Day event emphasized the importance of studying abroad as well as learning a second language that could enlarge a student’s skills for their chosen major. Studying abroad and internships will allow a student to become well rounded and experience education in a unique environment.