Dr. Linda Brigance
As the administrative faculty coordinator for a study abroad class through SUNY Geneseo, Dr. Linda Brigance of the Department of Communication planned, organized, managed and supervised service learning experiences for 11 students in Krakow, Poland.
The students were assigned to one of five social service organizations in and around Krakow, Poland, for four weeks.
The organizations ranged from residential centers for adult achololics to summer activities programs for low income children and youth.
Dr. Brigance noted that neither the students nor many of the organization staff spoke the others' language, yet lasting relationships were formed and there were lots of goodbye tears at the closing banquet.
The students' service learning experiences formed the basis of class discussion in their three times a week Introduction to Sociology course taught by Geneseo sociology faculty member Dr. Anne Eisenberg. The service learning component allowed students to interact with Polish people and learn about Polish culture in a manner that Dr. Brigance described as much more interpersonal than guest speakers, museum visits, or tours. The class also visited Auschwitz and spent a weekend in Warsaw as part of the course curriulum that was designed to examine issues of individual and collective identity in Poland.
