UMD-Winter: Ghana: Higher Education in the Ghanaian Context (CHSE)

In response to competencies for student affairs/higher education professionals outlined by the National Association of Student Personnel Administrators (NASPA) an American of College Personnel Association (ACPA) Student Affairs Competencies regarding social justice and inclusion (SJI) and assessment, evaluation, and research (AER), the Higher Education in the Ghanaian Context (HEGC!) program will focus on the role of student affairs and assessment practices in the context of Ghanaian higher education.  As social justice educators, student affairs and higher education professionals should understand the implications of higher education and the role of student affairs in an international context. Particularly considering the sociohistorical relationship between the United States and West Africa, HEGC! will expand beyond Western ideals of social justice education and engage participants in a critical examination of concepts related to power, privilege, and oppression.  Moreover, West Africa is often overlooked as a location for study abroad programs; there is a great deal of formal and cultural knowledge waiting the attention of U.S. higher education scholars and practitioners.
 
This course is targeted toward current graduate students in student affairs/higher education/international education graduate programs and student affairs/higher education/international education professionals who have experience with higher education settings. Overall, you will: (a) gain new insight into the rich culture and traditions of the country and people of Ghana, (b) explore the role of higher education in Ghana and its connections to the P-12 educational pipeline in a post liberation Ghanaian context, (c) articulate the role of student affairs in the context of Ghanaian colleges and universities, and (d) collaborate with a Ghanaian higher education partner on a project-based experiential learning opportunity.

The Higher Education in the Ghanaian Context program not only expands the scope of study abroad options, it also focuses on project based learning for students in collaboration with higher education/student services professionals in Ghana. You will engage in readings, reflections and discussions prior to, during and following the study aboard program.  In addition, you will work as collaborators with a partner at a Ghanaian higher education institution. During the study aboard experience in the country of Ghana, you will engage in cultural experiences, gain historical knowledge, visit with educators, policymakers, and administrators at varying levels of the educational pipeline, visit various institutions of higher education, engage with student services professionals affiliated with the institutions we'll visit, interact with higher education/student services graduate students, and develop, co-produce, and present materials during a symposium on the campus of the University of Maryland. 

Course objectives include:

1.   Gain knowledge, through experience and direct study, the culture, history and structure of education in post liberation Ghana and other countries on the African continent
2.   Articulate cultural, social, political and historical connections between Ghana and the United States
3.   Understand and articulate the role of education in post liberation Ghana 
4.   Examine and expand one's knowledge of higher education in post liberation Ghana
5.   Learn from student services personnel professionals (SSPPs) at institutions of higher learning in Ghana their perceptions of their work in a Ghanaian context 

Read this article by the UMD College of Education about the program's first trip in 2018!

You can also check out this article by College Student Educators International about the program!

Information Session:
September 2, 2021 from 5:00PM-7:00PM EST via Zoom. RSVP here to receive the Zoom link.

Pre-Immersion (Preparation) Session Dates:
Thursday, 11/11/21 from 9:30am-12:30pm (EST) via Zoom
Wednesday, 11/17/21 from 9:30am-12:30pm (EST) via Zoom
Thursday, 12/9/21 from 9:30am-12:30pm (EST) via Zoom

Immersion (In Country) Dates:
January 3-14, 2022 in Ghana 

Emersion (Return) Session Dates: 
Tuesday, 2/1/22 from 9:30am-12:30pm (EST) via Zoom
Wednesday, 2/16/22 from 9:30am-12:30pm (EST) via Zoom

Symposium: 
Friday, 2/25/22 from 12pm-3pm (EST) via Zoom

*Pre-departure and post-immersion sessions are mandatory for trip participants. Click the following link to see the HESI739A: Higher Education in the Ghanaian Context Study Abroad Program Syllabus--Winter 2020 syllabus.

IMPORTANT: The Education Abroad Risk Management Committee must approve all institutionally sponsored international travel for undergraduate and graduate students. Program and country assessment is ongoing and appropriate action will be taken to prioritize your safety and security. COVID-19 vaccinations will be required for all study abroad participants in accordance with UMD's vaccination requirements. 

IMPORTANT: Please familiarize yourself with the updated financial commitment, withdrawals and refunds policy. We strongly encourage students to purchase CFAR Worldwide Trip Protection in addition to the CISI Insurance Plan which is covered in your program cost. Additional information about insurance can be found here. Last, please apply or renew your passport now (expedited processed) if you plan to study abroad as there are significant delays.

You must be in good academic and judicial standing and you must not have any registration blocks to participate in this program. The minimum GPA for this program is listed above.

UMD Seniors/Advanced Undergraduates, UMD graduate students, Non-UMD graduate students, and higher education professionals are eligible to participate in the program.

If you are interested in this program but do not meet the eligibility requirements, reach out to the program leader (listed in the Contacts tab) to discuss your interest in the program.

The Higher Education in the Ghanaian Context program through the University of Maryland, College Park, Education Aboard Office focuses on being competitive in a globalized society, cultivating a strong foundation in liberal arts education, contributing to a globally minded, but active locally citizenry, and committing itself to engaging in inclusion and social justice education.

After you commit to the program, Education Abroad will enroll you in the following three (3) credit UMD course:

• HESI739A: Higher Education in Ghana Study Abroad Program

The credit you earn during this program will count as resident credit.

Click the following link to see the HESI739A: Higher Education in the Ghanaian Context Study Abroad Program Syllabus--Winter 2020 syllabus. The syllabus for Winter 2022 will be available shortly. 

You will share rooms, two students per room. Each hotel has dining, laundry, wifi, cable TV, double bed rooms, and pools.

Please refer to the following resources for funding study abroad:

Financial Aid
Scholarships
Financial Commitment, Withdrawals and Refunds Policy

Costs are current for Winter 2022.
**Please note this program qualifies for eligible Pell Grant recipients to apply for the Gilman International Scholarship. The application deadline is October 5th!

*Non-UMD graduate students will need to pay a $75 application fee to the UMD Graduate School to participate in this program.

PLEASE NOTE: All University of Maryland study abroad programs are financially self-supporting and, therefore, subject to cancellation due to low enrollment.

Candace M. Moore, Ph.D. is the Program Leader for the Ghana program and she is currently a Fulbright Scholar to Ghana for the 2021-2022 academic year. She serves as a Clinical Associate Professor in the Higher Education, Student Affairs, International Education Policy (HESI) program within the Department of Counseling, Higher Education, and Special Education in the College of Education. She was the inaugural director of the Center for Diversity and Inclusion in Higher Education (CDIHE) at the University of Maryland, College Park from 2017-2021. She earned her Ph.D. in Counseling and Student Personnel Services from the University of Georgia. As a former student affairs administrator, Dr. Moore is committed to educating, learning from others, and promoting inclusive education environments in higher education. It is important for her to bring her practical skills to the classroom, informing an intentional pathway of applying theory to practice in higher education/student affairs spaces. Dr. Moore's research agenda is two tiered with a focus on: 1) Qualitative research methodologies--critical research; narrative research; epistemological pathways, and 2) Inclusive campus environments--Black student identity development; student success at historically Black colleges and universities; LGBTQ student development; student athlete transitions; contingent faculty development; study abroad in Ghana and impacts on pedagogy. 

Jillian A. Martin, Ph.D. is currently a Fulbright U.S. Scholar to Ghana where she is doing teaching and research at the University of Cape Coast. Prior to her current role, Dr Martin served in various higher education capacities (civic and community engagement, assessment and evaluation, housing and residence life, student activities, diversity initiatives). She is focuses her scholar-practice on creating opportunities for use of inquiry (assessment, evaluation, and research) in intentional practice. Her research agenda includes: student athlete transitions, socialization of student affairs professionals, and student services in higher education within an Ghanaian context and epistemological pathways, case study design, and survey design. Her dissertation research explores student services at a liberal arts institution in Ghana focusing on the implications of assessment practices with a student services unit at a Ghanaian institution. Dr. Martin has extensive research and practice in Ghana. She continues to present regionally and nationally while contributing to scholarship through publications.

For course, itinerary or in-country information, please contact the Program Leader at hegcprogram@gmail.com. For general questions or assistance with applying, contact EA Short-term Programs.

As a participant in the HEGC! program, you will:

• Explore cultural and historical sites in the cities of Accra and Cape Coast/Elmina
• Complete a collaborative learning project with Ghanaian graduate students and higher education professionals
• Participate in pre-trip coursework, in-country colloquium between the University of Cape Coast and the University of Maryland, and post-trip symposium