Elon University professor Martin Kamela (Physics), Aaron Peeks (Sociology), and Kim Jones (Anthropology) participated in a panel presentation Oct. 29 with two collaborators from Appalachian State University at the NAFSA (Association of International Educators) Conference in Columbia, South Carolina.
The two groups of collaborators met when they had similar sessions on ethics and study abroad at the North Carolina Campus Compact conference in February 2008. The NAFSA panel, “Community Impact of Study Abroad,” took place on the last day of the four-day conference. Appalachian State professors Cynthia Wood (Geography) and Kathleen Schroeder (Economics) discussed the results of focus groups with Study Abroad faculty at their university regarding the impact of study abroad on host communities.
Elon professors discussed the results of open-ended surveys completed by students on the impact of service projects on communities and on their own learning. This survey was also used as the basis for interview guide for face-to-face interviews with community partners (local project facilitators) to determine how the partners perceived the impact of service projects on themselves, the target communities, and the students.
The presentation was enthusiastically attended and the collaborators hope to publish the findings of these projects in the coming year.