INTERNATIONAL STUDIES

International Studies students experience sights, sounds and tastes abroad

Sheena Chambers prayed while she took in the inspiring view from the top of Table Mountain during a recent International Studies trip to South Africa.

Sheena Chambers was hesitant when she got the e-mail to apply to the International Studies trip to South Africa because of her age, and the fact that she was new to Southwest. But her heart told her to apply, so she followed her intuition. And it paid off. The trip to Cape Town turned out to be a very emotional and humbling one.

Chambers was literally brought to tears when she saw the jail cell at Robben Island where Nelson Mandela spent 18 of his 27 years there in prison. She also

prayed and did yoga, inspired by the breath-taking view of Cape Town from the top of Table Mountain, which helped take some of the loneliness of being away from family on Mother’s Day. “This is one journey that I will never forget,” Chambers said. “I was enlightened to say the least. I learned about South Africa’s food, political parties, their 12 languages, resources and economic standpoint, diverse cultures and ethnicities, and so much more.”

Students also recently returned from study abroad trips to Denmark, Greece, Italy and Peru. International Studies Program Coordinator Jessica Miller said she has never seen a student come back from one of the IS trips abroad who didn’t have an eye-opening experience. One student cried at the sight of the Sistine Chapel. Nursing students who went to Denmark were skeptical that free universal health care could work —until they experienced it firsthand. “Different trips have different eyeopening experiences,” Miller said. “But they always have a lot to take away.”

Miller said students in the IS program enroll in specific courses and study as a cohort during the semester, learning about the history and culture of their destination. Once abroad, students visit various cultural sites, tour historic cities, meet with locals, and experience different food. “They get really immersed in it,” she said. “They learn everything about it on the front end at home before they venture to their chosen county. Then they get to spend about a week to 10 days there where they get to experience the culture and what it is like to live there.”

Dr. Sharon Hightower, assistant professor of nursing who went to Demark with a group of ten students, says she was extremely grateful for the

Dr. Sharon Hightower (far left) and nursing students learned about the healthcare system in Odense, Denmark, and spent a weekend in Copenhagen.

opportunity to go, and that it was a great learning experience for the students. “It was an absolutely wonderful trip and experience,” Hightower said. “The students benefitted from the trip because they had the opportunity to broaden their cultural experience and gain greater insight into their own country, as well as another country. They also studied another country’s healthcare system by participating in the program through immersion.” a projected screen,” Adams said. “They must go out and experience art. The students are able to hear, see, and feel our teachings, which I find to be the most intensive form of learning. They remember these lessons forever.”

Student Joshua Rosario agreed. “Since we were familiar with the artworks, we were able to appreciate them much more once we actually

The students stayed at University of Southern Denmark in Odense, where they toured the hospital and learned about the healthcare system, which is free in Denmark. They also spent a weekend in Copenhagen where they walked around the city, went on a bus and boat tour, and saw the inside of a castle. Hightower said they took the train and taxis everywhere and saw lots of bikes. “Bikes, bikes, bikes everywhere,” Hightower said. “It’s a biking culture.” If she could describe a day in the life of the Danes in one word it would be “wonderful.”

Raquel Adams, who teaches Intro to Art and went on the trip to Italy, said the IS program is a great “lab” where students get hands-on instruction and lectures. The group went to the Colosseum, Sistine Chapel, saw the president of Italy, visited the American University in Rome, Trevi Fountain, the MAXXI National Museum of 21 st Century Art and Vatican City, where they walked to the top of the dome at St. Peter’s Basilica. “I often tell my students that you can’t do justice to works of art on Students visited the Colosseum in Rome and heard a Papal address inside the Vatican during their trip to Italy.

Assistant Dean of Social and Behavioral Sciences Matthew Lexow, whose Intro to Ethics class traveled to South Africa, said this was the first time that Southwest had sent a course there in years. Lexow said students were particularly struck by their tour of the Robben Island prison and the District Six region of Cape Town, which was once a vibrant and diverse neighborhood that was demolished by the apartheid government. “Our tour guide for the maximum security section of Robben Island was imprisoned there from 1977 to 1982,” Lexow said. “The students and faculty were clearly moved by the tour.”

Chambers added that she was brought to tears when she saw Mandela’s cell. “I allowed my mind to wander back in time to picture the images that were created by all of the background information that I had researched and received from the tour guides.”

Instructor Dustin Williams made the trip to Peru with students in his Spanish II class and proclaimed the trip a resounding success. They climbed the peaks of Machu Picchu, visited the U.S. embassy in Lima where they learned about the daily lives of diplomats, haggled for goods at local Peruvian markets, and took selfies with llamas at an animal rescue sanctuary. “It is a lifechanging experience for many of our students,” Williams said. “The students were so grateful for the opportunity to get to know the Peruvian people.”

Student Margaret Moore said it was the best trip of her life and that the faculty and tour guides were very informative. “The incredible views, delicious foods, and the culture of the Peruvians were all over the top,” Moore said. “I enjoyed every day I was there with my Spanish class.” She says Machu Picchu was a miracle to see in person. “It is hard to comprehend how the Incas built it without any tools,” Moore said. “All the stones are placed so tightly and they have lasted for hundreds of years.” S N

The students who traveled to South Africa were impressed by its beauty and visibly moved by the experience of seeing where Nelson Mandela was imprisoned.

Empowering Solutions for

Southwest Workforce & Community Solutions delivers training that transforms organizations, individuals and communities

Student Mason Cobb practices stick welding to build structural reinforcement skills that can be used in manufacturing and at construction sites.

Every day of the week, the Southwest Workforce & Community Solutions department maintains a busy schedule as the dedicated team actively works with area businesses and agencies to help build one of Memphis’ most important assets—a skilled, educated, committed and productive workforce. According to Anita Brackin, associate vice president, SWCS, “Dr. Tracy D. Hall, our president, often opens her talks touting Southwest as the community’s college, and I couldn’t agree with her more. All of our departments work together to prepare graduates with marketable skills, certificates, certifications and diplomas so they can gain better jobs and wages, which makes for a more satisfying and productive life. I am honored to be working on such an important mission that changes the course of generations and the course of our community.” Designated as an Achieving the Dream school since 2016, Southwest works with a network of more than 220 community colleges to identify and share best practice models with a focus on developing strong pathways from non-credit offerings to credit programs. “I am a huge proponent of delivering programs that mirror not only college credit, but also the college experience so that students see themselves as Southwest students, regardless of which side of the college they are enrolled,” Brackin said. “We provide students with a seamless educational journey as they train for in-demand careers. When a student begins on the non-credit side with SWCS, they can often transfer that training or certification into the credit side, which can lead to a degree,” Brackin said. By offering customized training for state and federal workforce and economic development organizations, private sector companies, community agencies, secondary schools and other groups, SWCS supports workforce and economic development throughout the area. “We actively seek ways to forge relationships with a lot of different entities so that we can learn more of what is needed for organizations to remain viable and become more successful,” Brackin said. “Our team’s mission is to create and implement workforce development, continuing education and personal and professional development programs to drive the College’s workforce alignment and economic development initiatives. By focusing on career and technical education, we help prepare students with the knowledge and skills required for existing and future jobs.” Two grant funded programs awarded to SWCS for three consecutive years, including one by the Women’s Foundation of Greater Memphis and the other, ReadyWhitehaven, sponsored by EDGE, educate the under or unemployed from economically challenged communities. Both programs offer training that leads to such careers in the medical field as dialysis technician and medical administrative assistant and have the goal of preparing individuals to go to work in around 12 weeks. Another partnership, this time with the State of Tennessee, allowed SWCS to offer digital court reporting in the spring of 2019 to address the growing need for digital court reporters. The courts’ workforce had been strained due to numerous retirements. The 10 graduates of the class gained valuable work experience through internships to qualify them to work in the court system.

SWCS teamed up at the state level once again with Tennessee Board of Regents and LaunchTN this past summer to offer LaunchCode LC101, a free, 20- week class, that was open to residents of all ages interested in learning technology skills that included coding and web development. More than 800 area residents applied to the class, a LaunchCode record, a little more than 200 were accepted and about 50 eventually graduated with a certificate and 12 hours of course credit at Southwest. “Careers in technology normally require a four-year degree in computer science or a related field,” Brackin said. “We were excited to offer this unique course that opened doors to lucrative careers for those who didn’t have the time or resources to obtain an actual degree. Many of the graduates have already gone from minimum wage jobs to lucrative careers as computer programmers at some of the most successful companies in Memphis.” Often called a “problem solver” by those throughout the college, Brackin, who has more than 20 years of higher education experience in the area of workforce, took the reins of SWCS in February 2018. “I knew that first-off we needed a dedicated, experienced group ready to manage and deliver workforce education and training. Putting those individuals in place has been a primary focus over the past year and a half. Our team has grown and continues to grow as we bring on more subject-matter expert facilitators to develop our programs. It’s appropriate that we recently rebranded the name of our department to Southwest Workforce & Community Solutions, with the key word being solutions,” Brackin said. “ By focusing on career and technical education, we help prepare students with the knowledge and skills required for existing and future jobs. ” — Anita Brackin

Facilitator Kevin Christie provides hands-on PLC skills instruction to Taylor Meador, a student majoring in AIIT.

Brackin, who has found it advantageous to think outside the box when recruiting, brought on board two new directors to focus on workforce development and community engagement and hired five part-time technical program facilitators who run Electrical and Instrumentation, Process Control Technology, Welding, Mechatronics and the SouthwestWORKS program.

“I look for facilitators who are experienced in their field and have a passion for teaching,” Brackin said. “By being flexible, I’ve been able to enlist quality individuals who are retired military or retired from their trade and looking for a part-time schedule. I also have some instructors who still work full time in manufacturing and logistics, but enjoy teaching around their schedules. Many of them have built strong relationships through their industry contacts, and this is a great way for our department to more fully engage in understanding training needs throughout the community.”

In a world of custom program and delivery, SWCS is poised to not only develop and deliver unique programs and services, but remains vigilant about updating training materials and technical equipment systems to deliver world-class training. “Since 2014, Southwest has been the recipient of five Department of Labor grants, which has allowed the school to purchase state-of-the art training systems,” Brackin said. “We continuously review these systems and fill in the gaps with additional equipment so that we can deliver more and better technical programs across multiple sectors. One example is the portable Amatrol trainers Southwest acquired, which allow manufacturing plants and their employees to take electrical, mechanical and other technical skill training onsite.

Having a strong Memphis economy and historically low unemployment is good news, yet, according to Brackin, it also brings new challenges of convincing students, who would greatly benefit from a workforce skills program, to enroll.

“Many individuals who would profit from workforce training are already working and may not understand or be aware of the value of a training program,” Brackin said. “Our programs and certifications can help individuals move up in their organizations, which means greater earning potential. When individuals take the initiative to skill up, companies are able to function more successfully and have more qualified workers to fill open jobs. All around, having a strong workforce is crucial to area businesses and for those considering relocating to Memphis,” Brackin said.

For more information about Southwest Workforce & Community Solutions training courses and other opportunities, visit southwest.tn.edu and click on “Workforce/Ce” or call 901-333-4207. S N