Social Work students, Alyssa Summerson and Emily Nadeau’s PowerPoint presetnation on their trip to Tanzania
As the university held the 17th annual University Day on April 11, 2018, social work students Alyssa Summerson and Emily Nadeau took the floor to present their work, “This is Tanzania.” Being a part of the UMPI Social Work program, the presenters took the opportunity to travel to Tanzania for a spring service-learning trip. There, students had the opportunity to practice service-learning work in the community, including work in an orphanage. University Day served as an excellent event for Summerson and Nadeau to share their global experience with peers, faculty and other social work students who will participate in the trip in the future.
Summerson and Nadeau began their presentation with a bit of an icebreaker. They asked audience members to stand up if they have ever been to another country, and then those who have been outside of the state. Although it was clear to see that many people have been to another state, there were very few people standing who had been outside the country. Presenters made their point clear that it is rare to get the chance to travel to another country and that they were eager to share their life-changing experience with the audience.
After this icebreaker, presenters segued into their PowerPoint presentation. They described their lengthy plane ride to the country, as it was 7,222 miles and consisted of a seven-hour time change. Students were able to fill this passing time, however, with lots of coffee and ice cream on their long commute. Presenters acknowledged that this expedition was expensive, and they had many people to thank for helping them reach their final destination. In order for the entire trip to take place, students fundraised throughout the year, with fundraisers such as selling Christmas stars and GOFUNDME. Family and friends were also major contributors. With all of the money from fundraisers and donations, the students were able to successfully travel to Tanzania, with the purpose of completing their junior placement hours.
Not only did the presenters get to fulfill their junior placement fieldwork of 200 hours, but Summerson and Nadeau explained that this trip was the foundation of their new friendship. After attending an informational meeting prior to the trip, the women, who had never met, both looked at each other and knew that they wanted to go. The commonality of wanting to help others is not only what led them to Tanzania, but was an important aspect of their new friendship. Both presenters were eager to attend the trip to Tanzania so that they could be proactive, defeat stereotypes, stand for a social change and learn about a different country.
The presenters then described what life was like once they got to Tanzania, the first major element being food. Students typically ate rice, beans, fruits and vegetables, but were able to have milkshakes and pizza once a week to satisfy homesickness cravings. Students also had to adjust to “Africa time,” which the presenters described as “you get there when you get there.”
Students participating in the trip understood the importance of respecting the culture of the people in Tanzania, as they wore long dresses and covered their tattoos. The presenters described what they thought to be the most rewarding part of the trip: helping at the orphanage. There were three different orphanage houses: one for babies, one for toddlers and one for older children. By conducting this service work, social work students were able to get out of their comfort zones, experienced being a minority in a different country and gained experience for their future careers.
Throughout the presentation, Summerson and Nadeau made the audience continually laugh as they told stories of seeing, “Oh my God, they do exist” animals, witnessing bugs explode from ketchup bottles and having horrendous spider sightings.
Audience members thoroughly enjoyed the presentation, as student Lauren Chapman said, “I felt that both Alyssa and Emily displayed the passion they had for the work they did in Tanzania through their presentation. It was great to hear about their experience and the opportunity that they had to go on this trip through the social work program.” Joshua Williams, who has previously been to a presentation on students’ visit to Tanzania, said, “It seems like a great opportunity to travel, serve and see people in another country.”
Presenter Alyssa Summerson described her thoughts on the presentation as she explained, “Overall, I think the presentation went great. I love being able to share my experience with everyone. It was a rare opportunity that I was able to be a part of!”
