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Society, Politics and Culture in South Africa

Society, Politics and Culture in South Africa

The Eastern Cape of South Africa has a rich cultural tradition (Xhosa, Afrikaans and British) and a fascinating pre-colonial, colonial, and postcolonial history. It also boasts incomparable natural beauty and a wide variety of ecosystems: lush coastal areas with stunning beaches, the austere dry Karoo, and thickly forested mountain ranges. Founded as a garrison in 1812 on the old Eastern Frontier where the British Empire met the Xhosa people, Grahamstown is a charming, historic town. Today it is a major education and legal center. Grahamstown is close to the Addo Elephant National Park and is surrounded by a range of Game Reserves. The town offers the visitor a snapshot of South Africa—its history of splendor and misery, human achievement and suffering.

Rhodes University

Rhodes University is one of the oldest South African universities, celebrating its centenary in 2004. It strongly resembles a premier U.S. liberal arts college: it is both small, with just over 6000 students, and at the same time boasts an impressive faculty in terms of both teaching and research. The student body is racially mixed, even as the university has the highest percentage of foreign African students (i.e. not from South Africa) in a South African university (25%). The University is set in a beautiful and safe campus and offers comfortable accommodation and modern facilities.

Program Director

Byron Caminero-Santangelo is an associate professor in the department of English. His research focuses on 20th-century British and African literature, postcolonial theory and literature, critical theory and ecocriticism.

Academic Program

The International Summer School at Rhodes University offers a rigorous study abroad program with the following features: an intensive introduction to recent South African history, politics, and culture combined with a focus on a special topic (Poverty and Development Policies in an Arid Zone, The SA HIV/Aids Epidemic, Changing Environments and Environmental Education), hands-on field experience or service learning, and the opportunity to see inaccessible parts of South Africa. For a detailed overview of the program, please visit the website at http://www.ru.ac.za/international/

Courses Offered

Students earn a total of six credit hours in the following subjects:

ENGL 526: Recent South African Fiction (3 credit hours)
This course offers an introduction to contemporary South African fiction. Students will be reading texts by and exploring the relationships among some of the most important South African literary voices—Nadine Gordimer, Athol Fugard, Zakes Mda, Zoe Wicomb—as they reflect on the country's society and politics. At the same time, the course will afford students the opportunity to discuss and reinforce what they learned during their study in South Africa.

AAAS 320: Topics in African Studies (3 credit hours)
Taught by Rhodes University faculty, this course will consist of three modules. The first will constitute an intense introduction to the background needed to understand the complexities, problems, promises and challenges of modern South Africa. A week-long immersion in South African art and culture, with an emphasis on contemporary music and the post-1994 novel comprises the second module. For the third module, students are allowed to select from a choice of three thematically oriented modules which will also include excursions and community service.

Cultural Activities

Integrated into the courses taken at Rhodes University are several excursions in and around Grahamstown. During the first week of study, students will visit a Game Reserve. The second week will comprise a week-long immersion in South African Art and Culture through participation in the Grahamstown National Arts Festival. During the third and fourth weeks of study, site visits will vary depending upon the chosen program module.

Accommodations

All accommodation in Grahamstown is provided in single rooms in student residences on campus. During excursions, accommodation is in Bed and Breakfasts. While in the student residences in Grahamstown, full board is available in a dining hall. While on excursions, meals will be provided.

Dates

Depart US: June 19, 2008
Arrive Grahamstown: June 20, 2008
Depart Grahamstown for US: July 19, 2008

Eligibility

Open to KU students in good academic standing. Minimum 3.0 GPA required.

Credit

Six hours of undergraduate credit are granted by the University of Kansas upon successful completion of the program.

Cost

Program fee: Approximately $4,320.
The program fee includes tuition and fees at Rhodes University, transportation to and from Port Elizabeth, housing, meals, excursions, local transportation, cultural programs, emergency medical evacuation and repatriation services, orientation, and administrative costs.

Tuition and Fees: Estimated tuition and fees for 3 credit hours (based on standard tuition rate): $584 *

*Actual expenses for KU students will vary by the student’s individual tuition compact. Non-KU students will pay the standard tuition rate listed above.

Additional costs: Airfare, passport fees, incidental personal expenses and health insurance.

Note

All dates, costs, and program information are subject to change as necessary due to fluctuations in the exchange rate or other reasons.

Financial Aid

KU students who qualify for summer financial aid in the form of Stafford and/or other loans, Pell or SEOG Grants, and scholarships may apply the aid to the cost of a Study Abroad Program.

Limited supplemental scholarships are available to KU undergraduates. Applications are available at the Office of Study Abroad. You can also download the scholarship application. The scholarship application deadline is March 1.

Non-KU students should check into the financial resources available to them at their home institutions.

Application Procedures

Application Deadline: March 1, 2008. Early application is strongly encouraged.

Applications are available in the KU Office of Study Abroad. You can also download the application.

(Adobe Acrobat Reader is required to download an application. If your computer does not have Acrobat Reader you can download it for FREE.)

For more information contact:

Byron Caminero-Santangelo, Program Director
Department of English
Phone: 785-864-2579
e-mail: bsantang@ku.edu

The University of Kansas
Office of Study Abroad
Lippincott Hall
1410 Jayhawk Blvd. Room 108
Lawrence, KS 66045-7515
phone: 785-864-3742
fax: 785-864-5040
e-mail: osa@ku.edu