CIE

E

Spring 2014, Issue 1

Service-Learning, DR

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PARADIGMS OF DEVELOPMENT

Welcome to the CIEE Service-Learning Program in Santiago, Dominican Republic! This

program provides students with the analytical tools to engage in participatory service,

and the skills to process and reflect upon their experiences and actions. Through a com-

bination of coursework, field work, internships, and a variety of cultural activities and

excursions, studying abroad with this program offers a uniquely challenging, immersive,

and rewarding intercultural experience.

In this first newsletter, students were asked to reflect on paradigms of development they

explored during an excursion to Santo Domingo. Read on to find out what students

learned about economic, human, grass-roots, and international development during this

enriching visit to the nation’s capital.

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contents

The Key to Freedom

-Addie Pendergast, Eckerd College

“I’m Here to Help you Fix your Problems”

-Josh Holt, Wofford College

International Development:

A Day in the Life of a Peace Corps Volunteer

-Ana Brambila, Elon University

Making Ties to Break Ties

-Calli Johnson, University of Colorado Boulder

A Day in the Life of an Alumni-Intern

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Class and Staff Updates

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8

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Sugar was brought to Hispaniola by Christopher Columbus on

his second voyage to the New World in 1493. By 1530, two

million pounds were being exported to Spain each year. Sugar

was the most advanced industry of its time, and a variety of

intricate machinery, slave manpower, and the island’s tropical

climate were all tools in facilitating its massive production

(Guitar 1). Hundreds of Spaniards profited from the exploitation

of African and Native human lives, forcing them to live in inhu-

man and often unbearably uncomfortable conditions for profit.

For example, slaves working at Boca de Nigua, an 18th-century

sugar ingenio (mill) outside of Santo Domingo that we had the

opportunity to visit, were chained to the walls in the basement

of the boiling house to keep them from running away while

working with the excruciatingly hot ovens. Until the abolition of

slavery in the Dominican Republic in 1801, human beings were

forced to work against their will for all of their lives, never know-

ing the joy of freedom. One important method of subduing and

dehumanizing these slaves was to deny them the right of edu-

cation, knowing that without this tool of empowerment, revolt

would be more difficult. Without the ability to read and com-

municate through writing, an entire universe was closed, one

that was crucial to independence. Today, people look back on

this era with horror. How could we as a human race have not

only allowed these atrocities to occur, but also have condoned

them? Each year tourists view these places, filled with the

memories of a past era, and claim that events such as this will

never recur.

Unfortunately, even with the dawn of new technology,

knowledge, ideologies, and rights activism, the human race

often seems to have made little progress when it comes to the

treatment of fellow global citizens. Society has developed, and

focuses have shifted, but in many cases living conditions have

not. A prominent example of this is the frequency of sweatshop

labor, especially in places where people do not have the re-

sources to fully defend themselves. Workers are often subject-

ed to exploitation, safety hazards, verbal and physical abuse,

and salaries too minimal to support even the most basic of

needs. This is a cycle of desperation that traps workers in un-

sustainable and agonizing lifestyles. Similarly, they do not have

the option to attain an education, often never even learning how

to read. As with the people on the sugar ingenios, this only

exacerbates the growing inequalities between the rich and the

poor, the “haves” and the “have nots,” the contemporary world’s

version of slavery. The doors to a better life are sealed shut.

These circumstances are only one heartbreaking result of the

lack of general knowledge and concern of the often careless

process of globalization, which tends to place human beings

Addie Pendergast

Anthropology

“I am not a teacher, but an

awakener.”

― Robert Frost

THE KEY TO FREEDOM

5

behind income. However, if people search deeply enough, they

will find some hope in this bleak situation.

One of these rays of light is Alta Gracia Apparel, a clothing fac-

tory in Altagracia, Dominican Republic, that provides products

for college bookstores in the United States. With increasing

support, Alta Gracia has the potential to take on major brands

such as Nike, that commonly use sweatshop labor. Workers

here are provided with three times the minimum wage, exten-

sive overtime pay, adequate ventilation inside of the factory,

potable water, overhead lighting, and comfortable chairs. In

addition to fair working conditions, the company and the union

sponsor employee workshops about worker’s rights, HIV pre-

vention, and provide vaccination programs (Dreier). Another key

benefit of Alta Gracia is that all employees are strongly encour-

aged to pursue their own educations. Employers do not thrive

off of holding information over their worker’s heads or using

superior knowledge as power, but provide employees with the

resources and time to educate themselves. The people involved

in this organization truly work together to provide all involved

with a better life and chance at success.

My work and studies in the Dominican Republic have provided

me with first-hand examples of some of the amazing organiza-

tions that fight for the rights of those who often seem to be for-

gotten by the majority of the world. This semester I am working

with Niños con una Esperanza (NCUE), an after-school pro-

gram that provides a safe place for children in jeopardizing situ-

ations, strongly stresses the power of education. Their name

means “kids with a hope,” and their work fights to break the

cycle of poverty and to provide youth with a hope for their future

and the tools to succeed. They seek not to simply provide aid,

but to help children to utilize the gift and power of an education.

Children at NCUE must stay in school, and frequent meetings

are held with teachers to ensure progress. They are provided

with a healthy environment to learn, the support to continue

their educations, and more opportunities to succeed in their

adult lives. The people of NCUE are working toward positive

and sustainable development, not development that exploits

and perpetuates violence and poverty. They provide testimony

to the fact that with support and knowledge, individual lives can

be improved tremendously.

These types of organizations are those that demonstrate that

development and advancements do not need to be a negative

or harmful thing for those not born into certain favorable circum-

stances. Although one may see the cycle of history and become

discouraged, there is a more positive future if organizations like

this are supported with time and service, and if the value of edu-

cation, not simply manual labor, is stressed, funded, and recog-

nized.

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Ana Brambila

Human Services

During a two-day visit to Santo Domingo, Dominican Republic,

we explored the four paradigms of development through the

economic, grassroots, educational, and international perspec-

tives. During the trip, we had the opportunity to meet with the

Peace Corps and hear about their experiences, and learn a little

more about the program. They explained that the Peace Corps

was created in 1960, by President John F. Kennedy. The or-

ganization was created to help people from interested countries

meet their needs through the help of trained volunteers. The

goal is that both the recipient and the provider of the service

gain a mutual understanding of other cultures and become

more culturally aware citizens. The volunteers in the Peace

Corps are expected to meet the needs of the community by

creating a sustainable project. They construct their project ide-

as, find their own resources, and collaborate with other organi-

zations to help accomplish the goals of their project. They must

live and work in their assigned communities for two years

(Peace Corp, 2013). Once I heard the history, I immediately

thought of the international paradigm we are learning about

because of the work the volunteers do worldwide.

During the meeting, the volunteers had a lot to say and the

more they shared, it quickly became evident that this Service

Learning program through the Council of International Educa-

tional Exchange (CIEE) is undeniably similar. All of the goals

the Peace Corps Volunteers are expected to accomplish are

similar to the goals we are expected to accomplish, except in-

stead of having two years to do it, we only have four months.

While listening to the talk, I wondered; was this even possible?

How would we do this in only four months? The more I thought

about it, I didn’t think it was possible. The Peace Corps volun-

teers have two years to develop a sustainable project. They

have the time and room for trial and error, and we don’t.

I saw time as one of our biggest challenges until one of the vol-

unteers mentioned something that really stuck with me. The

volunteers commented that one of the challenges they had to

overcome was dealing with the misconceptions that community

members have about service. This was an idea that had never

crossed my mind. Most of the community members thought that

as volunteers they were there to give material goods or provide

a service. The volunteers said that they really struggled getting

their community to understand that they weren’t there to fulfill

an altruistic purpose, but that they were there to create a sus-

tainable project that they could be a part of. Peace Corps Vol-

INTERNATIONAL DEVELOPMENT

A Day in the Life of a Peace Corps Volunteer

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unteers also wanted community members to understand that

they were key actors in the project and that it couldn’t be done

without them. Once this issue was brought to my attention, I

started to question what perception the community members

had of us as CIEE students and how this would affect us. I con-

cluded that I would have to work twice as hard to become more

than just a typical volunteer providing a service, but instead

become a part of the community.

Essentially, the meeting with the Peace Corps Volunteers was a

great resource. They were able to share very important tips to

help us meet our goals. Since we weren’t assigned to live within

our community, they said that it would probably be a little more

difficult for us to connect and directly identify the community’s

needs and assets, so they suggested spending a lot of time

within our community. They also told us to not get frustrated and

understand that it is okay for us to ask for help; we aren’t ex-

pected to know all the answers. They emphasized the im-

portance of not getting down on ourselves and to always keep

in mind our purpose and our goals. The volunteers said that we

will find ourselves getting overwhelmed at times and frustrated

by the lack of participation from the community members, but

really the only way to combat this is to find supporters within the

community by talking and taking the time to get to know differ-

ent people. By taking the time to get to know community mem-

bers, it will be easier to identify the community’s strengths and

identify leaders who can help you reach out to others. This

could ultimately determine the success of our projects and the

investment the community members will put into the project.

“The more I pondered, I finally

came to the conclusion that I

would have to work twice as hard

to become more than just a typi-

cal volunteer providing a service,

but instead become a part of the

community.”

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THE ServiceTHE Service--Learning TrackLearning Track

Advanced Spanish Students are immersed in Spanish throughout every aspect of their experience!

Their Spanish course is the “glue” of all the classes, designed to be conversation-

focused to complement the community aspect of the program.

Social Research Methods

This course introduces students to methods social scientists use in their research.

Students conduct participatory community-based social research under the guid-

ance of a research committee comprised of university professors, the Resident Di-

rector, and NGO site supervisor. At the end of the semester, the results of the re-

search are presented to important constituents in the community and partner organ-

ization.

Directed Independent Field Research and Capstone Project

This course is a compilation of semester’s work divided into two parts: the written

component of the student’s field research and a tangible Capstone project. Students

learn to demonstrate and apply what they have learned throughout the program;

and to collaborate with the organization in which their service was performed.

Development and Globalization: DR Case Study This experiential learning course uses the Dominican Republic as a lens to explore

issues of human, economic, social, and political development with a focus on is-

sues of sustainability. Students are provided a better understanding of theories of

poverty and underdevelopment in both national and international contexts.

Community Advocacy Internship This course offers an introduction to different schools of thought regarding leader-

ship in community empowerment and sustainable development. The practical por-

tion of the course provides students the opportunity to work with a community-

based organization or NGO in an already existing program or project related to indi-

vidual students’ academic interests.

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CIEE SL Welcomes new staff!CIEE SL Welcomes new staff!

Academic Director:

Mercedes Muñ oz

Mercedes joined our staff team last semester after

previous Resident Director, Elaine Acacio, took a

new job at the University of Oregon. As Academic

Director, Mercedes teaches both the Capstone and

Community Advocacy Internship courses and

works with our Community Partners. Mercedes

holds a B.A. equivalent in Communications from

PUCMM and a Masters Degree in Sustainable

Development and Social Responsibility from La

Escuela de Organizacion Industrial in Madrid. The

CIEE SL DR program is lucky to have such a well-

rounded and compassionate person to work with,

and extends a warm welcome to Mercedes!

Alumni Intern:

Courtñey Newsome

Since her time as a student in our program in the

fall of 2011, Courtney received a B.A. in Social

Work from Warren Wilson College, and directly

after graduation began working for a non-profit

organization to promote physical fitness through

structured, safe, and fun recess in schools

throughout New York City. This semester Courtney

has returned to the D.R. to join the CIEE team as

Alumni Intern and brings with her unique skills in

group facilitating, writing, and collaborating.

Congratulations Courtney— we are excited to have

you back!

*Note: Mercedes previously worked as the Director of the Inter-national Student Office at PUCMM (La Pontifícia Universidad Católica Madre y Maestra), the prestigious university where our students study and staff offices are located.

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Josh Holt

Spanish

U.S. American aid workers and service learning students

gain awareness of misconceptions of their roles while

working abroad. These perceptions shared by both the

U.S. Americans and locals can hinder drastically not only

communication but human development. Human develop-

ment is known as both the “process of widening people’s

choices and the level of their achieved well-being,” while

focusing on “the formation of human capabilities, such as

improved health or knowledge and the use that people

make of their acquired capabilities, for work or lei-

sure” (Sabina Alkire). Human development is one of the

main principles that aid workers, such as Peace Corps rep-

resentatives and I, a Service-Learning student working in

Hoya del Caimito, Santiago, employ within their prospec-

tive communities and/or projects. Along with this defini-

tion of human development sometimes comes a miscon-

ception. This misconception may lay within the aid

worker/student or within the community; it is an “I’m here

to help you fix your problems” misconception.

Peace Corps representatives, during our trip to Santo Do-

mingo, divulged to our CIEE-Service Learning group of stu-

dents that these certain misconceptions of U.S. Americans

workers and students are common among developing

communities. This “I’m here to help you fix all your prob-

lems” misconception is not, nor ever was, an objective of

the Peace Corps, which is why for the first month the rep-

resentatives do nothing but build relationships in order to

gain support, form relationships, and develop trust within

the community. Each volunteer’s job during his or her stay

is development. They aim to not “fix problems” but to

work with the community to achieve sustainability and

human, economic, and environmental development. For

example, one of the projects the Peace Corps representa-

tives initiated was building an environmentally sustainable

stove, which would decrease the amount of smoke in the

kitchen by filtering the smoke outside. In order to begin

the project, the aid workers spend a month working with

the community, organizing meetings and charlas (small

presentations, or talks) that get the community involved

and working. Their next steps, after building relationships

“I’M HERE TO HELP YOU FIX YOUR PROBLEMS”

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with the community, are to provide educational forums and

begin the work. The community provides all of the material

and labor, with the help and guided influence of the aid

worker. This establishes the expectation that the community

is doing the work, with the help of the aid worker, not the

other way around. This collaborative process provides with-

in the community a mentality of sustainability that will con-

tinue when the aid worker leaves, meaning community

members are better educated with information and a tangi-

ble product/project that they can now continue to distribute

in their community. This service-learning process helps com-

bat the “I’m here to help you fix all your problems” mentali-

ty in both the community and the aid worker.

Our similar yet smaller scaled program, which focuses on the

same facets of development, CIEE Service-Learning, Santiago

Dominican Republic, takes students from the States and

places them within local developing communities to re-

search and work alongside the community to find sustaina-

ble ways to develop and improve the lives of the inhabitants

within the community. I have been placed in a community

called Hoya del Caimito, specifically with a local group of

artisans called Arte a Mano, where I am trying to help pro-

vide perspectives and information in order to help the arti-

sans improve their association. I am not fixing their prob-

lems, but pointing out potential challenges and working

with them to find sustainable solutions. This group of mainly

women produces and sells beautiful artwork and crafts

made mostly from recycled materials. In my placement, I

have studied their interactions and worked with them on

tangible aspects like understanding their clients, demon-

strating professionalism in their sales, improving their

presentation of products, and gaining community aware-

ness. Our goals are to ultimately improve/broaden sales and

improve group communication.

This work at times can very easily be mistaken as me, the

U.S. American, here to “fix all their problems,“ which is why

our courses are focused on sustainable development and

not charity. I collaborate with the artisans and encourage

them to take initiatives like interacting with clients. This is an

attempt to engage in both reciprocity (service and learning)

and solidarity in order to achieve or make progress toward

sustainable development. I work to build support, relation-

ships, and trust. I have found myself in similar positions as

the Peace Corps workers, where I have had to observe inter-

actions, build relationships, organize charlas (community

talks), and interviews to help complete my research and a

project that will increase Arte a Mano’s knowledge of their

consumers. This is in hopes that I will be able to leave some-

thing with the group after I leave. The whole idea here is to

walk alongside the community or group to help form human

capabilities and the use of those capabilities in order to de-

velop ideas/projects/goals that are sustainable.

Both these initiatives are linked by the goal of human devel-

opment. These are not charity ventures or free imperialistic

handouts to a “developing” country, rather they are com-

munity and relationship-based, academically supported pro-

jects that encourage both reciprocal service and learning

that not only teaches the student or Peace Corps worker,

but also the community. While the participant learns how to

work alongside the community, the community learns how

to perceive the U.S. American in new ways: they are not

there to “fix all their problems,” but rather as an eager-to-

learn agent assisting the community to develop not only

better lives but sustainable human capabilities.

“The whole idea here is to walk alongside

the community or group to help form

human capabilities and the use of those

capabilities in order to develop ideas/

projects/goals that are sustainable.”

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In the late 15th century, Spain began their enterprise of colo-

nizing the new world, beginning with the island of Hispaniola. The

Spanish people came with means necessary to sustain them-

selves in this new environment as well as plans to further fuel the

Spanish economy through exportations. They quickly took ad-

vantage of the climate of Hispaniola for sugar cane production.

As part of a weekend excursion to Santo Domingo, we traveled

to the heart and soul of this early Caribbean sugar production,

the ingenios (sugar plantations) of Engombe and Boca de Nigua.

These were strictly organized establishments with a straightfor-

ward goal, and they needed manpower. This need was largely

filled by bringing boats full of African people to the island.

At these sites, Dr. Lynne Guitar was able to draw a detailed pic-

ture of how these ingenios functioned. Key parts included the

mills and the large ovens. The mills Lynne described needed

constant force to run. In the same way livestock were exhausted,

the ingenio masters forced humans to power these large wheels,

Calli Johnson

Psychology and Sociology

MAKING TIES TO BREAK TIES MAKING TIES TO BREAK TIES MAKING TIES TO BREAK TIES

13

many of them losing their limbs or even their lives in the pro-

cess. After years of ups and downs, slave revolts, and other

turmoil, the island transferred to using what was called the

“French system.” This name is entirely euphemistic. Through

this system, slaves ceased to be seen as any more than a

means to an end. It was a sick system gone mad. In this altered

system, the slaves were literally worked to death. The average

life span was seven years. The value of a human life was

based on dollars. The cheaper the “materials,” the larger the

profit. At the final ingenio we visited, haphazardly spread be-

tween the nooks of ruins that facilitated so much blood, sweat,

and tears, we listened to a story. The people of Boca Nigua did

not accept their conditions. They fought back. It was a story of

rebellion, of a people rising up to tackle something sick and

unjust. Though there had been many failed attempts at rebel-

lion, particular to the people of Boca Nigua were themes of lib-

erty in nearby Haiti and dreams of democracy and a better fu-

ture. Today Boca Nigua stands as a historical side representing

hope and revolution.

Though ingenios were one of the earlier, more extreme forms

of human exploitation, many modern production practices today

are a loud echo of these events. Even after 500 years, it seems

that the tie between financial growth and exploitation are still as

thick as ever. According to the International Labor Organization,

over 21 million people are victims of modern slavery. This

means that across the world, people of different demographics

are subject to physical and mental abuse in the workplace. The-

se abuses can exist on small to large scales. Many high profile

companies perpetrate these crimes, often times with little

knowledge that this is the case of the effects of their own ac-

tions. This abuse is especially prevalent in the manufacturing of

clothing, hence the commonality of the word “sweatshop.” In

numerous countries, laborers in these environments are over-

worked, underpaid, and forced to work in dangerous conditions.

One of our first stops in Santo Domingo was the Alta Gracia

Project, a company that works to change the definition of

“sweatshop”. They define their products as “living wage appar-

el.” Alta Gracia exists as a sign of hope and, most importantly,

progress. During our visit, many of the workers at Alta Gracia

expressed the belief that Alta Gracia functions like a family,

promoting the importance of the human side of economics.

Though there is a hierarchical relationship between employer

and employee, this gap is somewhat bridged. The atmosphere

here is far from your average sweatshop. It is clean, organized,

and what’s more, people seem to be having a good time. The

people of Alta Gracia seemed satisfied with their work, and

more importantly, they seem empowered.

Alta Gracia could end their work by simply paying their workers

a fair wage and setting a positive example. However, they have

gone steps further to create knowledge and promote change.

They have paired with other companies, schools and local gov-

ernments to get the word out there about an alternate form of

clothing production, and it has worked. The Workers Rights

Consortium (WRC) was formed on the basis of student activ-

ism. Its goal was to monitor and inform. Today the WRC per-

forms in-depth investigations of clothing production factories

that ship to the United States and Canada. Many universities

that have made promises to uphold certain ethical standards

would not be able to do so without the work of WRC, displaying

that even good intention is useless without knowledge.

It is work such as this that demonstrates knowledge as the key

to erasing exploitation from the formula for economic success.

Rapid globalization has made it even easier for the means, the

workers who are often oceans away, to become extremely

“By closely interacting with my own

community and observing the work of

my peers, I have also seen the effect

that a bit of knowledge can do to

empower a people.”

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detached from the end product. It is the same problem that ex-

isted hundreds of years ago. In the case of ingenios, the own-

ers of the properties rarely lived in the same place as the pro-

duction site, choosing instead to live far away, removed from

the everyday atrocities, in urban Santo Domingo or even in

Spain. It is often the ease of turning a blind eye that allows the-

se atrocities to be perpetuated. However, organizations like

WRC and Alta Gracia demonstrate the desire of many consum-

ers, and often “higher ups” of production companies, to create

and consume more consciously. These organizations, and oth-

ers like them, make an effort to observe and report their find-

ings, to lend an eye to the formerly blind in hopes of making an

impact through information.

Though constantly conflicted by my role as a U.S. American

abroad, it does give me a unique perspective on foreign rela-

tionships: a domain of conflicting world views and differing sto-

ries of the paths of production and consumption. Often compla-

cent with our own routines, roles in the economic chain, and

general beliefs, it is easy to get stuck looking through a single

lens, ignoring, whether out of naivety or detached apathy, the

larger picture. By closely interacting with my own community

and observing the work of my peers at a local community hospi-

tal in Santiago, I have also seen the effect that a bit of

knowledge can do to empower a people, thus proving the age-

old adage true: Knowledge is power. Though certainly complex,

it is the idea of creating cross-cultural solidarity that is so im-

portant, of creating a global discourse of knowledge and under-

standing so that problems, and most importantly people, cannot

be ignored. It’s not easy. It’s not simple, and it most often takes

time and dedication, but by choosing knowledge over naivety

and lives over dollars, the chains of slavery and all human ex-

ploitation can be broken.

For more information, see:

http://altagraciaapparel.com/

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A Day in the Life of an Alumni Intern

MORNING

7:00 AM: Julia hears the muffled sound of car horns and people

shuffling in the streets outside her apartment window, a sign that it’s

time to get up and start the day. She gets dressed and joins her room-

mates (Courtney, our new Alumni Intern, and Tommy, our Resident

Coordinator) in the kitchen for breakfast. Over a cup of organic, bio-

dynamic coffee from Rio Limpio (one of our rural partner communi-

ties), they discuss the agenda for the day.

8:30 AM: To arrive at the program’s office in PUCMM (the local uni-

versity), Julia and her co-workers crowd into a concho (public trans-

portation car). Once they arrive, Julia and Courtney sit down to plan

the next reflection they will facilitate during an upcoming excursion

to the Southwest region of the country.

10:00 AM: Julia steps out of the office to visit a student working with

one of our partner organizations, Acción Callejera (a non-profit that

seeks to improve the lives of children who work and/or live on the

street). Throughout the semester, Julia observes students’ level of

engagement in their community practicum and serves as a liaison be-

tween the students and our community partners.

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AFTERNOON

12:30 PM: Time to break for lunch and siesta! Julia feasts on la

bandera dominicana (literally this means “Dominican flag,” and it re-

fers to the traditional meal of rice, beans, and meat).

3:00 PM: Courtney and Julia head to the Community Advocacy Intern-

ship class, where they are teaching assistants. Throughout the semes-

ter, they plan and lead various workshops to provide students with

tangible skills that will serve them in their community work here and

in possible future career paths. Today, they are leading a workshop on

how to apply for a grant.

5:30 PM: Julia, Courtney, and Tommy head home, satisfied, after a

long, productive day of work. Back at the apartment, they check in

briefly about how the day went and what they need to get done to-

morrow. Then they make dinner, eat together, watch some television,

and goof around!

Are YOU a CIEE Service-Learning Alumni?

Do you want to come back to the Dominican Republic to work as an intern?

Contact Resident/Intern Coordinator, Tommy DeMarco at tdemarco@ciee.org.

18

For more information, contact:

CIEE Advisor: Jensine Fraser, jfraser@ciee.org

Center Director: Lynne Guitar, lguitar@ciee.org

Academic Director: Mercedes Muñoz, mmunoz@ciee.org

Resident Coordinator: Tommy DeMarco, tdemarco@ciee.org

Program Assistant: Dorka Tejada, dtejada@ ciee.org

Alumni Intern: Julia Rubin, slintern@ciee.org

Alumni Intern: Courtney Newsome, slintern@ciee.org

Visit CIEE Service-Learning

to learn more!

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