MONROE TWP. — Dr. Joanna Briganti, professor of political science at Monroe County Community College, has been selected to participate in a Fulbright-funded project to Africa through the Midwest Institute for International-Intercultural Education.

Fifteen faculty members competitively selected from 92 community and two-year colleges in the Midwest Institute consortium will spend five weeks this summer visiting Botswana, South Africa and Swaziland.

The project will provide both cognitive and affective learning with overseas colleagues, other professionals and citizens in these three countries for the primary purpose of internationalizing their teaching through curriculum development, according to the Midwest Institute.

Some of the objectives outlined in the project include:

? Having faculty facilitate collaborative projects and exchanges with educational institutions, businesses and government agencies from Botswana, South Africa and Swaziland.

? Expanding the international content of the faculty’s respective college’s curricula.

? Producing a group journal based on the five-week project, and developing a group educational video program on Botswana, South Africa and Swaziland based on their experiences.

The selection process included a multi-page narrative from each applicant that explained how this experience and newly gained knowledge would be used in the classroom.

"My goal is to focus on the election systems of all three countries," said Briganti. "I think this experience can really enhance my curricula by adding an element on comparative government.

"I’m especially excited to be going to a non-western culture and hearing, first-hand, their attitudes about government. I am especially looking forward to visiting Botswana as they have a democratic government known for little or no corruption, and their voter turnout is extremely high."

As excited as Briganti is about the trip and the teaching opportunities she can bring back to her classes at MCCC, she also acknowledges that there are definitely a few aspects of the culture she must keep top of mind.

"I have learned that it is not culturally acceptable to offer or ask opinions about politics or religion unless you have developed a personal relationship with the individual – and then it’s still tentative," she said. "I also learned that it is proper to use both hands when greeting someone instead of extending just your right hand, and that you should never use your left hand to receive or give an object to someone.

"These are important issues for someone who is left handed and whose purpose for visiting these countries is to discover as much as possible about their political structure."

The trip is from June 26 through Aug. 3, and is funded through the U.S. Department of Education, Fulbright-Hays GPA program.