What’s Possible?: Setting the stage in Morocco
From May 15-July 11, 2017, twenty-four students representing nearly every college at UMD pursued their own unique research while in Morocco with Dr. Ryan Goei (Intercultural Communication) and Dr. Dana Lindaman (French Studies) through Student Project for Amity among Nations (SPAN), a unique study abroad program developed over seventy years through the University of Minnesota to focus on sharing life with locals.
Goei and Lindaman credit much of the recent program’s success to that long history, noting: “The University of Minnesota has held a long affiliation with Morocco. That relationship proved an important resource for finding partners for students to work with. These partners helped students with their research, housing, and social life. Our students deepened these relationships and in some cases expanded them. One student’s research connected him to a university specializing in solar energy that we hadn’t partnered with yet. This university is now interested in hosting more of our students.
The program began with a competitive application process including essays and interviews. Students accepted into the program enrolled in a culture preparation course during the spring semester where they worked on research methodologies, language learning, cultural preparedness, and the history and literature of Morocco.
Students began their time abroad with a five-day orientation between Rabat and Fez in which they set up cell phones, checked bank access, and explored the city to physically familiarize themselves with customs they had read about. After orientation, students travelled to their individual partners (researchers, experts, and activists) in various cities in Morocco to conduct their studies. Their diverse research topics included linguistic ideologies in the education system, conduct mediation, and solar energy.
Although Goei and Lindaman had helped set up the research partners for students, students were responsible for setting their own schedule, procuring the required materials and permissions, and conducting the research. Once students left Fez to meet their partners and start their eld work, Goei and Lindaman travelled from city to city to check in with students’ progress, partnerships, and housing. Students could always contact the two professors via phone should something pressing need to be addressed, but the autonomy gave students ownership of their work. That flexibility meant some students could volunteer with a women’s organization in Marrakesh, while others could be doing research on argan trees near Agadir.
A highlight of the program for UMD senior Hailey Stoos-Mohan was “a weekend trip to Tangier where two other SPANners and I stayed with a Moroccan family. Communication was difficult as our host knew very little English. We communicated instead in a mix of broken French/ Spanish and hand gestures...It was great to explore the city through a local’s eyes, visiting an array of places from historical landmarks to her favorite bakery. Additionally, we had the great experience of having Iftar with the family and their friends. The community aspect of the meal (not to mention the food) was fantastic.”
Serendipitously, students visited Morocco during Ramadan. Students were able to observe the way the day’s rhythm followed the shared practice of so many citizens. Students from Ibn Zohr University in Agadir exemplified the Muslim practice of hospitality by inviting SPAN students to partake in and cook Iftar with them. The group gathered around 7:30 p.m., began cooking around 10 p.m., and finally ate around 2 a.m. Those 7.5 hours were filled with rich conversation, shared stories, games, and songs.
Goei and Lindaman acknowledge that autonomous research abroad gave their students an incredible academic and personal experience, one rooted in human connection and academic rigor. Most importantly, students were able to grow as human beings and recognize the shared humanity in their Moroccan counterparts.