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Western Connecticut students welcomed Mar. 21, 2006 NEW YORK —
Nine students from Western Connecticut State University came together last week to participate in an experiential learning program organized by Franciscans International. The three-day intensive program, titled “Step into the World” and held in New York, focused on global issues, particularly poverty, women's rights and immigration. Students took a hands-on approach to global issues by participating in direct service projects and a series of informational workshops. The students spent one morning serving meals at Holy Apostles Soup Kitchen in downtown Manhattan and also spent a day assisting program organizers at the Henry Street Settlement, a 110-year-old social services organization that tackles urban poverty. They were accompanied by Campus Ministry Director Friar Mike Lasky, OFM Conv, and Dr Walter Bernstein, Vice President of Student Affairs. The program coincided with the final days of the United Nation's Commission on the Status of Women and the students had the opportunity to meet with Patricia Brister, the United States' chief delegate to the CSW to discuss issues related to women's rights. In addition to learning about a variety of international issues and witnessing first-hand the effects of poverty, the students were also exposed to the tenants of Franciscan spirituality and Catholic Social Teaching and were able to hear about the work of both FI and grassroots Franciscans. Fr Michael Perry, FI Africa Region Coordinator, gave a presentation on the role of spirituality in confronting global issues. The students also met with Sr Liliane Alam, FMM, the Executive Director of Las Americas, an organization working with detained children on the border between El Paso, Texas and Juarez, Mexico. Alison Jones, Advocacy Officer on Africa, gave presentations on the genocide in Darfur and the 20-year-old conflict in northern Uganda. She says she was encouraged by the students' enthusiasm and willingness to take what they had discovered in the program back to their campus. “The students already have an Africa-related event planned for April back at Western Connecticut State,” Jones said. “They took very seriously what they learned and what they were exposed to during their time in the city.” |
