Finalist | Hannah Dallman

MEET HANNAH

"The Educator"
IES Abroad Program: Cape Town - University of Cape Town, Spring 2016
College/University: Gettysburg College, Class of 2017
Major: Africana Studies Minor: Educational Studies
Hometown: Fairfax, Virginia

HER STORY

"In my first year of college I learned about the concept of histories and deconstruct the hegemonic narrative in which most of history has been taught. The first time this was introduced to me was in my Education for Social Change class which was followed by reading Freire's Pedagogy of the Oppressed. This was the first time a professor questioned what I had been learning in school and asked me to do the same. That was the landmark shift in my view of education and in my desire to learn about counter-pedagogy and deconstruct it through an Africana Studies lens. At that time I realized I needed to study abroad in the African Diaspora.

My time studying abroad was the epitome of experiential education because the only way to truly learn is to be immersed in history and people and to challenge history one experience at a time. Not only did I study in South Africa once, but twice, and the second time I had a new vigor for the reason I was going. Studying abroad allowed me to confront what I have learned and to look at things with a sense of skepticism that allows for critical thinking. South Africa’s past is so complex and their recent path of forgiveness and reconciliation is a noble feat that relies on multiple histories in order to create a fondness for the complexities in their diverse people.

Citizenship is based loosely on intersectionalities and privileges that remain untouched by those with an advantage and become unsurmountable by those who are subjugated. Global citizenship regards that silence as oppression and routinely challenges the discourse by which people have become accustomed. Studying abroad challenges the theory of normality and student who study abroad in South Africa are shocked with a country with eleven official languages and more diversity and cultures than most countries.

My first semester abroad with SIT in Spring 2015, I was in Durban studying social and political transformation and completing an independent study project. I participated in an internship and study project with PeacePlayers International, a nonprofit organization, in Durban observing the effectiveness of the program from three different aspects. I focused on a case study at one high school and looked at aspirations, mentorship, and leadership in students participating in the program and compared the results to students who were not. My mentor in this project was a Gettysburg alumnus who I had been put in touch with through our study abroad office at school. This unique opportunity to see the inner workings of an international non-governmental organization was invaluable and, without the opportunity to participate directly with this organization and their students, I would have never been able to gather my data and utilize to evaluate program’s impact. Studying in Durban and focusing specifically on social transformation allowed for my research project to identify the unique role that basketball plays in the lives of these students.

On my return from Durban, I joined the Global Leaders of Gettysburg College (GLGC) and shared my experiences abroad with other students and presented to first year classes about global education and my experiences in South Africa. This GLGC also allows for students who studied all across the globe to come together and discuss ‘global citizenship’ and the active nature of such an endeavor. Routinely I encourage students to go abroad and through my enrollment in the Garthwait Leadership Certificate at Gettysburg I am setting up a Study Abroad Symposium targeting first and second year students to talk with study abroad alumni and our international students about possibilities for experiential learning, focusing specifically on non-traditional areas. Not only am I trying to empower students to travel and see more of the world but I also encourage them to look outside the scope of media and question the stories people have heard. It is vital for students not only to study somewhere other than their home institution but also to be able to utilize it when they come back to school.

My semester at the University of Cape Town (UCT) in Spring of 2016 was a unique opportunity to engage in academic and social discourses which IES Abroad facilitated. Studying abroad twice does not make one a global citizen, but it introduces a way of thinking that breeds a certain level of awareness about the importance of the increasing globalization, especially through technology. The unique part of studying at such a prestigious research institution, was the availability of sources that were missing or inaccessible my Western education databases. The difference in sources and scholars that provide multiple viewpoints challenge the hegemonic narrative that is enforced in Western education and further indicate the weaknesses in global education. However, despite these disconnects I have shared new sources with classmates and professors in order to introduce interacting scholarship. Availability of non-traditional sources is minimal and even less is prevalent regarding South African history.

At UCT I utilized my passion for education in the South African setting to join the Equal Education Society, Disrupting Whiteness Talks, Investment Society, and joined different conversations relating to student activism and unrest regarding both fees and student sexual assault. Not only did IES Abroad encourage joining societies on the campus but the conversations that I had with people in these societies and within my residential hall discussed modes of change. At my residence I made friends with most of the people in both sides of the halls and encouraged the other IES Abroad students to do the same. Because of this, we had the first farewell party to IES Abroad students since 1994, a truly touching moment. My time at UCT was made by the people that I met through the program, my residential hall, and through classes on campus. Without the oversaturation of American prominence, I was able to focus on engaging in discourse and to redefine the purpose of why I was here in each conversation.

The penultimate aspect of my semester at UCT occurred on the flight home when I met a woman whose husband, a founder of mElimu, was working with mobile learning in Kenya and was looking for an intern. The company is a growing social enterprise focused on mobile education and e-Learning technology called mElimu. mElimu is an innovative solution to improve access to quality education with technology driven efficiency based out of India and currently focusing on Sub-Saharan and Eastern Africa. I created a business development internship with mElimu detailing specifications and responsibilities and have now been interning with them for five months. Working on different projects and trying to expand relationships with new companies and people has been the crux of my position. I have worked on a myriad of deals creating spreadsheets, writing letters, methodologies, reaching out to partners, and creating detailed information briefs for potential clients. Most recently I created four scripts that we are putting into production for mElimu campaigns.

For my senior thesis I am looking at the youth bulge in Sub-Saharan Africa, specifically focusing on South Africa and identifying mobile education and e-learning as one solution to low education levels. I am intertwining my time at UCT and the FeesMustFall Movement that I have seen firsthand and my experience with my current internship that creates a university-in-a-box solution for both learners and teachers. For me this culmination of my undergraduate experience is the perfect example of a global education because it started with one professor who taught me that there is more than one history, and I went out to find out what he meant. Then I studied in Durban and Cape Town where I learned through professors, historic sources, personal experiences, and through the beautiful people around me. Finally, I am working with people who value education in Sub-Saharan Africa and I am further exploring the impact such organizations could have on South Africa. I am writing from the Motherland, a coffee shop in Cape Town, and I have every intention of coming back."

Feeling inspired? Meet our next Finalist, John Luke, The Activist, and Sydni, our Global Citizen of the Year.