"Professor Arntson's team building exercises and classes about group dynamics were invaluable. They gave our team the same vocabulary and tools to mediate conflicts and make decisions while abroad and helped us understand each other's motivations."
- Catherine Wu
"I will always treasure my home-stay experience. I became very close with my siblings and loved having a large family. I learned that wherever you are, a family is a family and life is lived day to day."
- Ellen Abrams
"My home-stay was one of the best aspects of my summer. I could not wait to get home after work. My sisters taught me so much about Ugandan culture as well as life in general. We have grown up on different sides of the world but we may as well as lived next door."
- Chelsea Christman
"I learned how compassionate people can be who have just met you and the wonderful hospitality and family culture that exists in India."
- Asha Toulmin
"Our NGO let us work independently, but took co-ownership of our project, which was comforting as we were creating a proposal for them and we required input and feedback to know that our work had a purpose."
- Elizabeth Montgomery
"Being at our NGO was the single best part of the trip. I loved the community, and I loved the people there. It is an amazing NGO that does amazing things. The challenges we faced taught us to overcome obstacles."
- Alex Grubman
"The FSD site team was incredible. I've never worked with such capable, caring, fun people. They made me feel so at home and safe and also really supported us with our NGO."
- Asha Toulmin
"The FSD site team was fantastic. They helped us with everything we needed from managing tough NGO relationships to making sure our project plans were really attempting to achieve sustainable development."
- Claire Olszewski
"I could not have imagined a better set of teammates. They were all extremely committed and brought all they knew to the table."
- Chelsea Christman
"I am very impressed by the commitment and intelligence of the fellow students in GESI. I definitely learned much from them."
- XinKai Cheng
"The diversity of our group made us effective -- while others preferred to work on logistical, behind-the-scenes stuff; some were outspoken, others were more contemplative; some were better planners, some were better at actuating ideas on paper."
- Abby Hannifan
"To succeed in this program you have to be willing to set aside your expectations. This applies both to the outcomes of your project, as well as the expectations of what daily life will consist of."
- Elizabeth Montgomery
"This program gave new meaning to hands on learning. The background at the institute on development was great, and a week later you were on site attempting to implement what you had learned, and in the process learning far more than you could imagine."
- Rachel Suffrin
"It is unique that GESI students do not have a predetermined project before arriving in country. Although this can lead to certain challenges, I was grateful for this approach."
- Ellen Abrams
"The most unique thing was the amount of exposure we got to the community. I felt like I was a part of it and not just observing it."
- Bryan Stenson
"This experience was absolutely applicable to my personal, professional, academic goals, especially when it comes to approaching development with a realistic perception of how it works on the ground."
- Elizabeth Montgomery
"The experience has given me a new perspective on everything from washing the dishes to how to address world hunger... I will be returning to the lessons I learned on this trip decades from now."
- Alexis Suskin-Sperry
"GESI has helped me mature as a team member and a prospective development worker."
- C.A.

Academics

Key Learning Structures

GESI ties together experiential, curricular and co-curricular learning to help our participants develop the analytical and interpersonal tools to participate in as well as critique and understand the challenges of international community development.

The GESI program begins with participants meeting in Chicago to take two Northwestern courses focused on helping students understand their role in international community development. This predeparture coursework is academically rigorous with class starting at 9am and ending at 9pm. Once abroad, students are responsible for completing and submitting various coursework to their Northwestern faculty. When students return to Chicago for the Final Learning Summit, they will participate in reflection activities and additional lectures from faculty and guest speakers. The Final Learning Summit is also rigorous with class from 9am to 9pm for three-days.

International Studies 390: Approaches to International Development

Professor Brian Hanson
This course will introduce a range of community development approaches currently being applied in the “Global South,” and will explore their social, political and economic contexts and impacts. Students will understand the relationships among “strength-based” strategies such as asset based community development, appreciative inquiry, participatory rural appraisal, resiliency organizing and sustainable livelihoods approaches; and will contrast these strategies with more traditional large scale development investments.

Additionally, this course will explore the specific development context of the countries which students will be working in and the development issues they will be working on. Students take this course as part of the Global Engagement Summer Institute summer study abroad program. They will apply their understanding of community development strategies to their preparation for the in-country experiences. The course will be taught at the Chicago campus before students begin their field work abroad.

Click here to view the 2010 syllabus for this course.

Communications 395: Theory and Practice of International Community Consulting

Professor Paul Arntson
This program focuses on helping teams of external consultants support and bolster local community development efforts by focusing on identifying and harnessing existing community assets. This practical course includes practical lessons in asset mapping (for more, read this) and frameworks for maximizing intra- and inter-team relationships.

Click here to view the 2010 syllabus for this course.

Local Culture, History, Politics & More:

Throughout the pre-departure training and international immersion experience, students will be treated to guest lectures and discussions with people who know the places they’re learning about best: local faculty, citizens, development professionals, and their host families.

Students will also receive five hours of language training and ample interaction with program alums who act as student instructors and mentors during the training and throughout the summer immersion.

Once Abroad: Experiential Learning

Experiential learning in international development is the core of the GESI experience and the eight week internship through which student teams will work with host nonprofits to develop small scale projects. This experience will provide students hands-on learning that no amount of classroom discussion could replace. Students will be expected to submit the following documents to their Northwesterh faculty:

Weekly 1-2 page group report (due Friday of each week)
Project Proposal (due by end of second week abroad)
Project Budget (due by end of second week abroad)
Project Workplan (due by end of second week abroad)

Upon Return: Final Learning Summit

We believe reflection is an integral – and often missing – component of study abroad programs. The GESI Final Learning Summit is designed to allow returning students to process, reflect, and compare and contrast their experiences with those of other students. The summit is designed to help students contextualize their international community development experience. Through guest speakers, students are also introduced to alternative paths to stay engaged with the issues they care about most. During this summit, students will submit:

Final Report (completed and submitted during the Final Learning Summit)
Personal reflection paper
Group project poster