International Journal of Transformative Teaching and Learning in Higher Education
ORCID
Lisa LaCros https://orcid.org/0000-0003-0649-3187 Shawn Dillard https://orcid.org/0009-0001-4341-1382 Bri Ard https://orcid.org/0009-0002-0295-9314 Kern Jackson https://orcid.org/0009-0008-5492-2883
Submission Category
Practice-Based Article
Abstract
Effective global partnerships in higher education promote intercultural awareness (Delong et al., 2011) and influence future study and work abroad experiences by articulating the value of global learning (Lewin, 2009). Seeking to broaden global engagement opportunities for minoritized students, specifically African Americans, one institution developed a virtual exchange program through a global partnership of stakeholders from Ghana, Togo, Benin, Cape Verde, and the United States. Grounded in a shared history of the 2019 discovery of the last reported ship to bring enslaved West Africans to the United States, students from Mobile, Alabama and Cotonou, Benin participated in virtual discussions that explored the lasting effects of slavery in present communities, leading to an increased interest in studying abroad, especially for African American students. This study tracks the development of a global partnership and virtual exchange program as a precursor to studying abroad in a lesser traveled country.
License Information
This work is licensed under a Creative Commons Attribution-Noncommercial-No Derivative Works 4.0 License (CC BY-NC-ND 4.0).
Recommended Citation
LaCross, Lisa; Dillard, Shawn; Ard, Bri; and Jackson, Kern
(2025)
"Building a Global Partnership through a Shared History,"
International Journal of Transformative Teaching and Learning in Higher Education: Vol. 1:
Iss.
1, Article 6.
Available at:
https://commons.library.stonybrook.edu/ijttl/vol1/iss1/6
Included in
African History Commons, African Studies Commons, Cultural History Commons, Modern Languages Commons, Other History Commons, Other International and Area Studies Commons