IS399 Cuban History and Culture Accepting Applicants
IS399 Cuban History and Culture is now accepting student applications. This three credit hour summer course will allow SIUE students to visit the University of Havana next June from the fourth through the fourteenth. The course will look at the politics, history, and geography of Cuba focusing on events from the 1959 revolution until present.
“You think about where Cuba’s located which is just 90 miles from the US, but it’s a whole different world,” Wendy Shaw shared, “it’s developed over the last fifty years with a completely different social economic system.”
Shaw and Larry LaFond will be the first faculty to teach the course, having been chosen in part due to their experiences with the Cuban initiative so far, as well as their individual areas of expertize. In coming years the plan is to offer the course with a number of different professors who can offer unique experiences for students. The IS nature of the course is specifically designed to allow students from all across CAS to benefit from the course, carries no prerequisite requirements, and is open to both undergraduate and graduate students.
“We’re envisioning a nice mix in this group,” said LaFond.
Participants will be expected to cover material on Cuba prior to the trip to help ground them within the subject matter. While in Cuba students will visit various historic sites, cultural hot spots, and museums, along with attending University of Havana lectures.
“This is not a vacation plan and you’re not going to get a superficial look at things,” Shaw shared, “We want a rich educational experience from this.”
The cost of the trip is $3200 on top of regular summer tuition. Students will also be permitted to enroll in independent studies within their respective departments for an additional three credit hours to allowing for full summer enrollment. The application deadline for this course is December 1.
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