Ghana

Year of Return 

The meaning of the Sankofa bird translated is “it is not taboo to go back and fetch what you forgot”. “Sankofa” teaches us that we must go back to our roots in order to move forward. The theme is connected to the 1619 project which is honoring the “Year of Return” in Ghana and the 400-year anniversary since the first documented captured African was brought to Virginia. This journey to Ghana is intended to be a healing trip for students of color at Eastern Mennonite University who have historical and ancestral connection to the legacy of slavery. Our learning will explore and honor both the
pain and the resilience of our identity.

Beginning with a predeparture workshop two weeks before the journey to Ghana, students will be introduced to Ghana’s history and the impacts of historical trauma. Leaders will use their expertise and Strategies for Trauma and Resilience (STAR) training to shape spiritual, emotional and mental preparation for this journey. As we explore our pre-slavery heritage through both history and current expressions of culture in Ghana, we will find space for transformation and healing connected to deeper self-knowledge. Reflective journals, discussion, and creative projects will serve to document learning and to process areas of growth and awareness.

Historical connections will come alive as we visit Slave Castle dungeons in Cape Coast and the Elmina Castle dungeons that held the captured people before they were taken to other parts of the world as enslaved. Learning tours will include cultural sites and historical museums such as the WEB DuBois Center, the Kwame Nkrumah Mausoleum, and The Kings Palace in Kumasi. We will bridge from history into current culture, developing connections with local people through visits to where they make traditional Kente cloth and garments, eating and preparing traditional dishes, partnering with people working on various sustainable peace projects, and as we learn and take in the energy of traditional Ghanaian dance and drumming.

Information

Seminar Leader: Talibah Aquil, CJP 
Location: Accra and Cape Coast, Ghana and EMU
Dates: May 16 -June 6, 2022 +required sessions pre- and post-travel
Estimated Cost:  $4,000* (subject to change) includes tuition, travel, room & board
  *Actual fees for enrolled students will be determined in February, pending offsets from EMU Crowdfunding. Applicants will be notified of final cost.

Coursework
CCSSC 201 Cross-Cultural Social Science: Ghana 3 SH

Immunizations

• Routine – MMR, DPT series with last booster within 10 years, IPV or OPV, Hep B, Hepatitis A, Influenza and Covid-19 as required for EMU enrollment.
• Typhoid – oral or injectable at least 3 weeks before travel
• Anti-malarial - Note: Chloroquine is NOT an effective antimalarial drug in Ghana and should not be taken to prevent malaria in this region.
• Yellow Fever* - limited availability in the U.S. Faculty will provide more instructions prior to travel dates.
• In an effort to maximize the safety of our hosts and our students, EMU Intercultural Programs requires all employees and students who plan to travel for interecultural immersion, both domestic and international, to have completed their vaccination regimen for COVID-19 more than 14 days prior to travel. This requirement is in addition to immunizations recommended for the travel destination, effective Mar. 1, 2021. If you have any questions or concerns, please email Dr. Beth Good. 

Routine immunizations and prescriptions may be obtained at EMU Health Services by appointment. 
Immunizations may also be obtained from your local health department or primary care provider. *Yellow Fever vaccine must be administered at an approved clinic. Check 2-3 months in advance for appointments and availability of vaccine with your state/regional Health Department.