COAL faculty hoping to gain 'global perspective' from Colombia trip

Several College of Arts and Letters faculty will be traveling to South America next week in an interdepartmental effort to increase the college’s “global perspectives” and “cultural competency,” said communication department head Dr. Shawn Wahl.

Five professors representing four departments will depart for Colombia Oct. 25 to visit universities in Bogota and Cartagena, each with educational objectives to benefit both Missouri State and the Colombian institutions. They return Oct. 31.

Wahl said several opportunities are made available by organizing these kinds of trips, including recruitment of international students, building relationships with institutions that Missouri State students can study abroad to, and bringing a broader cultural perspective to COAL’s programs and facilities.

Faculty going to Colombia

Dr. Shawn Wahl, Department Head of Communication/Co-director School of Communication Studies
Dr. Mary Jane Pardue, Department Head of Media, Journalism and Film/Co-director School of Communication Studies
Dr. Jason Jolley, Department Head of Modern and Classical Languages
Dr. Jason Hausback, Assistant Professor of Music
Dr. Eric Morris, Assistant Professor of Communication/Director of MSU Debate

Institutions they will visit

Universidad de La Sabana (Bogota, Colombia)
Pontificia Universidad Javeriana (Bogota, Colombia)
Universidad de Bogota Jorge Tadeo Lozano (Bogota, Colombia)
Universidad Jorge Tadeo Lozano – Seccional del Caribe (Cartagena, Colombia)

Schedule

Drs. Morris, Pardue and Wahl will present on research panels the Universidad de La Sabana Communication Week. Morris will present on debate formats during the 2012 presidential election, Pardue will present on journalism from a U.S. perspective and Wahl will present on Business and Professional Communication in a Global Context (the focus of his 2015 Short Term Study Away course he will teach at Universidad de La Sabana).
Dr. Hausback will be perform an international recital at Pontificia Universidad Javeriana and teach master classes in trombone at several universities in Bogota.
Dr. Jolley will be networking with department head and faculty at all of the Colombian universities to explore study away program and language training programs.