A political science major and revised minor and a global studies major and minor will be offered beginning this fall.

“These new majors reflect an expanding awareness that community, which 91����Ƶ has long emphasized, also happens at national and global levels,” said Provost Fred Kniss. “With these new majors, students will develop knowledge and skills that will help them effect positive change in diverse settings.”  

Political science

The political science major will train students to apply their research and analytical skills to current political affairs and offer students real-world learning through internships. It will prepare students to pursue further studies and careers in fields such as law and public policy.

“This major will closely align with 91����Ƶ’s core mission,” said Professor Mark Metzler Sawin. “While many universities offer political studies, our program will be distinctive in its embodiment of our university’s values.”

Students will learn to think critically and analytically about power, authority and legitimacy, examining “the traditional role of relevant political actors, institutions, and mechanisms through a critical lens,” said Professor Ji Eun Kim. In addition to developing theoretical and moral ways of understanding political events, they will gain critical oral and writing skills for “speaking and understanding the language of these key actors” based on rigorous reasoning and dignity and respect for others.

Its interdisciplinary approach and diverse curriculum includes course topics such as human rights and dignity, political reconciliation, international relations, American politics, and peace and security in East Asia.

The major also requires a term at the Washington Community Scholars’ Center in Washington DC, where internships offer real-world extensions to classroom learning and vocational experience in policy, politics, advocacy and law. WCSC internship sites in these fields include working on Capitol Hill with the Catholic social justice lobby NETWORK or Mennonite Central Committee’s Washington Office; and working to increase civic exchange political dialogue with the Faith and Politics Institute. [Learn more about internship sites in these fields.]

Global studies

The global studies major is fitting for a university that for 35 years has required students to have cross-cultural experience. In the program, students will identify a regional and language focus to prepare them for cross-cultural engagement, in addition to further study and careers in fields such as international development, human resources, intelligence and research analysis, and education in public and private sectors.

“91����Ƶ’s identity and history positions us to create and offer a global studies program to undergraduate students in a unique way,” said Professor Tim Seidel, who helped develop the major with vice president and undergraduate academic dean Deirdre L. Smeltzer, cross-cultural program director Ann Hershberger, and professors Adriana Rojas, Jim Leaman and Ji Eun Kim. “Graduates will be equipped with solid knowledge and relevant skills – and be equipped for postgraduate study and for professional opportunities including working in governments, nongovernmental organizations, and the private sector.”

With three areas of concentration – sustainability, justice and peacebuilding, and societies and cultures – the major will focus on intercultural communication and the role of faith in global studies while exploring global political and economic actors beyond the state.

The curriculum will include course topics such as globalization and justice, biblical theologies of peace and justice, and cultural anthropology. Region-focused studies may include, for example, history and culture of Africa, Latin America, the Middle East and Asia.

The major was developed with funding from a United States Department of Education Undergraduate International Studies and Foreign Languages grant.

Only the LSA reunion remains. This event is in University Commons 211 from 1:45-3 p.m. on Saturday, Oct. 13, during 91����Ƶ’s . (LSA is also active throughout the year; stay tuned for their fourth annual popular Easter-time alfombra creation and worship service. Read more here and follow .)

On Friday evening, approximately 190 guests enjoyed savory food prepared by local restaurants Las Chamas, Pollo A La Brasa, El Milagro and El Charro.

LSA officers Ariel Barbosa and Fred Flores-Cano mc’ed the event, which included speakers Keyri Lopez-Godoy ’17 and Andrew Suderman, professor of theology, peace and mission who spent 10 years living in Costa Rica, Bolivia and Colombia, as well as reflections from students who had traveled on relevant cross-culturals.

The Jazz Combo and Jazz Ensemble, led by Kaleb Branner and Bob Curry respectively, provided musical interludes, and two dances were performed: a Bolivian folk dance called “Taquirari” by Maria René Saucedo and Rachel Loyer and the merengue dominicano by nursing professor Laura Yoder and Otoniel Suero Escalante.

Fuller professor speaks

LSA also hosted Fuller Theological Seminary professor ���ܲ������Ѳ�����í�Ա�� earlier this month for a series of talks, including a worship service at Eastern Mennonite Seminary, a convocation address in Lehman Auditorium, and an evening event, open to the public, with students in Professor Adriana Rojas’ 400-level Spanish course that engages with the theme of marginalized voices.

Martínez shared a historical perspective that challenged the American narrative regarding the annexation of northern Mexico and then recounted his own experiences with discrimination in the education system and racial profiling, Rojas said in an email. He went on to discuss immigration and deportation, specifically addressing “ways to advocate for immigrants and continue conversations with people that support border walls and deportation.”

“Dr. Martinez stressed that, instead of debating values and morals or resorting to tribalism, our narratives have the power to shift dominant narratives to create more inclusive nation,” Rojas said. “He also expressed the need for humanizing language to talk about migrants. In conclusion, he argued that the deportation of Latinos, who whether protestant or Catholic tend to profess and practice their faith, is in fact making the U.S. less Christian.”

Student Elizabeth Nisly said she appreciated hearing from Martinez that arguments themselves don’t work to change minds, and “that first we have to change our own narrative … to to build common bridges between people, by talking about work that immigrant people do that is a blessing others or by joyfully talking about our own immigration narrative.”

“I think the most important thing he said, for those of us who already consider ourselves ‘pro-immigration”‘ is to be in relationship with migrant people, not in a position of power, of ‘helping,'” Nisly reflected. “He challenged us to listen to stories and also be willing to share our own, to serve and to be served.”

Voices from the margins hold wisdom, vision

In his convocation address, Martínez spoke on the challenge of finding a clear path in times of darkness and confusion.

The path is indeed not always clear for followers of Christ, Martinez said. Yet, in the Bible, “in those moments when the people of God seem on edge and have lost their hope, when many just give up, some pray and seek out God, and in that process … out of those difficult times, those with eyes to see find that God has always been there creating new paths.”

“God puts in our mix people that God wants to use to speak into our lives and in for our future,” Martinez said. Many times these are the marginalized, the outsiders, the fresh converts who see with new eyes and bring a new perspective.

Consider the vibrancy of the churches and followers of the global south, he pointed out. “Christians around the world are in places where they don’t have power or they can’t go to a Christian university. They live where they often have to hide the fact that they are followers of Jesus Christ or they suffer because they are followers of Jesus Christ. Many of these churches are poor and on the margins of society, yet they seem to be intuitively missional in their approach to be in church.”

Martínez has served in multiple roles at Fuller since 2001, including vice president for diversity and international ministries, vice provost, associate provost for diversity and international programs, and director of the Center for the Study of Hispanic Church and Community.

He joined Fuller from the Latin American Anabaptist Seminary in Guatemala City, Guatemala, where he served as rector for nine years. A Mennonite Brethren pastor, Martínez also has experience in church planting and teaching in both religious and secular venues. He served as director of Hispanic Ministries for the Pacific District Conference of the Mennonite Brethren Church and of Instituto Bíblico del Pacífico, a Mennonite Brethren Bible Institute.

Read more

Read more about Latino Student Alliance, which started on 91����Ƶ’s campus in 1996, and is led during the 2018 by officers Ariel Barbosa, Anastasia Dronov, Kayley Scottlind, Fred Flores-Cano, Joshua Gomez and Donaldo Lleshi. Ana Cruz ���Ի���Maria Esther Showalter are the advisors.

Since 1996, Latino Student Alliance celebrates cultural pride and offers a welcoming space to all

In a recent blog post, Payne reflected her own growth as she ‘mimicks’ her experienced guides and then steps off on her own.

As a child, I played follow the leader. I mimicked the actions of others for fun.

As a college student, I find myself in a very similar situation. This cross-cultural is an extreme game of follow the leader.

Our leaders, Kim and Seth, model how to function in contemporary Europe. They guide us through cities and on public transportation. They gladly share their wisdom and calm our nerves. We follow. We learn by example.

These times of mimicking prepare us for times of independence. Almost daily we are given opportunities to explore or assignments to find specific locations. This is when the roles reverse. My peers and I will take turns directing, learning through practice.

Although this ever-changing game of follow the leader is fun and challenging, it has a specific focus. We are tracing the paths of our Anabaptist roots.

Besides the “Radical Europe” tour of Anabaptist sites in Austria, Germany and Switzerland, 91����Ƶ cross-cultural groups are in Bolivia, the Navajo Nation and Spain.

• The Bolivia group is led by Brian Martin Burkholder, campus pastor, and Linda Martin Burkholder, cross-cultural program assistant.
• The Navajo Nation group is led by Gloria Rhodes, chair of the applied social sciences department, and Jim Yoder, biology professor.
• The Spain group is led by Professor Adriana Rojas, of the language and literature department, her husband Patrick Campbell, and Barbara Byer, the department’s administrative assistant.

The 91����Ƶ cross-cultural experience, which has been part of the curriculum for more than 30 years, is very different from the typical “study abroad” program. Approximately 68 percent of all 91����Ƶ graduates go on an international cross-cultural trip; the remaining students fulfill the cross-cultural requirement exploring the vast diversity here in the United States. Most graduates name their cross-cultural experience as a significant part of their 91����Ƶ education.

Trips are led by faculty members who have deep roots in the countries and communities where groups travel. As an example of these deep roots, nearly 20 faculty and staff are “Third Culture Kids,” who spent significant years of their youth in another country/countries. Some 20 countries on six different continents are represented tin these experiences. Most 91����Ƶ faculty and staff have also lived and worked abroad for significant periods of time.

Upcoming cross-cultural trips include:

• Israel/Palestine, fall 2018, with Bill Goldberg, director of the Summer Peacebuilding Insitute, and Lisa Schirch, research professor at the Center for Justice and Peacebuilding;
• Guatemala and Cuba, spring 2018, with Byron Peachey, academic advocacy program adviser, and Lisa King, instructor in the nursing department;
• India, spring 2018, Kim G. Brenneman, psychology professor, and her husband, Bob Brenneman;
• Kenya, summer 2018, with Roxy Allen Kioko, professor of business, and her husband, Felix Kioko;
• Paraguay, summer 2018, with Greta Anne Herin, professor of biology, and Laura Yoder, professor of nursing;
• Marginal(ized) Europe: Bulgaria and Greece, summer 2018, with Andrew White, professor of English, and his wife, Daria White;
• Lithuania, summer 2018, with Jerry Holsopple, professor in the visual and communication arts department;
• , offered each semester in Washington D.C. allows for immersion into urban culture, while acquiring valuable work experience in an internship.

Rojas, who teaches Spanish at 91����Ƶ (91����Ƶ), says she often receives emails asking for student volunteers to work with medical personnel, lawyers, social workers or to interpret for parents in schools.

But a bilingual person doesn’t necessarily have the skills and knowledge to provide ethical and responsible interpretation skills, she says. “Great injustice has been done in the hands of unprepared and untrained interpreters, who may have good intentions but are not aware that their decisions and positionality can disempower the people they are seeking to serve.”

To meet that need, she wrote a grant to bring interpreter and community organizer Josh Diamond to campus.

Diamond and Rojas, as co-facilitator, will offer a workshop, “Interpreting for Social Justice,” at 91����Ƶ on Saturday, April 8 from 9 a.m. to 6 p.m. The event is free for bilingual students, staff, faculty and community members, thanks to a grant from the , which promotes interdisciplinary activities and scholarship modeled after the man’s visionary integration of business, mission, development, education, justice and peace. 91����Ƶ’s is also sponsoring the workshop.

“With this training, bilingual people can go into an interpretation situation feeling confident about being in service of the message and with the tools to better serve the community,” Rojas said.

Diamond is the coordinator for Harrisonburg’s Office on Children and Youth, which promotes positive youth development through various organizations in the area. The Teen Outreach Program  is a national youth development program which combines community service with group activities and discussion to encourage healthy choices and relationships.

Diamond has led “Interpreting for Social Justice” workshops since 2013 for the in Faber, Virginia, where he is a member of the board. He has also led anti-racism workshops in area high schools with the Harrisonburg-Rockingham Youth Council, an initiative of the Office on Children and Youth.

Participants should plan to attend the entire program. It will take place in the JAMAR classroom accessible from the outside of the lower level of Hartzler Library.

Email adriana.rojas@emu.edu before March 20 to register.

As senior disaster program manager for the American Red Cross Virginia Region, Campbell helped launch a campaign in 2015 to reduce home fire deaths and injuries by 25 percent by the end of 2019. He worked with communities, government partners and stakeholders to install smoke alarms and provide fire and disaster safety education to at-risk communities, according to a release issued by Virginia Department of Fire Prevention.

“This award means that we are not doing it alone, but created a coalition,” Campbell said. “Our program has earned credibility and the respect of our colleagues in the fire service.”

He also praised members of his Red Cross team and fire marshals Ron Reynolds and J.D. Jenkins in the State Fire Marshals office for their partnership.

Campbell was called a “relentless champion” of the project, according to the press release. “As a result of Patrick’s leadership and partnership with fire departments and fire marshals across Virginia, more than 4,579 households have been made safer. Since 2015, more than 11,059 smoke alarms have been installed throughout the state.”

Campbell helped spread the message through a state-wide speaking tour. He also built ties with Meals on Wheels, receiving national recognition that led to the two organizations forming a national partnership to provide safety information and smoke alarms to another at-risk population.

“We are saving lives, and many of the homes we enter do not have alarms,” Campbell said. “The trust people have in the Red Cross has allowed us to help undocumented migrant communities, hearing impaired, refugee populations and low-income communities.”

Campbell has memories of responding to house fires in which families have died because of lack of a smoke alarm. “For me, it is about never responding again to a house fire where families have died. You never forget those fire calls. They live with you because it could happen to anyone.”

Campbell, a military veteran, graduated in 2012 with a bachelor’s degree in from 91����Ƶ (91����Ƶ). In 2014, he earned a master’s degree in conflict transformation from the . He has more than 14 years of experience in disaster recovery, capacity building and response.

In addition to his daily responsibilities in Virginia, he also a member of the Red Cross’s Disaster Management Response Team, available to deploy to disaster areas around the country. Campbell also teaches courses in project and program management at 91����Ƶ.

He is married to Dr. Adriana Rojas, professor of Spanish.