Late in the semester in Fall 2024, I attended the info session for the Higher, Adult, and Lifelong Education (HALE) course EAD 972: International and Comparative Issues in Higher and Adult Education. This was a PhD course that I’d been interested in since I got accepted to the HALE program as part of the Department of Educational Administration at Michigan State University (MSU). Every year, students taking the course have the opportunity to travel internationally to visit universities across the world and discuss the globalization of Higher Education. Since our PhD program has many scholars whose research focuses on globalization, this course has become the soul of the program, with many students having transformative experiences when visiting our partner sites.
As someone who has had many international education experiences (my 2-week high school exchange in Strasbourg, France, my study abroad semester in Rome, Italy, my MPhil in Dublin, Ireland, my archaeological dig in Sozopol, Bulgaria), I have been excited to experience the international education space since beginning my Master’s degree in Higher Education in 2019. Through the MEd, I learned so much about universities and social justice that I felt the experiences post-MEd would be vastly different than my previous travel experiences. Unfortunately, although I had a trip lined in the summer of 2020 through my MEd to visit Rome, Italy with Loyola University, that study abroad trip got cancelled due to the COVID-19 pandemic. So although I’d done a number of international trips since that opportunity (New Zealand, Scotland), I hadn’t had the chance to participate in any more school-related trips until EAD 972.
This class is run each year. Every other year, students will visit universities in a different country (in the past, they’ve visited Japan, Mexico, and last year’s trip site, Kazakhstan). Because Kazakhstan is close to Russia, and because I am nice to my mother and considerate of her anxieties around my solo travel and the upheaval on that side of the world, I agreed that I would not apply to last year’s course. In exchange, she would not try to talk me out of the next year’s trip. Because while one set of faculty led the biannual trip to different countries each year, the other set of faculty led the same biannual trip every two years. The destination of the 2025 trip? South Africa.
The Motivation
I was extremely interested in the South Africa trip from day 1 of the PhD. There are numerous reasons for that, including that:
- South Africa was the location that was promoted by Marquette’s School of Education. The program was very exclusive, I think only accepting 2 students during my study abroad year, but the experience allowed students to continue to complete their College of Education requirements while abroad. I’d never truly considered it as a study abroad option because I’d had my heart set on Italy since I was about 14 (with good reason: it was where my parents had their honeymoons and the only three people I knew who studied abroad before me all studied in Italy). But after hearing about my classmate’s experiences, a small part of me has had regrets since 2015 that I didn’t even consider any other study abroad options. I could never regret studying abroad in Rome. But I’ve had opportunities to travel to Europe multiple times since 2015 because the flights are cheaper and shorter, and it’s been a hassle to get myself to the places I’ve never been before because they’re farther away and I end up spending a good portion of the travel time I have getting to the destinations.
- Numerous people I know studied abroad, including my two Marquette classmates, one of my mom’s friends’ daughters, my colleague during my first year at MSU, and Joe. Through these various lenses, I’ve been able to hear about the country and their experiences. Working with children in schools in Cape Town, getting to know the MSU partner university on the 2023 trip, safaris, all of these stories have only made me more interested in the visit.
- A strong interest in Africa as a continent. At first, the interest was influenced by the animals. The Lion King came out the year before I was born, and it’s always been one of my favorite movies. When visiting Disney World, my parents would take us on the safari rides, and that experience built anticipation for the opportunity to see the animals in real life. And yes, when I visited Morocco for the first time and when our family toured Egypt, I did ride a camel in both places. But it’s more than the animals. I’ve now been to 3 African countries, and I’ve only been to one tiny corner of Asia and not to South America at all. I think for me, the fascination with Africa, and especially education in Africa, stems from my experiences at my church in my youth. I grew up in the early 2000s, where besides the Lion King, the news out of Africa was the AIDS crisis and starving children. Later, in my teens, the news was around Kony, forced female genital mutilation, and Ebola. While that all could have built the continent up into a homogenous narrative of poverty and conflict in my mind, instead I was influenced, as we so often are, by someone I knew. When I was young, a Ugandan priest visited my parish each summer after completing his seminary nearby. Over time, he built relationships with the parishioners. They began to look for ways to support him, and finally he began asking for donations for mosquito nets to help the children in his village avoid malaria. He received an outpouring of support, enough so that he next started a project to build a well in his hometown. The relationship between my parish and this priest continued and grew. His ultimate goal was to build a school because he believed in the value of education to improve lives. As of today, that school serves over 850 students, is rated in the top 3% of elementary schools in Uganda, and had its first alumni graduate from university in January. Seeing the impact that a community across the world could have on education in Uganda was an impactful experience in my youth. But more so was the experience of meeting a man who had a vision for the betterment of his community and, through relationship building, visionary leadership, and international opportunities, achieved more than he could have hoped for. So instead of being influenced as a child by the prevailing narratives of the continent, I was strongly influenced by the passionate priest and the school we had supported together as a community. When an opportunity to not only participate in another study abroad opportunity, but one specifically focused on higher education in South Africa, I remembered the Ugandan priest and the students his school had helped. Although I still haven’t had a chance to visit that school in Uganda, as a result of that experience, I saw the continent as one teeming with driven leaders and potential, and I couldn’t pass up the opportunity to participate.
So right before Winter Break, I applied to participate in the course. Early in the new year, I found out I’d been accepted.
The Context
The preparation for the trip was more intense than I’d anticipated. While this was considered a “Professional Collaborative Experience”, I still took EAD 972 for credit, meaning I needed to complete readings that provided context around South African history and education. In the beginning of the semester, we met every other week. By the end, we were meeting weekly in preparation. These meetings involved the professors sharing logistics, us discussing the readings, and planning/preparing the presentations we would give while abroad.
This professional collaborative experience grew out of a professor’s Fullbright experience in 1998 at what is now Nelson Mandela University (NMU) in Port Elizabeth, South Africa. After her initial experience, she returned to the university with MSU students, beginning what is now 18 years’ worth of biannual trips. On the trips, students collaborate with student affairs staff from NMU and present workshops to students and faculty (otherwise known as “academic staff”). This collaboration is a chance for students to engage in dialogue around global perspectives in higher education and present context-informed ways that each of the universities is addressing modern problems in higher education.
The Players
Me, obviously– The only PhD student participating, entering my 3rd year in the HALE program. Graduate Assistant, serving as a Graduate Career Advisor to Master’s and PhD students in the Office of Graduate Career Development in the Graduate School and Undergraduate Course Instructor in Leadership Education. Interest in career preparation, graduate students, curriculum development, faculty services, and international students. Previous international education in France, Italy, Ireland, and Bulgaria.
While I’d planned on the MEd trip that was ultimately cancelled, this was the first faculty-led, short-term study abroad trip I’ve done. As someone who has previously worked on both sides of international education and will likely always incorporate some amount of international student service into their future roles, having that experience under my belt was extremely valuable, considering the majority of study abroad experiences are short-term (faculty-led short-term or summer terms).
THE PROFESSORS
We had two professors leading the trip. Both were HALE professors who teach primarily in the Student Affairs Master’s program.
Dr. W– The original Fullbright professor recruited a young professor, Dr. Matt Wawrzynski, to help run the trips. He’s spent almost the last two decades building professional and personal relationships with the staff at NMU in South Africa and was the leader of our trip. His research focuses on student outcomes, peer educators, and career development. A lot of his research is focused on Africa, and he has partnered with schools in South Africa and Mozambique.
Dr. Kenya Messer– An assistant professor for HALE, she worked at the university for 3 years after primarily working in organizational leadership and higher education administration. Her research focuses on organizational leadership, equity and inclusion, and the experiences of African American students in college. She will be leaving the university after this semester to begin her tenure as the new CEO of the Motown Museum in Detroit.
THE MA STUDENTS
The other participants in the program had various interests and previous international experiences that brought valuable insight to the experience. All were Master’s students in the HALE department’s Student Affairs program. In total, there were four of us students.
Enock– Starting his 2nd year in the Master’s of Student Affairs program. Graduate Coordinator for Second-Year Experience in the Office of Residence Life. International student from Ghana. Interested in career preparation, AI, and educational technology. Previous international education experience in Ghana.
Laurel– Recently graduated from the Master’s of Student Affairs Program. Graduate Assistant in Residence Education and Housing Services. Interested in International Education and residence life. Previous international education experience in New Zealand and work experience in Germany/Austria.
Taylor– Recently graduated from the Master’s of Student Affairs Program. Graduate Assistant in Residence Education and Housing Services and Exploration and Purpose Integrated Core Curriculum (Career Education fellowship, development, assessment, and delivery of curriculum). Interested in career preparation and residence life curriculum. Previous international education experience in Canada, Ireland, and Italy.
We also had two students who participated in the majority of the preparation over the course of the semester but, for personal reasons, had to drop out at the last second. While the last-minute adjustment was not what we were expecting and did put more work on us when presenting workshops, it was not a hindrance for our travel group to drop from 6 to 4 students.
The Workshops
As part of the professional collaboration, we were each expected to create/present approximately 6 workshops to various stakeholders, including the student affairs staff, students, and faculty (academic staff). The workshops focused on mental health, career preparation, and analysis of data collected during a long-term study on student engagement co-created by NMU and MSU.
The workshops that I personally presented were as follows:
WORKSHOPS
“Career Preparation: LinkedIn and Behavioural Interviewing”, with Enoch Agyei, Student-focused Presentation, Nelson Mandela University, May 14, 2025
“Bridging the Gap in GenAI Expectations” with Enoch Agyei, Academic Staff Presentation, Nelson Mandela University, May 14, 2025
“Career Preparation: Behavioral Interviewing”, with Enoch Agyei, Student-focused Presentation, Nelson Mandela University, May 13, 2025
“Adding to your Toolkit: Tools for Mental Wellbeing and Building Personal Resilience” with Laurel McGerty and Taylor Meechan, Student-focused Presentation, Nelson Mandela University, May 13, 2025
“Revitalising Student Participation” with Enoch Agyei, Department of Student Life and Development Presentation, Nelson Mandela University, May 12, 2025
“Career Preparation: LinkedIn and Behavioural Interviewing” with Enoch Agyei, Student-focused Virtual Presentation, Nelson Mandela University, May 9, 2025
“Career Preparation: LinkedIn” with Enoch Agyei, Student-focused Presentation, Nelson Mandela University, May 9, 2025
“The Ripple of Awareness” with Laurel McGerty, Student-focused Presentation, Nelson Mandela University, May 8, 2025
Preparing for the trip
So, I spent the entire Spring 2025 semester getting to know the people, learning the context, and building the workshops. The Spring semester ended in early May (grades were submitted May 2), and I packed and headed home, preparing myself not only for the 16-day trip, but also for all the real-life commitments that I had quickly once I returned.
I flew out on May 5, ready for my 22-hour journey.
WANDERING 