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Co-sponsored by the Office of the College Chaplains and the Department of Education
Dates: May 28 -June 9, 2008
Applications due: TBD
Directors of the Program
 Marty Kelly, - Chaplains’ Office
Prof. David Lizotte, - Education Department
Goals & Objectives
The Holy Cross Jamaica Program seeks to offer Holy Cross students the opportunity to:
- Encounter the poor and marginalized of Jamaica through interpersonal dialogue and service.
- Learn about aspects of Jamaican culture through a series of speakers.
- Nurture and challenge their faith lives through worship and daily encounters with Jamaicans in an ecumenical setting.
- Consider longer volunteer commitments as a teacher at St. George's College, Kingston, JA.
A major objective of the program centers around the collaboration between Holy Cross College and St. George’s College, a sister Jesuit institution in Kingston, Jamaica. The Admissions Office has already established ties with St. George’s. The Holy Cross Jamaica Program seeks to build upon this collaboration by offering our students the opportunity to dialogue with and work alongside of students from St. George’s.
After an initial immersion experience in Jamaica, some Holy Cross students who experience a call to teaching may go on to deepen their ties with St. George’s. They will participate in a two week summer camp which seeks to prepare inner city children for acceptance at St.George’s.
After this experience, a select group will join the teaching faculty at St. George’s College for one or two years. These will be Holy Cross graduates who have participated in the earlier components of the Jamaica Program, and in the teacher education program in the Department of Education at Holy Cross.
How the Program Works
Participants have an opportunity to encounter aspects of Jamaican culture through community service, input sessions, day trips, worship experiences, and daily reflection among themselves and occasionally with St. George’s students. It is important to realize that the service opportunities are meant to facilitate student appreciation and respect for the people who they encounter. In serving the poor, students will be receiving from the poor. This openness to receive and to be enriched by Jamaican hospitality and culture is both a prerequisite and a outcome of this program.
It is our hope that Holy Cross students will grow in awareness of their own solidarity with the people they encounter. In this way, they will come to see the ‘other’ as ‘neighbor,' on par with themselves at the banquet of life which all are equally invited to by God (see John Paul II, ‘On Social Concern’, #39).
A Typical Day
We begin our day with morning prayer followed by breakfast. During mostweekdays students will then be transported to work sites in the Kingston area. These could include places like a home for the sick and elderly, a community center for at risk youth or a school tutoring program for inner city children. Late afternoons offer time for reflection and sharing about daily experiences.
During some evenings speakers will share about Jamaican culture and contemporary concerns. There will also be free time for rest and relaxation. Most days will close with Eucharist or evening prayer, and on Sundays participants will worship with Jamaicans in city and country parishes. The program will also offer opportunities to experience places outside of Kingston. There will be a day trip to rural Jamaica, as well as a rest day on the east side of the island.
Preparation for Initial Immersion
Students are chosen for the program by the end of the first semester. A series of orientation meetings for all participants during spring semester build community and prepare the group for the immersion.
Prerequisites
- Flexibility: A willingness to live simply and to do without luxuries and conveniences we take for granted in the U.S.
- Openness: The desire to explore the many spiritual, political, sociological, and economic questions raised by on site work experiences, speakers, day trips, etc.
- Respect for persons we interact with, and for the Jamaican culture.
- A commitment to reflection on experiences and the sharing of faith with both Holy Cross and St. George’s College students.
- Understanding of and respect for both the spirit and the policies of the program, e.g., use of alcohol, involvement at work sites, presence at all group sessions, support for reflection opportunities, etc.
- Capacity for laughter
Travel and Accommodations
All travel to work sites and day trips will be provided by a Jamaican driver hired by the Jesuit Centre in Kingston. This is located on the grounds of St. George’s College where participants will be housed. This compound is safe and guarded at night. Food will be provided at the Jesuit Centre. The water is safe to drink at all times.
Inner city Kingston is not unlike inner cities in the US. Students must take proper precaution, and follow the policies for travel outside of the compound.
Cost: Approximately $975
This does not include personal spending money over and above the costs for the entire immersion experience.
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General Info & Application