Category: Students

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Stetson’s Portuguese Instructor at Yale University: the Building and Sharing of a Legacy

By Fernanda Ribeiro, Fulbright Brazilian Language Scholar

I have never taught my mother tongue to non-native speakers of Portuguese before. When I arrived at Stetson University as a Fulbright scholar last year, on the 8th of August, I was given the mission of continuing the wonderful work left by Raquel Santos (2015-2016), Ana Paula Spalenza Pereira (2016-2017) and Greici Buzzi (2017-2018) each in turn,  a Teacher Scholar in Stetson’s Portuguese program. Then I thought: What can I do to leave my legacy on campus in nine months and contribute to the recognition and importance of one having a Portuguese language program at Stetson after my going back to Brazil?

Fernanda Rebeiro, Stetson FLTA 2018-2019

“Will I be able to meet Fulbright’s goals and truly represent my country as a cultural ambassador? It was quite a challenge, I must confess.”

On my first day as a Portuguese instructor, I had 8 students from the most diverse linguistic backgrounds: Spanish speakers, heritage speakers of Portuguese, polyglots, monolinguals. In spite of the differences, all of them had chosen to learn Portuguese, among the myriad of languages that the Department of World Languages and Cultures offer every semester, and, as a native speaker of Portuguese and a graduated teacher with years of experience, I had to give them my best, and the best of my country and my language.

Fernanda Rebiero presenting her work at stetson to other Fulbright Scholars at Yale University, Connecticut in spring 2019

With a lot of guaraná, brigadeiros, cheese breads (of course!), memes and music, the classes have been fun, dynamic and full of learning. My students have become my friends and I have learned a lot from and with them too – and that is one of the priceless opportunities we have as teachers. Outside the classroom hours, I have organized tablings, Brazilian clubs, cultural credit events and tertulias, everything under the fantastic supervision of the wonderful Dr. Pamela Cappas-Toro, who has always given me a free hand to do my best here, allowing me to be truly and entirely myself.

And the days have passed, so has the semester. I have been in DeLand for 7 months now and it is already my second and last semester as a Portuguese instructor here at Stetson. During a talk with Dr. Cappas-Toro, she told me that I am the last Fulbright scholar of Portuguese and that, in the Fall semester of 2019, there will be a full-time professor, whose commitment with the Department of World Languages and Cultures includes making the Portuguese program even stronger through the offer of higher level Portuguese courses – currently Stetson offers 101 and 102 levels only. What does it mean? It means that all the work of the four Brazilian Fulbrighers had not been in vain. It is quite the contrary: the four of us have planted seeds which have been constantly watered and which have now bloomed into beautiful flowers.

Fernanda Ribiero visits Yale University to present on her work as a Fulbright Language Teaching Assistant at Stetson during the 2018-2019 academic year.

With such accomplishments in mind, and full of joy, I traveled to Connecticut last month and talked about the teaching of Portuguese at Stetson University at a conference at Yale University. There, I encountered the other Brazilian Portuguese instructors that came to the US with me and it was such a great experience. When I was presenting my speech, I was really moved because I could share my experience not only as a language instructor but also as a representative of Brazil, and as a cultural ambassador, I could say, and reinforce without any doubt the impact the Fulbright scholars have in a community and in the world. Raquel’s, Ana Paula’s and Greci’s work was also mentioned at Yale, after all we are a team!

These months here have been a daily learning. I am sure that I am not the same Fernanda anymore. With expanded horizons, a renewed cultural and linguistic baggage of knowledge and the most important thing – my legacy left at Stetson – , I will go back to my home country with the feeling of having fulfilled my duty. My future and my perspectives will be forever changed because my home will always have a little of this country and the wonderful family I have built here. After all, we are the result of the books we read, the places we visit, the languages we speak and teach and the people we get to meet – a  change for the better.

Fernanda Ribeiro joins Stetson University from Brazil to teach Portuguese as a Fulbright Language Teaching Assistant. She is a first-generation college student who graduated from Federal Rural University of Rio de Janeiro in 2015, earning a licentiate degree in Portuguese, English and their respective literatures. Ms. Ribeiro earned a Master’s degree in linguistics from Federal University of Rio de Janeiro this past February. For more on Ms. Ribero, click here.

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Sprouting Growth


Through the Alliance for International Reforestation Inc. and Stetson, students are planting seeds for learning in Central America.

Since the year 2000, the Alliance for International Reforestation Inc. (AIR) has enjoyed a strong partnership with David and Leighan Rinker, longtime ardent Stetson benefactors, in offering transformational service experiences for Stetson students in Central America.

The partnership actually began when in 1999 David Rinker offered to support student trips with Anne Hallum, Ph.D., a Stetson political science professor and founder of AIR, through the Marshall E. Rinker Sr. Foundation. David Rinker had learned of Hallum’s early experiences working in Guatemala — training farmers in sustainable agriculture and other services — and he wanted students to benefit as well.

Through the years, both literally and figuratively, it’s been quite a journey.

Today, selected students — based on grades, a reflective essay and an interview — participate in three primary programs, along with academic assignments, over a period of four to six weeks. The word participate is used loosely.

Students build stoves with Mayan families and the AIR staff; they are actively engage at rural schools; they plant fast-growing trees on deforested slopes; and they maintain a journal of reflections on friendships made and lessons learned.


Camaraderie with locals is part of the AIR experience for students.

Over the years, for example, more than 100 stoves have been constructed — involving cement mixing and brick laying — to help prevent lung disease and conserve precious trees. Meanwhile, more than 45,000 fast-growing trees have been planted —up to 4,000 trees each month by hand on mountains — to improve crops and prevent mudslides.

The trips, clearly, aren’t vacations, except for the Saturday “tourist days.”

Last summer, in addition to building and planting, a student with a special interest in marketing shadowed Hallum to learn the nuances of fundraising and donor relations.

The travel expenses for each of those students, as well as for Hallum, are covered by the Marshall E. Rinker Sr. grant (with some funds from Latin American Studies when more students traveled). Those annual grants total approximately $9,000 each June, which cover hotels, food, ground transportation, small stipends and continual supervision by the AIR staff members.

For the students, the payoffs have been significant.

A first-year student was taught the “sheer joy” of an exhausting day of service (especially outdoors). An impressionable 19-year-old who spent six weeks with AIR in Guatemala now is an accomplished alumnus. More generally, AIR has impacted how student view the world.


Thanks to charitable funding and Anne Hallum, Ph.D., a former political science professor at Stetson, students continue to participate in uncommon immersion abroad.

Until June 2012, Hallum taught full-time at Stetson and managed AIR’s early growth in Nicaragua and Guatemala. She was able to combine the service work in rural Guatemala and Nicaragua with her own academic research, and to find ways for students to earn academic credits in independent studies such as immersion Spanish, environmental activism, Latin American studies: Mayan Culture, and religion and the environment.

Hallum left Stetson in 2012, moving to Atlanta to work full-time (non-salaried) as president of AIR-Guatemala. Yet, even today, by virtue of her personal ties to the university and the Rinker support, she continues to exclusively host Stetson students for lengthy immersion experiences.
Not coincidentally, in 2017 AIR Guatemala received its second recognition from the United Nations, as a winner of the 2017 Equator Prize, presented by the United Nations Development Programme.

As a result, a reforestation organization founded on the third floor of Elizabeth Hall at Stetson more than 25 years ago now is globally acclaimed. Even greater, it continues to provide uncommon experiences of growth for Stetson students.

-Michael Candelaria

Originally posted at Stetson Today on February 25, 2019

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Board of Trustees Presentation: International Learning

by Camilla Morales, ‘20

Part of Stetson’s University mission is to promote Global Citizenship by students in order to prepare informed, active, and engaged citizens. On February 14, 2019, I was given the opportunity along with my colleagues, Zoe Weaver, ‘19 and Genicelle Barrington, ‘21, to present our efforts as WORLD Ambassadors to the Academic Affairs Committee of Stetson’s Board of Trustees and along with other faculty and staff members.


The session was opened by Dr. Rosalie A. Richards, associate provost for Faculty Development and professor of chemistry and education, who provided an overview of international learning at Stetson. Board members were then invited to participate in an interactive session, where they visited stations to learn about different aspects of international learning.

There were five different stations: WORLD: The David and Leighan Rinker Center of International Learning at the Deland campus, the Office of International and Graduate Programs at the College of Law in Gulfport, the International Learning Committee, the Latin American & Latino Studies Program, and Student Engagement.

Dejan Magoc, Ph.D. , associate professor of health sciences and chair of the International Learning Committee, describes how Stetson University uses the ACE Comprehensive  Internationalization model to advance global competencies.

Paula Hentz, M.Ed, director of international learning (right), showcases several new WORLD initiatives.

JR Swanegan, J.D., assistant dean of international and graduate studies (left), highlights different consortia developed by the College of Law to advance international learning to Board members including David Rinker, Ph.D., longstanding Trustee and benefactor of WORLD (back).

Robert Sitler, Ph.D., professor of world languages and cultures (Spanish) and program coordinator for the Latin American & Latino Studies Program, provides an overview of the program and highlights from the Mentored Field Experience. 

My colleagues and I presented at the Student Engagement station and spoke about our roles as WORLD Ambassadors and about our engagement in building global citizenship via international learning. We spoke about several events that we host to promote community engagement, diversity, inclusion and cultural awareness.

Morales (left) and Barrington (left, white shirt) listen as Weaver (center) discusses study abroad with Board members and senior academic leaders.

The interactive session was followed by a panel discussion where members of the Board were able to ask questions to the presenters.

I must say I was very honored to have been asked by my boss, Paula Hentz, director of international learning, to be part of this event along with my colleagues. To be able to talk about a subject I am so passionate about was a great and unique experience. I am eager to see what efforts will be done to keep promoting internationalization at Stetson University.

Adapted from the original story posted on LinkedIn on February 19, 2019

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Ceramic Brahman bull wins Best of Show at Student Art Exhibit


“Rage” by Alaska Gilmour

Artist Alaska Gilmour let friend Natalie Greenshields name her entry in Stetson’s 29th Annual Undergraduate Juried Exhibition “because I honestly didn’t think it would win anything,” Gilmour said of her quasi-anthropomorphic ceramic bust of a Brahman bull. Gilmour’s ceramic, named “Rage,” won the Ann West Hall Best of Show Award.

The exhibition runs through Dec. 7 at the Hand Art Center on Stetson’s DeLand campus. Sixty-two student artists submitted 129 works to be considered for the show.

Stetson art faculty chose 77 pieces from 36 artists to be exhibited. Gisela Carbonell, Ph.D., curator of the Cornell Fine Arts Museum at Rollins College and exhibition judge, chose the winners of six awards. Stetson students voted on the Student Choice Award.

All Stetson students regardless of major were eligible to participate in the exhibition. This year’s show includes works by 16 non-art majors.

Gilmour, a junior with a double major in psychology and studio, currently is in Thailand as part of an exchange program.


Alaska Gilmour
Photo/Stuart Gilmour

By email, she said she “just thought it would be cool” if Greenshields titled the ceramic “because she went to the effort of entering it for me on my behalf. When Nat told me what she had called it, I burst out laughing. I told her it definitely wouldn’t win anything now with a name like that, but I guess I was wrong.”

A fifth-generation native of Zimbabwe, Gilmour noted her family, who still lives there, breeds Brahman bulls. “I’ve grown up around these floppy-eared cows my whole life, so I guess that was my inspiration for the piece,” she said.

Gilmour said there “are not a lot of higher education options in Zimbabwe” and she chose Stetson because of Florida’s warm climate “and I liked how small Stetson is and how much history it has.”

Her main mediums are oils and ceramics, but she had never worked in the latter until she took a class under Professor Dan Gunderson in her first year.

“I had to beg them to let me into the class because it was already full, and I took the class without much intention of pursuing ceramics,” Gilmour said. “But I fell in love with the medium and loved working with Dan.”

Gilmour is uncertain which of her degrees she will pursue as a career path.

“I get bored easily so I’m sure I’ll chop and change careers,” she said. “It’s good I have two very different degrees to follow. I’ll definitely carry on making art throughout my life – I’m just not sure if it will be professionally or just as a hobby. Life is too fleeting to have a set plan, things change all the time and therefore so will I.”

If you Go:
The 29th Annual Undergraduate Juried Exhibition runs through Dec. 7 at the Hand Art Center on Stetson’s Palm Court/Quad, 139 E. Michigan Ave., DeLand. Admission is free and open to the public. Designated parking is available in the lots at East Arizona Avenue.

Center hours are 11 a.m.-4 p.m. Monday through Wednesday and Friday; 11 a.m.-6 p.m. Thursday and noon-4 p.m. Saturday. Closed on national holidays, holiday weekends and fall, Thanksgiving and winter breaks. Information: 386-822-7270.

Story is an adapted excerpt from an article originally posted on November 28, 2018  at Stetson Today

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Stetson celebrates International Education Week during November 5-9

WORLD: Rinker Center for International Learning joins thousands of universities, colleges and organizations to recognize international learning and global mindset. During November 5-9, 2018, Stetson will celebrate its global footprint with a week of cultural activities, research showcases, sporting events, and more.

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11/12/2018
11/16/2018
America/New_York
Stetson University celebrates International Education Week with a showcase of cultural activities, research highlights, sporting events, and more.
International Education Week
various locations.

International Education Week is November 12-16, 2018. IEW is a joint initiative of the U.S. Department of State and U.S. Department of Education “to promote programs that prepare Americans for a global environment and attract future leaders from abroad to study, learn, and exchange experiences”.

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Pumpkin Carving Fever


The Pumpkin Carving event on Friday, October 26 was a total success! Despite anticipating only a few people, more than 15 people stopped by throughout the two hours we had programmed for the event.

We started out by carving pumpkins outside of WORLD, but had to adapt to the situation due to rain. So, we moved the table to the roofed area outside of the main entrance. Students got to interact with one another while performing this American tradition while enjoying a slice of pizza, a caramelized apple, candy and apple spiced cider.

I believe the only issue was that the weather was not so much on our side, but we managed to adapt to the situation and make the best out of it!

WORLD’s Social Committee

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Zoe Weaver wins Stetson Student Employee of the Month

Zoe Weaver, ‘19, one of WORLD’s outstanding student employees, is winner of the October 2018 Student of the Month Competition at Stetson University.

Our Student Employment office hosts the monthly competition. The office seeks meritorious nominations from employers for student employees who exemplify Stetson’s Professional and Career Readiness Competency themes. This month’s theme is Professionalism and Productivity.

Stetson’s Professional and Career Readiness Competencies are the basis of each month’s theme and represent skills most sought by employers: critical thinking and problem solving, professionalism and productivity, teamwork and collaboration, communication, digital literacy, leadership, global and intercultural engagement, and career navigation. Our student workers practice and master these competencies in their campus work roles. Stetson employers are encouraged to help student employees recognize and build competencies to enable better articulation of transferable skills when students interview for internships, jobs, and post-baccalaureate educational opportunities.

Wendy Viggiano, who serves as Stetson’s international learning program coordinator and Weaver’s supervisor, offered praise as part of the nomination application.

“From the first day of work, Zoe has gone above and beyond, exceeding expectations. She has been instrumental in helping acclimate all of our international students during orientation. She led several orientation sessions, assisting in any small or large task asked of her, and always offered to do even more than asked.

Recently, Zoe organized with her WORLD Ambassador Team a panel on Immigration. She coordinated faculty, staff, and students from around campus to speak about their experience immigrating to the United States. Zoe was the main coordinator for the entire event and was the moderator for the panel. As a student employee, Zoe has anticipated the needs of our center, solving problems before we even ask for help. “

Zoe Weaver, a global development major, envisions her work experience at WORLD as critical to her future endeavors.

“Working at WORLD has not only connected me with students from all over the world and taught me how I can best support them, but has also introduced me to an environment in which all workers truly care about the job they do. The WORLD center and its staff have been an important part of my experience at Stetson, and although I am graduating soon, I am sure they will continue to serve the international community in ways unmatched by any other office on campus.”

Article written by Ally Topliff,’ 19 (political science) and Roxanne Lewis, international student and scholars coordinator at Stetson University

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 International Student Receives Global Citizenship Scholarship, Stetson Access Grant

Congratulations to Henry Semaganda, international student from Kampala, Uganda, who received one of Stetson’s prestigious Global Citizenship Scholarships. Semaganda has long demonstrated interest in Stetson University, applying twice before receiving the scholarship.

“As a recipient of the prestigious Global Citizen Full Tuition Scholarship, I have an immense opportunity to live my dream at Stetson University, Florida. A dream that has come to pass despite the fact that the competition was indeed stiff, with only one slot available for a student from sub-Saharan Africa.“

Henry Semaganda, ‘20 (biology), proudly displays his Global Citizenship Scholarship certificate of award. Semaganda is the second recipient of the Global Citizenship Scholarship, a new scholarship program at Stetson University aimed at attracting outstanding international students.

The full tuition scholarship is awarded to incoming international students with top academic potential who exhibit Stetson’s value of global citizenship. Three students are chosen annually, each from different regions of the world. The scholarship enables recipients opportunity to deepen their practice of global citizenship as Semeganda describes in his application essay.

“For a substantial part of my life, I have always held a firm belief in the promise of humanity. This belief has persisted despite the wrongs and misfortunes that have befallen our societies. I have never given up hope in believing that there is potential to do good in all of us and that deep within us lies the solution to the problems that torment the world today ranging from war, terrorism, disease among others. I believe everyone has a place on the team in this journey to make the world a better place for posterity”.

Semaganda has also received the Stetson Access Grant Scholarship (now discontinued) to cover the remaining costs of attending university. He believes that the small class sizes and student-to-teacher ratio at Stetson  will afford him the “rare opportunity of an up-close learning experience and mentorship between the professors and me…”

Today, I rejoice in an improbable success. That as a student who began his academic journey at Masajja Bridge nursery and primary school, a school that is on the verge of demolition currently, I will be obtaining my undergraduate education at Stetson University, one of the top institutions in U.S. Both my parents dropped out of school during the 1979 Iddi-Amin civil war but held a firm belief that education would be the ultimate gift they would ever give me. It is their unwavering hope that even pushed me to limits they had never envisioned.

The biology major has participated in the EducationUSA program at the U.S. Embassy in Kampala and has volunteered to work with them to spread the benefits of an American education.

I want to share in the diversity, to bask in the depth, richness and flexibility of an American education. My story is one of hard work, tenacity and unflagging faith that I can be among the best. If one wants to achieve greatness, the door to opportunity is always open. My story has just begun. I urge students from Uganda, and from around the world to never give up on their dreams because they seem too big. Let us strive to push ourselves to limits we have never imagined before.

Semaganda’s future plans include a career as a medical doctor to help improve Uganda’s health system.

“I envision that after my time at Stetson, I will be an ambassador of hope, well equipped with knowledge, exposure and skills to contribute to sensitization and improvement of basic health care in Uganda but more especially in eradicating preventable diseases like HIV/AIDS, cholera and ebola that plague millions of Africans.

”Today, as a global citizen, I long to see African societies that are not held hostage to negative traditional beliefs and senseless stereotypes. This will boost our education, health, infrastructure, relationships, politics and leadership.”

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Cathy Day to Serve as Peace Core Prep Faculty Coordinator

Cathy Day will serve as Peace Corps Prep faculty coordinator for the 2018-2019 academic year. The Peace Corps Prep program at Stetson University prepares students for international development fieldwork and potential Peace Corps service.

As coordinator, Dr. Day will work with Stetson’s Peace Corps Prep Leadership Team to facilitate academic engagements that include faculty course-approvers and academic administration.

Dr. Cathy Day is a visiting assistant professor of environmental science and studies at Stetson University. She earned a Ph.D. in geography at the University of Wisconsin-Madison. During her doctoral studies, she served as adjunct lecturer at both UW-Madison and New Mexico State University, where she taught a course on the geography of sub-Saharan Africa. Dr. Day has conducted fieldwork in New Mexico as well as Niger, West Africa. Her research examines the relationships between climate change and rural livelihoods.

Dr. Day has  experience as a certified middle and high school science teacher as well as service as a Peace Corps Volunteer. She was an agricultural volunteer in Niger for three and a half years (2004-2007) and lived in the same village where she subsequently conducted research for her second master’s degree in geography. In rural Niger, she helped villagers organize to build agricultural wells, initiate dry season gardening projects, create a grain bank, establish a school for the village, and carry out a variety of literacy and health education activities. For village projects, Day raised funds through Peace Corps Partnership to further extend the quality and quantity of projects that villagers could create on their own.

In a later role as regional leader, she collaborated with a local staff person on establishing new Peace Corps posts. That role also included the management of a regional budget, administration of local staff, outreach and cooperation with local and regional government agents, support of volunteers in their village work, and the funding and organization of regional training projects in the region’s central Peace Corps post. Day also organized the establishment of the first-ever, nation-wide volunteer advisory council to assist in better communication between volunteers and the country-level Peace Corps staff who were based in Niamey, the capital.

With experiences living abroad in France, Costa Rica, Mexico, and Niger, Cathy speaks French, Spanish, Hausa, and a smattering of Arabic. Dr. Day is excited about her contributions to managing a program that trains potential future Peace Corps Volunteers.

To learn more about Peace Corps Prep, visit stetson.edu/other/peace-corps-prep.