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<\/a>Participants in the Global Start program will take four classes on the campus of Universidad Latina, Costa Rica\u2019s largest private university. A first-year-seminar, \u201cCity and Country in Costa Rica,\u201d will explore the dynamic relationship of city and rural life. The remaining courses will be offered by the International Center for Development Studies (ICDS), the partner institution for Global Start. Students will take two electives in addition to a required course, \u201cCommunity Learning and Sustainable Development,\u201d in which they will learn about and discuss the impact of globalization and sustainable human development on Costa Rica.<\/p>\n
The program is consistent with the college\u2019s commitment to building meaningful connections with the community locally and globally. \u201cCommunity Learning and Sustainable Development\u201d is a gateway course that mirrors community-based learning classes and initiatives offered on Trinity\u2019s campus.<\/p>\n
The final academic component of the Global Start program provides an additional way for students to engage in Trinity\u2019s community-oriented mission. In November 2019, ICDS will offer a three-week intensive course, \u201cSustainable Farming and Food Security in Rural Costa Rica,\u201d just for Trinity students. Students will live on-site at Finca La Flor, an agroecological farm in Cartago, Costa Rica, and will receive immersive and practical experience while they learn about water management, food-security policies, and other key components of Finca La Flor.<\/p>\n
In San Jos\u00e9, students will have full access to the university\u2019s facilities, will live in residence hall apartments, and will be provided with a meal allowance to be used at local restaurants, vendors, and grocery stores.<\/p>\n
Melanie Stein, dean of academic affairs and professor of mathematics, has played an integral role in the program\u2019s creation and development, in collaboration with Jennifer Summerhays, Trinity\u2019s director of study away, and a faculty advisory group. Trinity Professor of Anthropology James A. Trostle will be the inaugural faculty director of the program.<\/p>\n
Trostle has conducted research for many years in nearby Ecuador, is fluent in Spanish, and has been a frequent visitor to Costa Rica since his parents moved to the country in 1974. In addition to serving as the first-year seminar instructor, Trostle will help students navigate their first semester of college abroad.<\/p>\n
The target for the first Global Start cohort is 10 to 18 students, the size of a traditional first-year-seminar at Trinity.<\/p>\n
Stein says that while Trinity considered other locations for the first Global Start program, Costa Rica stood out for a number of reasons.<\/p>\n
\u201cOne of the areas of focus in the Summit strategic plan\u2019s goal of educating students to become global citizens places emphasis on connections with Latin America and the Caribbean,\u201d says Stein. \u201cWe have a vibrant Hispanic Studies Department; we have a robust Latin American and Caribbean major within the International Studies Program; and we have recently inaugurated the Center for Caribbean Studies, which highlights our connections with the Caribbean community both in Hartford and abroad.\u201d<\/p>\n
Stein said she hopes the program will grow, either within its current location or by branching off into other countries throughout the world. With Global Start, Stein says, \u201cWe hope to draw academically excellent students with a sense of adventure, who want to explore the world and engage with the community both locally and globally.\u201d<\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"
New program offers third point of entry for first-years Starting in fall 2019, incoming first-years will have three options for entering Trinity. In addition to the traditional fall entry and the newer January Start, prospective students may choose Global Start, a foundational study-away experience where students spend their fall semester in San Jos\u00e9, Costa Rica, … <\/p>\n