Professor makes difference at home and abroad

By Alexandra Tieu

Ethnic Studies Professor Shawn Ginwright, Ph.D., hosted high school students, college students and a Santa Clara alumnus at Camp Afrique this past summer.

A two-week field trip to the rural areas of Africa, Camp Afrique proved to be a success in the inner city of Oakland and in the impoverished communities in Africa.

When Ginwright was an undergraduate at the University of California San Diego, he realized that there weren't many options during the summer for African American students living in the inner city. As a result, he started Leadership Excellence in 1989, an organization dedicated to educating and motivating high school students of the importance of obtaining a college education. The program is one of 12 in the nation that received a $250,000 grant from the Ford Foundation over a period of three years. As a result of the grant, the organization has paid staff.

Camp Afrique is an advanced level of study within Leadership Excellence. The goal of the program is to give students guidance by providing opportunities to inner city students.

According to Ginwright, this is a hard task.

"There is not a national commitment for young people in general," Ginwright said. "They are looked at as troublemakers, where as we see them as assets."Santa Clara alumnus Sara Brissenden-Smith has participated in the program for the past two years, and encourages college student to get involved.

"Volunteers get a lot more out of it than just a nice resume," she said.

Camp Afrique was held from Aug. 16 through Aug. 29. The program took place in Cape Coast Ghana, West Africa, and was packed with community service activities. Participants also visited African slave dungeons.

According to Brissenden-Smith, many of the students who participated felt a sense of heritage for the first time in their lives.

"As young African Americans you get a sense that the native Africans don't except you," Brissenden-Smith said. "This is not true Ñ African Americans do have a homeland. Our people are proud of the accomplishments we made in America, and they welcome us with open arms."The students participated in a fundraising project in a village called Iture. Camp Afrique students helped the villagers by fundraising for a chicken farm due to the lack of industry and jobs. The farm will provide villagers with the opportunity to sell chicken eggs at the local market. Next year the students will return to check up on the progress and of their project.

According to Ginwright, Camp Afrique has made a positive impact on African American students who attended the trip.

High school student Jessie Wimberley went through a transformation after Camp Afrique. Before the camp, Wimberley rarely attended school. After the experience, his grade point average rose to a 3.0.

"Students don't take things for granted anymore once they have visited Africa," Ginwright said. According to Ginwright, young people are the vanguard of change Ñ whether it takes place in Africa, China, Indonesia, or the United States Ñ and college students have the power to make a change for students like Wimberley. College students bring youthfulness, and are realistic role models for kids. These qualities make college students very valuable to kids like Wimberley.

"Jessie is a special kid, who changed before our eyes," Brissenden-Smith said.Ginwright said that success for students relies heavily on two important components Ñ guidance and motivation. Camp Afrique integrates both of these components.

The guidance comes from people such as Ginwright and the numerous volunteers. The motivation comes from the connection African American students feel when they visit their native homeland.