IDSG Background

Formation of the Group, Dec. 12, 2006

-----Original Message----- From: Alfino, Mark Sent: Tuesday, December 12, 2006 8:48 AM To: FACSL Subject: Invitation to join an "International Development Study Group"

Gonzaga has a number of new summer study abroad programs this year, including three in Africa which involve small groups of faculty and students engaging in a variety of academic pursuits, including the study of issues related to international development.  We will be engaged in water sanitation and public health issues in Benin, and service and community development projects are under discussion at the two locations in Zambia.  Together, these three programs will serve small but diverse groups of students from Engineering, the Comprehensive Leadership Program, the Psychology Program, the Nursing Program, and the TESL program, among others.   

As part of our support for international program development, the International Program Advisory Committee (IPAC) is forming a Spring semester study group comprised of faculty, staff, and students interested in exploring the topic of international development.  We hope to have a diverse range of perspectives represented in the group, including interdisciplinary discussion from fields such as economics, ethnic studies, history, language and literature, and politics.  During the Spring semester we will probably focus on African culture and development dynamics, not only because of our new programs but also because of new scholarship in this area. In addition to seeking a better understanding of the problems of development, we will look at model programs which have international service, volunteerism, or development assistance as goals.  An ongoing study group may be able to advise current and future international development program activity, in Africa and other parts of the world. 

If you are interested in finding out more about IPAC’s International Development Study Group, please reply to Mark Alfino at alfino@gonzaga.edu.  The group will probably meet 3-4 times during the semester.   We welcome nominations of interested students. 

This invitation is extended on behalf of the subcommittee of IPAC working on this project which includes the following faculty and staff:  James Beebe, Sima Thorpe, Bob Bartlett, Mary Jeannot, Raymond Reyes, and Mark Alfino.  The study group is open to interested faculty, staff, and students.  The International Program Advisory Committee supports international programs across campus and advises the AVP’s office on international programs at Gonzaga.

Mark Alfino

Dr. Mark Alfino

Professor, Department of Philosophy

International Program Development, Academic Vice-President's Office

First Meeting Summary, Feb 23, 2007

The first meeting of the International Development Study Group took place Friday, February 23rd. While we had only an hour and this was an introductory meeting, we discovered a rich diversity of experience and interest among the participants. After a reiteration of the goals of the group and introductions, we shared some of our common impressions of the readings. People said, for example, that the “successes and failures” of various development initiatives often seem to involve failures to appreciate complexity. System relationships are clearly important. Our discussion also emphasized the importance of listening, learning in preparation for listening. The theme of “success and failure” kept coming up, probably because it is a common theme in the recent books we sampled for this meeting. At some point we were discussing the need to be prepared to make some kinds of mistakes, given the complexity of intercultural engagement. As the discussion progressed, it became apparent that we have a rich range of personal and disciplinary perspectives in this group and, like everyone I talked to afterwards, I found the meeting insightful and motivating. I am looking forward to the next one.

I think we generally agreed that we would pursue readings that reflect our interests (or items from the bibliography or new searching) around the topic of development and look for “5 successes, 5 failures, and 5 programs”. By “programs”, I think we meant something like development work that includes or could include university engagement with communities or organizations which promote the goals of international development through service, faith, and justice. I think for the other 10 items, we’re looking for examples (Sachs, Caldersi, and Easterly are packed with them) of successes and failures in development work broadly.

As you identify a case study or program that you think we should look at, you might want to write a short paragraph about it, possibly to identify what you think is important about it, or just mention the citation and page reference if its in a book or article from your reading. How ever you decide to share your items with the group, I’m available to collect them for the next meeting. You could also send your cases directly to the list.

Also, please feel free to directly update the wiki with your suggestions for readings. (Follow the link at alfino.org) It turns out the password is actually “bulldogs”. You could also just email your bibliographic citations or web links to me for posting.

Thanks again to everyone in “IDSG-interested”!

Mark