Border Studies Program

Happenings

  • Read the participants' updates from Mexico and travel the migrant trail along with the group.
  • Senior Peace and Global Studies students devote their final project to "Stories of a Border: A Living Museum" for their Senior Capstone Experience course.
  • Resources page is updated with links to Spring BSP students' final projects. Also includes the zine from the Oberlin students from the BSP fall 2008 semester entitled "Remembering "
  • Glen Kuecker, Professor of History at De Pauw University and member of Border Studies Committee for Counsel, organized a panel and presented on Immigration Policy at the conference on Undocumented Hispanic Migration held at Connecticut College Oct. 16-18, 2009. Howard Lamson and Patty Lamson from Earlham College attended the Conference.
  • Congratulations to Eva Jimenez, an Earlham College senior and 2006 BSP alum, who was awarded a prestigious Thomas J. Watson Fellowship for 2009-2010 to research immigration in Peru, Ecuador and Spain! Read more about the Watson Fellowship and Eva's project.
  • Attention BSP Alums: We want to hear from you! Take a few moments to fill out the alumni survey.

Living Arrangements

Courses | Supervised Field Study | Language Learning | Living Arrangements | Cultural Excursions |
How To Apply

For the first week of the program, students will reside together during the orientation period. The orientation will culminate in a host family reception where students and families will meet for the first time and begin the semester together. From then on, participants will live with host families in Tucson until the end of the semester.

The families in Tucson may be English language dominant or Spanish language dominant; each student's experience will be different.  The program makes every attempt to ensure that the homestay in Tucson will in some way broaden the student's experience related to the border.

Participants will be asked to complete a questionnaire about their preferences and the program will then match the students with the families.  Some participants prefer more independence and others prefer a more family oriented experience.  

OrientationThe homestay has the potential to be a very important learning experience during the semester, and we see your living experience as an essential part of the overall educational program.  Many Border Studies students have made long lasting friendships with their host families over the years.

Recent students have said the following about their experiences with the host families:

"My host parents were wonderful in general but also flexible and generous about sharing their space."

"We had great times shopping and cooking and watching movies"

"They were the greatest, most welcoming and loving family ever. I felt so included in family activities from the very start."


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