Jordan Service Learning Trip | August 30-September 3, 2007
Purpose - To provide students with an opportunity to engage in service learning within the Arab world.
Method - Nine students traveled with three members of the Student Affairs team to Amman, Jordan where they explored the local country and culture. They also contributed two and a half days to helping Habitat for Humanity build a house for a local family.
Preparation - To prepare for the trip, the students first had to fill out an application and respond to an article about service-learning. The successful applicants then participated in three predeparture meetings.
At the meetings, students were given materials to read to help understand the mission of Habitat for Humanity. They also researched and gave presentations on relevant aspects of Jordanian society.
Friday's Excursion - The group arrived in Jordan on Thursday night and spent their first night in Amman. The following day, the entire group rode south to Petra, the ancient city built into stone cliffs that was named as one of the New 7 Wonders of the World. The experience was awesome for all involved as they walked through canyons that had been paved 4000 years before and peered into forgotten tombs. After a full day of marveling at the architecture and wondering at the hidden mysteries, the group took an unforgettable donkey ride back to modern civilization and then a bus to Amman.
Construction with Habitat for Humanity - A majority of the time on the trip was spent helping Habitat for Humanity build an addition to a house. The addition was to be added living space for the soon-to-be-married son.
Carnegie Mellon's team was responsible for building the roof to the house. This required numerous hours of bending and forming steel rebar, twisting and tying wires, placing and supporting a wooden frame, and moving hundreds of heavy cement blocks by hand. Needless to say, the group was always extraordinarily grateful for the delicious lunches and tea breaks prepared by the family that owned the house.
In the process, the entire group shared their stories with the local Habitat staff and learned volumes about life in Jordan. The non-Arabic speakers picked up such useful phrases as "يا الله" and the Arabic speakers grew in both their knowledge and experience translating for others.
In the end, all of the participants learned about helping others, hard work, and the world around them. They returned to Qatar with sore backs and broad smiles.
Participants/Students - Maha Al Khulaifi, Naif Al-Kaabi, Nasreen Zahan, Hicham Nedjari, Ramsey Ramadan, Saad Al-Matwi, Hillary Smith, Megan Larcom, Maha Mahmoud
Staff Participants - Greg Smith, David Stanfield, Caryl Tuma
