Duke Immerse: Uprooted/Rerouted
Duke Immerse is a program unique to Duke University that allows an individual Duke department to receive funding for an intensive semester of study of their area of expertise with a select group of students. Funding allows the opportunity for international travel for students to gain a deeper understanding of the subject matter.
In the spring semester of 2012, the Kenan Institute for Ethics as Duke University launched their version of Duke Immerse entitled Uprooted/Rerouted. The program selected twelve students and was taught by five professors: Susan Shanahan, Lou Brown, Nadia El-Shaarawi, Amber Diaz-Pearson and Laurie MacIntosh. Duke Immerse: Uprooted/Rerouted focused entirely on the issue of forced migration, particularly on the clandestine experience of UNHCR registered refugees navigating the complex world of international aid. The group met everyday and the program timeline was divided into three components. Students first studied the refugee experience through multiple lenses of ethics, political science, cultural anthropology, global health and public policy. After learning an appropriate amount of background knowledge, students were divided into two group of six. One group was sent to Damak, Nepal to study Bhutanese refugees in a traditional camp setting. The other group was sent to Cairo, Egypt in 2012 and 2013 as well as Amman, Jordan in 2014 to study Iraqi and Syrian refugees in an urban refugee camp setting. While in country, students performed life story interviews, studied the target language and assessed aid organisations that were operating to help specific refugee populations in country.
Upon returning to Duke University, the final phase of the Duke Immerse program had students convert life story interviews into monologues that were performed at Duke University's Nasher Museum of Art, highlighting specific struggles in the everyday refugee's experience. Student also wrote articles on specific areas of study such as religion, gender and identity that were later compiled into magazines published by the Kenan Institute for Ethics. The group also continually engaged the Durham Iraqi and Bhutanese refugee communities throughout the semester, creating programs like refugee women's groups and social events to build stronger safety nets for newly arrived refugees in the Durham area.
The program is renewed on a yearly basis and the Kenan Institute for Ethics decided not to renew a Duke Immerse for the 2015 spring semester.
In the spring semester of 2012, the Kenan Institute for Ethics as Duke University launched their version of Duke Immerse entitled Uprooted/Rerouted. The program selected twelve students and was taught by five professors: Susan Shanahan, Lou Brown, Nadia El-Shaarawi, Amber Diaz-Pearson and Laurie MacIntosh. Duke Immerse: Uprooted/Rerouted focused entirely on the issue of forced migration, particularly on the clandestine experience of UNHCR registered refugees navigating the complex world of international aid. The group met everyday and the program timeline was divided into three components. Students first studied the refugee experience through multiple lenses of ethics, political science, cultural anthropology, global health and public policy. After learning an appropriate amount of background knowledge, students were divided into two group of six. One group was sent to Damak, Nepal to study Bhutanese refugees in a traditional camp setting. The other group was sent to Cairo, Egypt in 2012 and 2013 as well as Amman, Jordan in 2014 to study Iraqi and Syrian refugees in an urban refugee camp setting. While in country, students performed life story interviews, studied the target language and assessed aid organisations that were operating to help specific refugee populations in country.
Upon returning to Duke University, the final phase of the Duke Immerse program had students convert life story interviews into monologues that were performed at Duke University's Nasher Museum of Art, highlighting specific struggles in the everyday refugee's experience. Student also wrote articles on specific areas of study such as religion, gender and identity that were later compiled into magazines published by the Kenan Institute for Ethics. The group also continually engaged the Durham Iraqi and Bhutanese refugee communities throughout the semester, creating programs like refugee women's groups and social events to build stronger safety nets for newly arrived refugees in the Durham area.
The program is renewed on a yearly basis and the Kenan Institute for Ethics decided not to renew a Duke Immerse for the 2015 spring semester.