October 2 (evening) through October 7 (evening)
The Border Justice Engagement is
an interprofessional educational immersion at the US-Mexico border that provides
diverse informational sessions and direct engagement to students, faculty, and
staff from health professions at Loyola. This experience presents two primary
objectives: 1) introduce participants to the first-hand realities of border
health and justice, and 2) provide an interprofessional cohort with a shared experience
in immigration that serves as a point of entry to advocate for social justice
and human rights in the Chicagoland area. The immersion takes place in Tucson
and Nogales, Arizona. All meetings are held in the United States; the trip does
not cross into Mexico. BorderLinks (www.borderlinks.org) serves as the educational broker, scheduling all
programming and organizing all meals and transportation. Group reflection
activities are also coordinated by BorderLinks; HSD Ministry leads reflections
that seek to locate the experience within our identity and mission. The reflection sessions serve as the
cornerstone of the experience.
Trip participants: The
eligible student, faculty, and staff member is interested in interprofessional
education, has shown ongoing commitment to health disparities and the
underserved, and feels comfortable adopting a stance of cultural humility and
presence. Before travel, each student is responsible for communicating with all
necessary individuals regarding permission and alternative arrangements
required for 1-2 days of missed class and/or program requirements.
Composition of the trip:
12-13 total participants, ideally 2 students and one faculty/staff member from
each school. Composition varies somewhat depending on interest and expertise of
participants.
Application: Each
student will apply through their school/program of study (School of Nursing,
Institute of Public Health, School of Medicine, Center for Human Rights of Children)
by the internally assigned application deadline.
Funding: The overall
cost of the trip is roughly $1200-$1500. ($800-1000 program fees and lodging,
$300-$500 for flights) Each school will communicate the corresponding levels of
sponsorship to student, faculty, and staff participants.
Trip preparation: The
group will meet 1-2 times before departure in order to meet one another, set
goals for the trip, and to determine individual interests in conjunction with
the development of a group agenda. Suggested readings will be offered.
Post-trip requirements:
Each school will require a post-trip project or presentation. The trip group
will present 1-2 times to the larger Loyola community. Trip participants will
be invited to continue work in immigration and in immigration health issues in
the local community.
Please direct questions within your program, or to Ginny
McCarthy, Director, University Ministry, Health Sciences Division: vmccarthy@luc.edu.
