Accompanied by a Rhodes faculty member, students travel to a location in another country for four weeks of total immersion in the language and culture of that country. Rhodes College financial aid is not available for these programs. Generally, a total of four credit hours can be earned. To be eligible for an intensive language program, one year of college level work is required in the language to be studied.

Spanish 209/Spanish 309

Dates: May 16-June 15, 2008

Faculty Leader:

Professor Eric Henager

Cost:

Approx. $2750

Program Information:

The program will include 4 weeks of Spanish language courses, individual lodging with an Ecuadorian family, excursions to Ouito, Otavalo, Ingapirca, El Cajas,  and Chorro de Giron. There will also be several afternoon and evening courses on culture, history, contemporary Ecuador, cooking, music, and dance.

Cost Includes:

• 4 weeks of Spanish language courses (20 days, 120 hours of instruction at the Estudio Internacional Sampere in Cuenca, Ecuador)
• Individual lodging with Ecuadorian family (3 meals/day, laundry)
• Excursions to Quito, Otavalo, Ingapirca, El Cajas, Chorro de Girón (Note that a few meals on excursions outside Cuenca are not covered in program costs.  All lodging for overnight excursions IS covered in the regular program fee.  All ground and air transportation in country and admission fees for all museums and excursions ARE also covered.)
• Afternoon/evening courses (culture, history, contemporary Ecuador, cooking, music, dance—Some of these are optional, others required)
• Students will of course need some money for entertainment, casual expenses, and the few meals not included in the program fee.  How much expense money a student will need depends entirely on each individual’s spending habits. When deciding how much expense money to take, one should consider that the cost of living in Ecuador is a bit cheaper than in the United States.

Cost Does NOT Include:

Airfare between the US and Ecuador.  Participants in the program make individual arrangements for arrival in Quito and departure from Quito. See dates above.

Other Information:

1. Enrollment in the program works on a rolling admissions model. Submission of your application to the Buckman Center for International Education automatically sets in motion an approval procedure. Once all approvals and clearances are granted, you are enrolled in the course and your student account is immediately billed in the amount of the course fee. Please inquire in the Buckman Center for International Education about application, fee, billing, and refund policies. The role of study abroad faculty in financial matters is limited to proposing a budget, recommending to the Buckman Center a per-student fee, and managing off-site and on-site program expenses. Program faculty members are not involved in any decisions regarding billing or refund requests.

2. Enrollment in the course requires a 100% commitment to Spanish-language acquisition and Andean-culture learning goals. Students agree to use only Spanish at all times during the course.

3. Cuenca is the third largest city in Ecuador (400,000 inhabitants).  Guapondeleg, Tomebamba, Santa María de los cuatro ríos de Cuenca.  It is the capital of the state of Azuay.  The University of Cuenca is 8200 feet above sea level.  The climate: May is normally the end of a rainy season (March-May). The second half of our course is normally dryer than the first. Average daytime highs are 65-70 degrees Fahrenheit. Average nighttime lows are 50-55 degrees Fahrenheit.

4. Excursions: Quito: capital, pop. 2.1 million, 9350 ft., Pichincha, Cotopaxi; Otavalo: traditional market of the otavaleño culture; Mitad del Mundo: museum located on the ecuator; Ingapirca: ruins of a pre-Inca settlement modified during Inca occupation; El Cajas: national park (+/1 12,000 ft.), condors, curiquingas; Chorro de Girón: rigorous hike, waterfalls