Dominican Republic Beyond the Classroom

Program Leader: Cayla Lanier

Immerse yourself in the field of public health and gain hands-on clinical experience while enjoying the tropical scenery and warm community of Sosua through the Honors Dominican Republic Beyond the Classroom program.

The Dominican Republic Beyond the Classroom program is a Spring 2025 IDH 4200 course with ten days of immersion in Sosua, on the North coast of the Dominican Republic, at the end of the semester.

Over the course of the semester, students will engage with the topics of culture, identity, and migration with the Dominican Republic and the Caribbean at large as a case study. 

This program will appeal to Honors students interested in the intersections of culture, globalization, and health, as well as students of any major looking to practice or enhance their Spanish language skills.

Spring 2025 | May 11, 2025 - May 21, 2025

• Application Opens: July 1, 2024
• Application Closes: Tuesday, October 29, 2024
• Course: Spring 2025
• Travel: May 11, 2025 - May 21, 2025

ABOUT OUR COMMUNITY PARTNERS

While in-country, students will support the staff of the Kerolle Initiative in community health efforts, including mobile medical clinics, sustainable gardening projects to increase food security, and education programs in the community. Additionally, students will learn about global health from Dr. Reginald Kerolle, founder of the Kerolle Initiative, shadow physicians in the clinics, and gain insights into Dominican culture and the Spanish language.

The Kerolle Initiative is a nonprofit community health organization based in the Dominican Republic dedicated to providing holistic health interventions to improve quality of life and access to medical care in rural communities. 

Students will stay together in host family homes, allowing them to connect with multiple members of the host community. All meals are provided by a trained chef, who can accommodate dietary needs while sharing the true flavors of the Dominican Republic through traditional dishes. Students will have daily access to basic Wi-Fi. Host family homes do not have air conditioning or hot water, and rolling power outages can occur.

PROGRAM COST

• $1,750.00

PROGRAM ACCESSIBILITY

Abundant walking, extreme temperatures, hill climbing, climbing into and out of vehicles. Students must be able to navigate rough, uneven, possibly muddy surfaces, eat and sleep in tropical temperatures and humidity, and adapt to changes in the schedule with little notice.

Since 2016, over 200 Honors students have participated in the formative program, which can leave a lasting impact on students, many of whom are aspiring physicians themselves:

“It made me more passionate about medicine than ever, being able to see all the ways that we can help those in need, those that don't have the means to help themselves ... it brings me so much joy. I got to take that step forward and see what it was like to be in the shoes of a physician and it made me realize that it's exactly what I wanted, exactly the path that I want to take.” – Nusheen Immen

“The Honors College did a great job of preparing us both culturally and in the language sense. Once we arrived, we were like, wow, everything fits into place. We got everything we needed and we were ready to take part in that community. Our host families could not have been more welcoming and warm. We were clearly in a very different environment, which was challenging for many of us. However, the host families, the kids, and the people in the community made it feel like home.” – Aakash Vijeesh