The American and Global Mosaic Projects are intensive, semester-long programs designed around fieldwork and immersion in domestic and global communities.
About Mosaics
Comparative Black Liberation Movements Mosaic (2008)
During the summer and fall semester of 2008, Dickinson students and faculty examined two of the most internationally significant Black Liberation Movements of the 20th century: the anti-apartheid movement in South Africa from the 1950s through the 1990s, and the African-American civil rights movement of the 1950s-1980s. Mosaic participants conducted field research in South Africa and Coahoma County, Mississippi, where they studied how African and African-American people in small communities responded to and eventually defeated white supremacy in two of its most infamous manifestations: apartheid South Africa and Jim Crow Mississippi.
The Patagonia Mosaics (2001, 2003, 2005)
The Patagonia Mosaics examined trans-Atlantic migration, ethnic and labor relations, and community development among various ethnic groups in the oil company towns surrounding Comodoro Rivadavia, in Patagonia, Argentina. The research has produced a number of publications, presentations, and a 73 minute bilingual documentary: An Argentine Mosaic: Destino Patagonia.
The Mexican Migration Mosaics (1998, 2003, 2011)
The Mexican Migration Mosaics focused on migrant labor in Adams County, Pennsylvania, just south of Carlisle. In 2003, students worked with communities in Adams County, Pennsylvania and Peribán in Michoacán, Mexico communities that lie on opposite ends of the continent but remain connected through family, work and circular migration. The study expanded in 2011 to include interpreting Spanish for the health professionals in health clinics and working with migrant education.
Steelton Mosaics (1996, 2001)
During the Steelton Mosaics, students and faculty members met with workers, teachers, local business people, and residents of the multi-ethnic community of Steelton, Pennsylvania to explore questions of mutual interest: how to raise a family, earn a living, and sustain faith in a community hit hard by deindustrialization. In 2001, students focused on work, family, and migration narratives among members of the African-American community.
The Montserrat Mosaic (2005)
The Montserrat Mosaic
conducted a two-week field study on the island of Montserrat, where
volcanic activity has devastated parts of the island. Through coursework
in both sociology and geology, students studied individual and
collective trauma and the geology of cataclysmic events.
Venezuela Mini-Mosaics (2007, 2009)
Two courses (1/2 credit in the fall and ½ credit in the spring) integrated a winterim research trip to Venezuela (2007, 2009). In the 2007 Mosaic, students focused on the history of Venezuela and the Bolivarian Revolution with a hands-on exposure to a variety of issues, including participatory democracy, endogenous development, and regional integration. The 2009 Mosaic focused on sustainable agriculture and cooperatives.
Go here for information on the "Venezuela y la Revolución Bolivariana" in Spanish. English version coming soon.
South Asian Diaspora mini-Mosaic (2009)
In the Spring of 2009, the South Asian Diaspora mini-Mosaiccombined
fieldwork and oral history research with the South Asian communities in
Central Pennsylvania. The research focused on religion, family, work
and migration narratives.
Global Climate Change Mosaics
The COP 15 and COP 17 Mosaics engaged students in academic study of issues and policies related to global climate change prior to their participation in COP 15 and COP 17 as UN delegates in Copenhagen, Denmark (2009) and in Durban, South Africa (2011).
Cuban Mini-Mosaic (2012)
At the beginning of the 21st century, Cuba, a small island nation
(however the biggest) in the Caribbean, with a population of 11 million,
is facing major challenges as it attempts to carry on and further
develop its unique brand of “Third World” socialism. The course, with an
integrated 10-day research trip to Cuba, examined contemporary economic
and social conditions and policies, international relations, and the
ramifications of the Cuban revolution of 1959. With a focus on
political, economic, environmental and social sustainability, special
attention was given to urban agriculture as well as to social policy
related to health, education, family, youth, gender and sexuality.
The Natural History Mosaic (2012)
This Mosaic exposed students to the wide range of ways to study the
natural world. From in-class lectures and labs, through extensive field
work, to careful museum visits and study, students were exposed to a
multi-disciplinary and interdisciplinary set of questions and
provisional answers. The Mosaic included trips to several Pennsylvania
museums and to the Smithsonian
Institution's National Museum of Natural History in Washington, D.C. In
the field, there were an array of outings in and around Pennsylvania,
such as observing the management of the state's elk herd at close range,
participating in the North American saw-whet owl-banding project and
trapping turtles to study populations. (Faculty represented in Earth
Sciences, Biology, and English; coursework counted in
Biology/Environmental Science, Earth Science, a "W" for the writing
course, and an independent study/research).
The Mediterranean Migration Mosaic (2013)
This Mosaic focused on migrations between Morocco, France and Spain,
exploring the multiple and interacting identities embodied by
individuals, communities, regions, and the nation-state. We examined the
creation of transnational communities, ethnic and religious tensions
and cooperation, philosophical orientations to diversity, and social
policy. Through oral histories, ethnographic, and survey research,
multi-lingual research teams explored these dynamic interactions with a
focus on labor and family migrations.
(Faculty represented in History and Sociology; coursework counted in History, Sociology, and an independent study/research).