RIT in Ghana: Engaging Students Beyond the Classroom | March 2025

Nine RIT students, two NTID interpreters and three RIT faculty members are back from a study abroad trip to Ghana, spending 10 days in West Africa. The trip is part of RIT’s School of Individualized Study (SOIS) 301: Research in a Cultural Context course. It is a faculty-led study abroad program designed to immerse students in Ghana's rich culture and history. The course is collaboratively taught by Professors Kijana Crawford, in the Department of Sociology, Makini Beck, in SOIS and Phillippa Thiuri assistant vice president for student access and success in the Division of Diversity and Inclusion. The goal is to help students explore their identities through autoethnography, a research methodology that integrates personal experience with cultural analysis.

With interpreters Bea Hogan and Sofia Robinson, the group visited a number of sites including the capital city of Accra, the National Museum of Ghana, the Akosombo Dam in the Volta region and the Ashanti region, where kente cloth originated. They toured the Manhyia Palace, home to the Ashanti king. They witnessed a traditional naming ceremony with local chiefs and paid a sobering visit to Cape Coast Castle, site of the infamous "Door of No Return". This is where millions of enslaved people were held in dungeons, then loaded as cargo onto ships bound for the Americas.

Thiuri says, “Watching students place their hands on the worn stone walls, silent and in deep thought, was profoundly moving. In that moment, history was no longer abstract; it was visceral. After leaving the castle, we engaged in one of the most powerful discussions of the trip—students shared how they felt anger, grief, guilt, and empowerment. That moment encapsulated the true purpose of the trip: not just to witness history, but to carry it forward in a way that informs who they are and how they engage with the world.”

Thiuri says this hands-on learning experience reaffirms why study abroad and methods like autoethnography are essential.

“It is not just about travel, but about transformative learning. It was an honor to witness students wrestle with these complex emotions, and I left the trip deeply inspired by their willingness to engage so vulnerably and authentically.”

Crawford recalls a stop at a site honoring Pan African leader Kwame Nkrumah and recalled his quote:” I am not African because I was born in Africa, but because Africa was born in me.”  He led Ghana to its independence 1957 and later became Prime Minister and then President.

“The Kwame Nkrumah Mausoleum was incredibly inspiring, especially when I stood in the presence of such a monumental figure in African history. Nkrumah’s words continue to resonate with me and many across the diaspora, emphasizing the deep connection to heritage and identity beyond geographical boundaries.”

For Beck, it was experiencing the Ghanian culture, driving through the villages and talking directly with residents with stops to take pictures at the beach. Most important was the impact this trip made on students.

“A comment that stood out to me was from a student who said that coming on the trip helped them to stay in their program. They were considering leaving their degree program, but being in Ghana helped them to see the importance of completing the program and possibly going on to teach in the K-12 realm. “

Thiuri adds, ‘Ghana is not just a place—it is a narrative, a history, and a mirror. This trip allowed students to see themselves within a larger historical framework, one that challenged them to question their place in the world and the ways identity is both personal and collective.”

Beck and Thiuri are looking at future study-abroad experiences, with research and learning opportunities for students to work directly with Ghanaian scholars, artists, and community leaders.