Global Aging: Nicaragua

This multidisciplinary Capstone is carried over two terms (Spring and Summer). The Spring term portion involves pre-travel projects in preparation for the service-learning trip and classroom learning experience. The Summer term portion is a two-week service-learning experience in Nicaragua (tentative travel dates: June 15/16 - June 29, 2015). Students and faculty will focus on service-learning activities in the areas of public health and community development related to aging and older adults in Nicaragua.

While in Nicaragua, students will meet with numerous community partners, including administrators, caregivers, and residents in homes for older adults, and they will conduct projects coordinated by community partners in the U.S. and Nicaragua. The projects are focused on training and education related to aging, asset-based community development, and improving the quality of life of older adults and their communities during the two-week visit to Nicaragua.

The course and larger program are part of a university–community partnership between the Jessie F. Richardson Foundation (JFRF), PSU’s Institute on Aging (IOA), and PSU’s Education Abroad. Additional collaborators include non-governmental organizations and educational and governmental institutions in the U.S. and Nicaragua.

Assignments culminate in community-based projects developed in Portland in the spring term and implemented in Nicaragua in the summer.