SPARTANBURG, S.C. – Jacob Hollifield, a junior history and English double major at Wofford College, never imagined he had it in him to travel 9,000 miles away from his home in Chesnee, S.C., for the entire summer. He did.
“I wanted to do something new that would help me grow – something I would never forget,” he says.
Hollifield spent the summer interning in Tanzania at Silverleaf Academy, a private English school that provides high quality education at an affordable price. As an intern at Silverleaf, Hollifield assisted in a number of areas, including classroom design, playground renovation and teacher training. He also conducted research on successful teaching and school system methods.
Hollifield loved the unpredictability of Tanzania and has gained a new sense of confidence and independence.
“I’ve learned that I can function anywhere comfortably as long as I am patient with myself and my surroundings,” he says.
Braden Tuttle, a senior from Fountain Inn, S.C., was also a long way from home this summer. He chose to apply for the Tanzania internship after Wofford friends recommended the experience.
Tuttle, a finance major, worked for the TATU Project, a non-profit organization that facilitates equal and sustainable development for two rural communities of Northern Tanzania – Msitu Wa Tembo and Londoto. Tuttle interned as a micro-lending coordinator.
“I worked with the Kazi Na Sala, meaning ‘work and play,’ helping women with basic mathematics and accounting knowledge so they could calculate interest rates and determine repayment plans,” Tuttle says.
Tuttle appreciated the communal cultural in Tanzania. The experience allowed him to gain a better understanding of cultures outside of the U.S. and how people in other parts of the world live and work.
While in Tanzania, Hollifield and Tuttle took advantage of opportunities to hike, swim in hot springs, attend outdoor festivals and visit four other Wofford students interning in Tanzania.
Also in Tanzania for the summer internship experience administered through The Space in the Mungo Center at Wofford were Nneka Mogbo, a senior intercultural studies major from Douglasville, Ga.; Bryson Coleman, a sophomore from Spartanburg, S.C.; Laura Futrell, a senior economics and Spanish major from Denton, N.C.; and Meredith Goings, a junior Spanish major from Jackson, Miss.