Honors Students Center Art, Sustainability During Service Trip to Jamaica

Honors Students Center Art, Sustainability During Service Trip to Jamaica

Members of the Jesup Scott Honors College and their faculty advisors traveled to Kingston, Jamaica, for more than just pleasure this spring break.

They spent the weeklong trip in Riverton City, a community located in Kingston, engaging the community through art and providing tangible resources for health and fresh produce.

The trip was organized in partnership with International Samaritan, a nonprofit organization based in Ann Arbor dedicated to transforming lives around the world through sustainable development, education and community partnerships.

"I would say the highlight of the trip was the inspiration I gained from forming connections with both the Toledo Honors students and with the Jamaican International Samaritan scholars," said Ella Garland, a freshman in chemical engineering. "I went on this trip not knowing anyone. The airport was the first place I met the students I would be traveling abroad with, and I grew so close with every one of them over the week."

For most of the trip, students focused on an arts-based community activity. They worked alongside members of the Riverton City community to create handmade collage cards filled with color and images of nature and sculptures.

These cards were made to serve as vibrant visual ambassadors for the Learn, Serve, Grow program and as practical, sustainable fundraising tools. The cards were designed to be sold in local Jamaican businesses and by UToledo students in Toledo.

Students also spent their time distributing 200 oral hygiene kits to kids at local schools in Riverton City. The kits, which contained a toothbrush, floss and toothpaste, were assembled by the Oral Health Wellness club. As a UToledo student organization, Oral Health Wellness is focused on improving access to oral health education and preventive care through hands-on service and community outreach.

On the final day of the trip, students joined the staff of International Samaritan to assist in the installation of a hydroponic tower garden at a local school. The completed garden will provide fresh produce and hands-on agricultural education from members of the community for years to come.

"Another highlight for me personally was building the tower gardens at the school," Garland said. "As a chemical engineering major, I was fascinated by the design of gardening without soil and using a chemical mixture for nutrients in the water. This allows plants to grow in places with limited space and degraded soil, such as the landfill, and I would love to explore this concept further in areas of Toledo that have similar soil issues due to leakage from old factory plants."

Students are in the process of forming a student organization dedicated to extending the reach of the International Samaritan partnership. Through ongoing outreach, awareness building and fundraising efforts on the UToledo campus, students are continuing the work that they started.

"This trip is never just about what we build or what we create while we're there," said Dr. Ashley Pryor, associate professor of philosophy and religious studies.

"It's about forming relationships, learning from a community that has so much to teach us, and asking ourselves what our responsibilities are when we come home. Our students are answering that question by choosing to keep this work alive."