Having the opportunity to learn from faculty who are leaders in their fields is one of the advantages of being a Rockhurst student. It's one of the reasons the Carnegie Foundation has named Rockhurst one of only 10 leadership sites for teaching and learning in the nation.

Here is the account of a faculty member who spent a year in Senegal, Africa.

Katie Madigan, Ph.D.

Katie Madigan, Professor of Modern Languages
I spent the 2003-2004 academic year as a Fulbright Scholar in Dakar, Senegal, teaching at the École Normale Supérieure and working on a women's studies project with ten Senegalese writers plus six intellectuals representing various fields. I taught future/current teachers of French and English in an annual (they do not have semesters) African and American literature class, an annual language practice class (in both I collaborated with Senegalese colleagues) and in shorter-term classes (“modules”) on the pedagogy of literature and culture.

Highlights of the year included wonderful classes with engaged and endearing students, stimulating collaboration with colleagues and writers, a breathtaking view of the Atlantic Ocean from my apartment window, Senegalese cuisine—always a feast--great live music, and friendships formed with people of many backgrounds, ages and ethnicities.

Challenges included terrible traffic in Dakar, the Wolof language (everyone speaks French at formal meetings, and it is the university language, but most conversations outside formal situations take place in Wolof, if not in Pulaar or another national language), learning to bargain, and adopting to another rhythm… a beautiful one, once one becomes accustomed to it. Here are photos from the year to give you some impressions of an unforgettable year in Africa.

View the photo gallery.