News Release
Humphrey Fellow finds an American Studies home at Penn State Harrisburg
March 3, 2009
One of 14 Humphrey Fellows visiting Penn State this year has found a wealth of educational and cultural opportunities at Penn State Harrisburg.
The Humphrey Fellowship Program is a U.S.-funded one-year opportunity offering academic and professional development to mid-career professionals from foreign nations. This year, Hoa Thi Thanh Li from Vietnam is one of the Fellows visiting Penn State in the program housed in its College of Education.
And Hoa is faced with a formidable challenge. She has been assigned to create an American studies program and accompanying curriculum for Hue University where she is the head of international studies and a lecturer. And she has turned to Penn State’s leader in the discipline – Penn State Harrisburg – for assistance.
The only college or university in the Commonwealth with bachelor’s, master’s, and doctoral study in American Studies, Penn State Harrisburg has become Hoa’s home away from her academic home in University Park as she works on her project. “I am coming to Penn State Harrisburg because it has the only graduate programs in the system. It is helping me a great deal in developing my curriculum.”
“When I was given the assignment of creating the undergraduate program at Hue, I searched for U.S. universities with American Studies programs and found Penn State,” she says. “I received assistance from the U.S. Embassy for books and materials for my research and applied through the U.S. Consular General for the Humphrey Fellowship. I consider myself lucky to have gotten it.”
She says, “My months at Penn State are opening my mind … there is so much interaction with students, faculty, and the community. The experience has been amazing. I am gaining firsthand experience in American culture, have access to many resources, and most importantly I am meeting the people.”
And the interactions with Americans have expanded her view of its citizens. “I grew up during the war (in Vietnam) and thought of Americans only as soldiers with weapons … I saw people die,” she says. “But now I have a new picture of Americans and it is pleasant.”
Hoa’s Vietnam experience is also bolstering learning at Penn State Harrisburg. Simon Bronner, distinguished professor of American studies and folklore, adds, “She is involved in undergraduate and graduate classes and will be making presentations on comparative culture. Indicative of the globalization of the program here, we have courses on the Cold War and cultural aspects of contemporary American, but she is providing a firsthand look at history and culture for our students.”
She adds that interest in American studies is on the increase in Vietnam since the lifting of the U.S. embargo. “Pop culture is big – movies, books, and hip-hop and jeans. Fast food is common, but a luxury. McDonald’s, KFC, and Dunkin Donuts are for special occasions. My 18-year-old daughter wanted to go to KFC as a reward when she came home from school with good grades.”