Faculty Perspective: Dr. Françoise Hamlin, Associate Professor of Africana Studies & History
After a brief hiatus, I took students to Mississippi again over spring break. This time I traveled with Joshua Rodriguez from the Swearer Center, who previously has taken students through the Bonner Program. The goal of the trip is to educate through experiential learning while also maintaining and strengthening our bonds with Tougaloo College – all in one trip.
Students stay on campus, eat in the cafeteria, and participate in campus life. They learn about Mississippi and this beautiful HBCU from their peers as they encounter them and chat informally. We then add the historical component through a two-day civil rights tour of the Delta and the sites we visit in Jackson – from the oldest Black church, Mount Helm, to the two Mississippi Museums downtown – alongside a full day at the Mississippi Department of Archives and History, where students conduct hands-on archival work. Every year is slightly different depending on the group and what is happening locally, and I would not have it any other way.
One insight that stood out to me this year was the value of formally connecting student participation to AFRI 1090A. Students arrived with shared knowledge and a common classroom experience, having read many of the same materials before traveling. That foundation made for richer conversations at historic sites and around the dinner table, strengthened the bonds among the students, and heightened the experiential learning in ways that do not happen to the same extent when students arrive without that historical background.
Another unexpected highlight came from the flexibility of traveling together in a rented SUV. Our ability to easily adjust our plans allowed us to make an impromptu stop at the Memphis Pyramid – once a sports arena and now home to a Bass Pro Shops store and hotel. Riding the glass elevator to the top offered panoramic views of the Mississippi River and the city, something I had never experienced before. It quickly became a memorable addition to the trip – and one I will likely include again.
I never regret taking students. It is a genuine joy to witness the learning that happens among them. It is why I do what I do, and I am grateful for every year I have the opportunity to lead this experience.
Partner Perspective: Joshua Rodriguez, Associate Director, Co-Curricular Learning, Swearer Center
The Swearer Center has been taking students to Mississippi since 2017, and this year we had the pleasure of supporting even more students in visiting. This time, the Swearer Center partnered with Dr. Françoise Hamlin's AFRI 1090A course, The College, and Brown's Office of Diversity and Inclusion to facilitate a co-curricular experience designed to enhance the learning of those who chose to participate.
Offering students opportunities to learn about history through various modalities is powerful. It strengthens the anatomy of knowledge production and understanding by inviting students to encounter history in multiple forms. Throughout the week, students learned from storytellers of all varieties – from large, state-led museums to grassroots museums and community organizations, and from local residents who are continuing to shape Mississippi today. Each perspective added another layer to their understanding of the places we visited.
Community engagement was at the root of our interactions. We entered communities we are not a part of with intention, care, and respect. That looked like adapting to eat locally, supporting neighborhood restaurants, and engaging with the culinary traditions that our hosts frequent and cherish. Fellowship and breaking bread together became an important part of the learning experience, creating opportunities for conversation, relationship-building, and a deeper appreciation of the communities that welcomed us.
Connecting the experience to AFRI 1090A provided students with a foundational knowledge that allowed them to engage more intentionally with the people, places, and histories they encountered. Rather than experiencing these sites in isolation, students could connect what they had learned in the classroom to what they witnessed firsthand, making for more critical reflection on the impact of the experience long after the trip concluded.