Faculty Development Workshop: Incorporating Virtual Global Exchange (VGE) into the Curriculum: Best Practices and Syllabus Workshop

One of the main objectives of my Fulbright Specialist project with the Great Lakes Center for the Study of the United States at Makerere University was to develop connections between scholars in the Department of Political Science at Makerere University with US-based scholars working on similar research and teaching themes.

As part of this effort, I presented a faculty development workshop on Virtual Global Exchange. 

Virtual Global Exchange, or VGE, is an educational experience that connects students with peers from diverse cultural backgrounds and geographic locations through online platforms. It facilitates cross-cultural interactions, promotes international collaboration, and enhances intercultural competence without the need for physical travel.

I was absolutely thrilled that my collaborator for more than 15 years - LARISA PATLIS from ULIM in Moldova - was able to join the workshop and to present about the impacts of the VGE for her students in Moldova! 

We kicked off the workshop giving examples of best practices -- and lessons learned from the 15-year USF-ULIM partnership. Over the years we have collaborated on

**Semester-long research projects (10-12 weeks)

**Short-term research partnership (2-4 weeks)

**One-day conversations/engagement (e.g., Constitution Day event)

In each case we were connecting students in my classroom at USF in St. Petersburg, Florida and her classroom at ULIM in Chisinau, Moldova.

We first talked about our Comparative Legal Research Project -- a 10-week research partnership that we have implemented many times. 

The objective of the research project was to give the students the opportunity to work in groups with partners overseas on a comparative legal research project comparing decisions of the European Court of Human Rights (ECtHR) and the Supreme Court of the United States (SCOTUS) involving similar legal questions.  This project was designed to develop students’ legal research and writing skills and to enhance students’ understanding of the ECtHR in comparison to the SCOTUS.

For more about the project, see our project blog: https://comparativelegalresearch.blogspot.com/

and this article  

“Creating a Global Classroom: International Collaborative Legal Research Partnerships.” Vol. 1, No. 1 (2024) Journal of Legal and Political Education pp. 1-17.  https://e-jlia.com/index.php/jlpe/article/view/1487

An example of one of our "one-time" collaborations: Constitution Day.  In 2024 we got our students from Florida and from Moldova together (virtually) to discuss Constitutions and Presidential Elections.  (There were presidential elections in Moldova (October 20) and the US (November 5).

After sharing our experiences and lessons learned during the long-term, short-term, and one-time VGE collaborations, we then turned to the hands-on portion of the workshop.

During the workshop we covered the following topics:

*What is VGE

*Key Elements of VGE

*Benefits of VGE

*Navigating Interdisciplinary Collaborati

*Challenges in Intercultural Collaboration

*Strategies to Build Intercultural Competence

*Utilizing Technology Effectively

*Backward Design (and worksheet)

*Self-reflection (and worksheet)

*Planning and Preparation (and worksheet)

*VGE Activity Sequence (icebreaker, collaboration, reflection)

*Partnership Building

*Finding International Partners

*Breakout Session

*Q&A - Discussion - Next Steps

The most exciting part of the workshop was hearing the faculty share their ideas for the courses and assignments that could lend themselves to this kind of international cooperation.  

For example, a Biology professor incorporates an assignment where students go out and get samples of diseased plants which are brought back to the lab and analyzed for what is the cause of the disease. Wouldn't that be in interesting assignment to include in a botany class in the US -- and then have the students meet to compare and contrast the various ecosystems and the other environmental factors that may influence the plants?  

A religion professor has students interview members of various faiths and write reflection papers. This project also lends itself to be incorporated in a companion course in the US - and for the students to gain a deeper understanding through a comparative analysis with their international colleagues.

These VGE assignments give our students the opportunity to think more deeply about the subject matter and to think about their course topics from varied perspectives. It is so gratifying to observe students working with their international partners.

We also discussed next steps -- how to take these ideas for possible collaboration and to identify a partner in the US, find a companion course, develop the assignment, etc.  

We are working with the International Relations Office and the Center for the Study of the US at Makerere University to keep moving the proposals for VGE collaboration forward. 

We plan for the first courses with VGE components to be "live" in the Fall 2026 semester. Stay tuned!

Special Thanks to USF World and the Faculty Learning Community (FLC) devoted to Virtual Global Exchange during the 2024-25 academic year.  And to the FLC Facilitator Dr. Nazek Jawad, whose FLC materials I adapted for this presentation at Makerere University.

It was so wonderful to have Larisa Patlis co-presenting at the workshop!

LARISA PATLIS presenting live from Chisinau, Moldova

Larisa Patlis presenting from Moldova

Presentation of Certificates -- the Director of the International Relations Office Matthias Ssemanda, the Director of the Center for the Study of the United States, Dr. Edward Kaweesi, and Dr JSM:

See also the CHUSS article about our VGE Workshop

The Authoritative Account of my [DrJSM] African *Academic* Adventures: CHUSS article about our Virtual Global Exchange (VGE) Workshop at Makerere University

Meeting with the President of the US Exchange Alumni Owomugisha Blessing Immaculate

Apropos of our ambitious Fulbright agenda during the fellowship, I packed in additional meetings (from the hotel) after I checked out and before we dashed to the international airport in Entebbe.

One of those fruitful meetings was to make connection with the President of the US Exchange Alumni organization -- Owomugisha Blessing Immaculate.

There are more than 6,000 alumni of the more than a dozen different US-Uganda exchange programs sponsored by the US Department of State. These include Fulbright, Hubert Humphrey, sports visitors, community solutions program, the Mandela Fellowship and others.

I was so impressed with the depth and breadth of the support provided through the US alumni network -- to alums as well as to prospective applicants of the US programs to the broader community.

We discussed the many avenues for collaboration between the Center for the Study of the United States at Makerere University and the alumni network and programming organized by the US Exchange Alumni Association.  I am also hopeful that we can organize joint (virtual) events with the Fulbright Association back home (where I serve on the Board of the Association), the Ugandan-US alumni, and the Center. Stay tuned!

To learn more about their programs, visit

www.usea.com

Center Director Dr. Kaweesi, President Owomugisha and I meeting at the Fairway Hotel

my last meeting before jumping in the car to head to the airport; please excuse my lounge attire for the 38-hour journey ahead of me

Farewell Dinner with Center for the Study of the United States Staff and Researchers -- and -- an African name!

The Center threw me a lovely Farewell Dinner to celebrate our accomplishments and to look forward to our continued cooperation.

We enjoyed a delicious meal (including my last matoke and g-nut sauce while in Kampala) and exchanged small tokens of appreciation.

But for sure the most special part of the evening was when I was given an African name:

Nantumbwe

named for someone who was hard-working, energetic, well-intentioned, beautiful, composed, intelligent, lovely. 😍💞💓😁

And -- I acquired godparents! 

What a special evening!!

I will miss these scholars and our time collaborating in person at the Center -- but -- we have so many ongoing projects -- this isn't good bye.

Celebrating with the Center staff and researchers and the Dean of the School of Social Sciences

My wonderful host - Dr. Edward Kaweesi

My godparents! The Dean of Social Sciences Justus Twesigye and one of the Center's Researchers Dr. Charlotte Mafumbo 

finally tried the Ugandan waragi! (a local gin) 

Book Donations for the Great Lakes Center for the Study of the United States -- from University of South Florida to Makerere University

While packing my supplies for my work at the Great Lakes Center for the Study of the United States, I inquired whether I could bring some book donations for the Center. And, if so, what kinds of books would be most helpful to the Center's research and teaching interests.  The response was that books related to 

--US Foreign Policy Africa

--IR

--US Politics

--American Culture

--Terrorism--US History

would be especially appreciated.  

I had a good selection of American Politics books that could be shared, but I reached out to colleagues at the University of South Florida to address the other topics.  

Many thanks to my colleague Dr. Larissa Kopytoff (an expert in African History who contributed copies of Elizabeth Schmidt's Foreign Intervention in Africa: From the Cold War to the War on Terror) and my colleague in Political Science, Dr. Arturo Jimenez-Bacardi, who generously donated books related to IR, terrorism, and American Foreign Policy.   

Thank you Drs. Kopytoff and Jimenez-Bacardi for supporting the faculty and students at Makerere University!

with Center Director Dr Edward Kaweesi 

Dr. Christopher Isike, Professor and Director of the African Centre for the Study of the United States at the University of Pretoria in South Africa visits the Great Lakes Center for the Study of the United States (and IPSA - International Political Studies Association conference in Seoul)

In town for the ARUA conference (See this blog post:

Professor and Director of the African Centre for the Study of the United States at the University of Pretoria in South Africa - Dr. Christopher Isike - stopped by to meet with our Center for the Study of the United States at Makerere University.

For more about the Centre at the University of Pretoria, see https://www.up.ac.za/acsus

As soon as he left - I was thinking how familiar he seemed.  And then I remembered -- I attended his conference presentation at the International Political Science Association meeting in Seoul, South Korea earlier this summer!  (My notes from that presentation are on my desk at my office at USF in St. Petersburg - but - I do still have the photos that I took in the camera roll on my phone.) His research was comparing civics education in Nigeria and South Africa.) Yes, it truly is a "small world."

Looking forward to collaborating with Dr. Isike as we launch the Center for the Study of the US in Uganda - as well as our shared research agenda related to strengthening civics education.

Center Director Dr. Isike with Center Director Dr. Kaweesi

Center Directors in Uganda, USA, South Africa 

Dr. Isike's presentation at the IPSA Conference in Seoul!