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Founded in 1945, the Fulbright Scholars Program was created to promote intercultural and international connection and communication. The program now offers opportunities to students and faculty in almost any area of study through more than 120 programs worldwide, and APU scholars are beginning to take greater advantage of the chance for challenging, intercultural study. Kimberly Battle-Walters, Ph.D., associate professor of social work, was accepted to the faculty program in 2002. After a term in South Africa, she returned to APU in spring 2003 and brought a wealth of intercultural experience back to her work at the university. The focus of Battle-Walters' six-month stay in Johannesburg was teaching and research. The courses she taught at Rand Afrikaans University included topics such as social welfare policy, crime and delinquency, and cultural diversity. Her research involved case studies of women in various socio-economic situations for her study titled "Race, Class, and Gender in the New South Africa: A Woman's Perspective." In a presentation to the APU community upon her return to the United States, she described the South African women she met as very resilient and strong, with an amazing capacity for forgiveness. |
Battle-Walters' work as a scholar was part of her larger role as an ambassador. While in South Africa, she represented the U.S. in exciting and unexpected ways. Her experiences included everything from visiting squatter camps to speaking at church youth groups to speaking at the World Summit on Sustainable Development to meeting Bishop Desmond Tutu to having tea with the Queen Mother of Lesotho. Chair of the Department of Social Work, Sally Alonzo Bell, Ph.D., said Battle-Walters' experience is the kind in which APU hopes the rest of its faculty will engage. "We encourage our faculty to bring their interests to the world," she said. "As Christian scholars, we are also responsible for bringing Christ to the world." Battle-Walters agreed such exposure is crucial, as it helps the scholar realize the importance of international relations and thinking beyond U.S. borders. The crux of her own experience was something she hopes each APU student will gain as well: a deeper understanding of the fact that "we're only who we are through each other." |
