The Pointer UW-Stevens Point Student Newspaper
Students and members of the community at the University of Wisconsin-Stevens Point will be traveling to Cuba for a four-week class this summer.
Jennifer Collins, associate professor of political science, said the class offers three credits each in in political science and history. Collins will be one of two professors serving as a chaperone on the trip.
Although Cuba maintains a position of prominence in Latin America, Americans typically know about it through a narrow, Cold War perspective, Collins said.
“It’s a country most Americans know very little about,” she said. “It’s an opportunity for students and members of the community to be immersed.”
During the trip, the group will be based in the capital city of Havana. From there, members will travel to locations of historical, political, economic and cultural significance throughout the country, including an art museum, the Mariel Port and the newly re-opened U.S. Embassy.
For Anju Reejhsinghani, assistant professor of history, the trip is nothing new.
First traveling to Cuba in 2001, Reejhsinghani created the program and led a two-week trip to Cuba in winter 2013 and again in 2014. After receiving feedback from students, she adjusted the trip to four weeks in summer.
Reejhsinghani said many students initially raised concerns about crime and freedom of speech on the trip. Despite this conception, Cuba boasts some of the lowest crime rates in Latin America and the group.
Students were also concerned about inconveniences, she said.
“There were some – they don’t have ATMs that we can use, for example – but that’s largely to do with our government’s policies and not the Cuban government’s policies,” she said. “In the end, I think mild inconveniences aside they got a lot out of the trip.”
One of the students planning to go with the group this summer is Amanda Baxter, senior political science, history, international studies and Spanish major. Having previously traveled to Spain, Baxter said she is quite comfortable with international travel and excited to do more.
“It’s a great opportunity because Cuba has been closed from any American influence for the past 50-60 years,” she said. “Going there is a unique experience that not many Americans are going to be able to have.”
She said she is most looking forward to seeing the 1950s cars common on the streets of Cuba. She also said she looks forward to comparing the country’s art museums with those she saw in Spain.
The trip is the first since the U.S. restored diplomatic relations with Cuba in July 2015. Relations between the two countries initially ended in 1961 in the aftermath of the Cuban Revolution, which resulted in a communist government led by Fidel Castro. Since then, Cuba has been subject to a U.S. embargo preventing the exchange of most goods between the two countries. The U.S. has also placed heavy limitations on travels for most of its citizens; travel to Cuba strictly for tourism is considered illegal.
Any wishing to apply for the trip must do so by Dec. 1 to guarantee consideration. Application costs $50, and the trip costs $7,100 to $7,600, which includes tuition, airfare and all other non-personal expenditures.
Matthew Wiltzius
Reporter
Matthew.R.Wiltzius@uwsp.edu
