Archived Edition: February 22, 2006 | Back to Current	Jul 31, 2010

Williams ventures into South Africa
Claire Zentgraf - Staff Writer

Starting next year, Williams students looking to study away will have an exciting new option: the Williams in Africa (WiA) program. The program, with the support of the Multicultural Center (MCC), will offer three new opportunities in South Africa.

“Williams students who have studied in Cape Town always came back with a sense of focus,” said David Eppel, academic director of the MCC, professor of theatre and a native of South Africa. “Their focus is shifted to … the shambles in the rest of the world.”

The three options offered under the WiA program are a summer internship, a post-graduate fellowship and a study away program. Students in the study away program will take three courses at the University of Cape Town and one receive one additional credit for working for a non-governmental organization (NGO).

Jeffrey Wessler ’07 traveled to South Africa over Winter Study to identify NGOs that would be able to use student volunteers. “All of the organizations I visited were very excited to set up relationships with the College,” Wessler said. He chose several NGOs to work with WiA, including the Etafeni Day Care Centre Trust, a center for children affected by AIDS/HIV, and Hoops 4 Hope, which provides HIV/AIDS education and information about conflict mediation to South African youth through organized team basketball.

When Wessler arrived in South Africa, he found several Williams alumni and faculty already working there, including Michael Samson, professor of economics, and Dr. Mitchell Besser ’76. Samson is the director of the Economic Policy Research Institute (EPRI) in South Africa, which helps support South Africa’s socio-economic growth. Besser founded the Mothers 2 Mothers 2 Be program (later renamed the Mothers’ Programme), which provides counseling to pregnant women with HIV. Mothers’ Programme has expanded to nine provinces and 45 clinics. It has dramatically reduced the incidence of HIV-positive women giving birth to HIV-positive babies. The student who receives the post-graduate fellowship will work closely with Besser in the Mothers’ Programme.

According to Eppel, the interest in WiA has been tremendous. More than 100 students applied for the two summer internships and the post-graduate fellowship. “It is very easy to ask the College and other rich institutions to write a check and help that way,” said Eppel. “But what is better is to invest the best resource this College has: its students.”

Having already spent much time and energy in helping South Africa, Wessler is only eager to invest again. “I was there for six weeks and already, I know I must return,” he said. “I plan on pursuing a chemistry thesis this summer and next year on HIV/AIDS education and treatment in South Africa. I hope everyone with interest can experience this wonderful opportunity.”