SPARTANBURG, S.C. (courtesy wofford.edu) – Wofford College’s January Interim gives student and faculty the month to focus on a single topic designed to push through the walls of the traditional classroom. In one of those courses – Grassroots Organizing and Social Justice: Applying Anthropology to the Here and Now – students will learn that academia and activism are intertwined.

The course includes several Spartanburg community partners, and it is being funded through the Milliken Sustainability Initiative made possible by a $4.25 million grant from the Romill Foundation awarded to the college in 2015.

During Interim, students and professors are free to explore new and untried topics, take academic risks, observe issues in action, develop capabilities for independent learning and consider different peoples, places and professional options. Students have the opportunity to study abroad; participate in local, national and international internships; conduct research; or participate in on-campus non-traditional courses.

“I teach a two-part course on community sustainability and wanted to design an Interim that connected both semesters with an intensive month of service-learning work,” says Dr. Alysa M. Handelsman, assistant professor of sociology and anthropology. She and James Stukes, coordinator of college access and student success, are partnering to teach the Grassroots Organizing and Social Justice course.

“The students in that class already identify and design projects. The Interim gives them the opportunity to devote their month in Interim to launching their program so they aren’t starting off that launch in February with a full course load,” she adds.

Handelsman says students not in that course also were recruited for the Interim, including Bonner Scholars, Gateway Scholars and other who are involved in the community and wanted to be involved beyond volunteerism. “This course allows students to do that. The focus is for students to become community partners through service-learning work.”

Students in the course will work independently on community-based learning projects in Spartanburg, primarily in the Northside community near campus.

“We’re excited about this project, since students will get the opportunity to examine what social justice means across disciplines and spaces and apply these definitions to understand Spartanburg and its neighborhoods on a national scale,” Stukes adds.

The students will travel to New Market, Tennessee, to visit the Highlander Research and Education Center, an organization fosters grassroots movements focused on justice, equality and sustainability. There, they will receive will learn alongside representatives from five Spartanburg community organizations. Participating organizations are the Spartanburg Housing Authority, the Mary Black Foundation, the Northwest Community Center, Cleveland Academy and the Northside Development Group.

“Students then can apply these lessons to their projects,” Handelsman says, adding that the students will organize a three-day symposium on community sustainability in April, with Allyn Steele, a 2005 Wofford graduate and co-director of the Highland Center, as the featured speaker and workshop presenter. Steele was a history major and Presidential International Scholar while at Wofford.

Among the other on-campus courses from which students can choose are:

Kitchen Chemistry (Dr. Zachary S. Davis and Dr. Heidi E. Bostic, both assistant professors of chemistry) – Students will explore chemical reactions that occur during the cooking process and will learn about the role of fats, carbohydrates, proteins, minerals and other nutrients in the chemistry of flavor. They also will explore some of the tools chefs use to prepare ultra-fancy “molecular gastronomy” dishes as well as try their hand at making butter, cheese, candy, bread and more dishes in this hands-on course.

Build an Affordable House, Save the Environment, Transform a Community (Dr. William DeMars, professor and chair of the Department of Government and International Affairs) – Students and their professor will do volunteer work on one or more Habitat for Humanity houses in Spartanburg three days a week during Interim, often working side-by-side with the prospective house owner. They will receive skills and safety training and will learn about the “environmental footprint” of the house. They will study the problem of energy conservation in new and remodeled houses. The problem of affordable housing in Spartanburg also will be part of the course.

Water and Society (Dr. Cynthia T. Fowler, professor and chair of the Department of Sociology and Anthropology) – The course will examine the relationship between culture and freshwater. Students will explore the current state of freshwater in indigenous, rural and traditional communities around the world; how people are responding the global changes in freshwater resources; the causes and effects of changes in the state of freshwater; and how the biosocial context of freshwater influences human well-being.

Nonverbal Communications: What We Say Without Words (Dr. Joe A. Spivey, associate professor and chair of the Department of Mathematics, and Dr. Katherine R. Steinmetz, associate professor of psychology) – Students in the course will explore various nonverbal communications, such as a smile, a nod, a wink – all of which are obvious ways that convey meaning without words. Through readings, social experiments, classroom discussions and observations of others, students will learn to decipher the nonverbal communication of others and to become aware of their own body language. They will shadow individuals and prepare a presentation of the effective use of nonverbal communication in that person’s profession.

Landscapes of Memory: Race, Archival Research and Public Sociology (Dr. Rhiannon A. Leebrick, assistant professor of sociology and anthropology) – The purpose of this course is two-fold: introducing students to or building on their understanding of public memory as it relates to racism and landscapes; and teaching students how to do archival research. They will research Wofford’s past, present and future as they relate to place and commemoration with sensitivity and intention, and they will work with Luke A. Meagher, special collections librarian; Dr. Phillip Stone, college archivist and adjunct lecturer; and Brad Steinecke, assistant director of local history at the Spartanburg County Public Libraries, to explore the college archives and special collections and the Spartanburg Library archives for a deeper understanding of how hidden collections and archives can inform the public and shape landscapes of memory.

Furniture Design-Build (Michael D. Webster, assistant professor of studio art) – Students will learn the process of creating a custom piece of furniture from their own designs. They will learn the proper use of power saws, drills, sanders and shapers. They then will adopt a proven design thinking methodology for generative innovative ideas. By the end of the course, each student will have completed a unique, functional furniture project to take home.

Travel Writing as a Way of Seeing (Dr. Britton W. Newman, associate professor of Spanish, and Dr. Patrick N. Whitfill, assistant professor of English) – Students will practice the genre of travel writing and study its potential to offer a helpful lens for new experiences. In addition to creative writing techniques, they will learn about contemplative practices, the psychology and ethics of intergroup contact, methods for navigating situations of difference, and the relevance of the topics to a meaningful travel writing experience. The class will visit cultural sites in Spartanburg and surrounding areas and will take a daylong field trip to Atlanta to visit the BAPS Hindu temple and Global Mall, a shopping mall dedicated to South Asian specialty stores.

Personal Cartography (Dr. Kaye S. Savage, professor and chair of the Department of Environmental Studies, and Jessica M. Scott-Felder, assistant professor of studio art) – Mapmaking is a joint venture of art and science that can be used imaginatively to explore personal stories and values. Students in the course will derive inspiration from both traditional and contemporary artistic examples to generate a series of maps that reveal their interests and personal journeys, both physical and mental.

Green Sewing: Sustainability and Fashion (Dr. Catherine L. Schmitz, associate professor of French, and Dr. Patricia G. Nuriel, associate professor of Spanish) – Apparel is easily the second biggest consumer sector after food, according to “Dress for Excess: The Cost of Our Clothing Addiction.” While we buy lots of clothes, the fashion industry produces a lot of clothes that aren’t all sold. What happens to them? They are disposed of. Students will look at the textile industry market, its excessive production and consumption of clothes and its ecological impacts on the environment. Then, students will learn how to sew by recycling and transforming previously made clothes.

Animal Cognition (Dr. Alliston K. Reid, Reeves Family Professor of Psychology) – This course will explore the ways in which animals of many species perceive the world, solve problems, remember events and locations, forage for food, communicate and interact socially with each other and with humans.

Fieldwork in Archaeology (Dr. Terry A. Ferguson, associate professor of environmental studies and senior researcher at the Goodall Environmental Studies Center, and Dr. Anna E. Harkey, adjunct lecturer in sociology and anthropology) – In this course, students will have try hands-on field archaeology, uncovering hidden evidence from hundreds of years of local history. Field work will take place at the Upper Glendale Shoals near Wofford’s Goodall Environmental Studies Center in Glendale, South Carolina. Studies will include late 18th century iron works and associated mills; the sites of skirmishes from the Revolutionary War; an old colonial road and associated house sites; an early 20th century trolley line and associated Glendale Park; and an early 20th century baseball field, where the textile mill baseball leagues once played.

You Said What? The Debate Interim (Dr. Kenneth J. Banks, associate professor of history) – Students will explore some of the important issues of biomedicine, social values and public policy with special attention to the methods of good argumentation. They will examine some famous historical debates and pay special attention to several basic techniques of formal debating, including public forum, Lincoln-Douglas and parliamentary styles.

The Truth is in Here: Conspiracy Theories in History, Politics and Culture (Dr. Peter K. Brewitt, assistant professor of environmental studies) – Students will explore the worlds of conspiracy theories past and present, local and worldwide, looking into the social and psychological reasons that people believe and examining the roots of well-known theories from aliens building the pyramids to the ancient machinations of the Knights Templar and the Freemasons to the 21st century phenomenon of “birthers.”

More than 200 students have elected to participate in internships, Interim coordinator Dr. A.K. Anderson, associate professor and chair of the Department of Religion, says. “More than 110 of those are in the Learning Work umbrella, initiating and obtaining their own approved internship with organizations of their choosing.”

The Learning Work internships include work at the South Carolina Court of Appeals, working with a psychiatrist in Germany, a veterinarian internship in Spain, providing health care to uninsured individuals in Kentucky, doing cancer research in Alabama, interning with former Vice President Joe Biden’s presidential campaign in Iowa and doing marketing for the Charleston (S.C.) Symphony Orchestra.

Three students will intern at Yosemite National Park as part of the Public Policy internship program.

Professional internships include pre-law, pre-dentistry, clinical medical settings and the Capitol Hill internship program in Washington, D.C.

Students also may conduct approved independent study projects, such as researching post-9/11 literature, teaching school-age children in Ecuador, conducting an academic analysis of convention culture and conducting chemistry research on the presence of oxybenzone in personal care products.

Travel/study during Interim is always popular. Among the locations students will travel during Interim 2020 are Australia, Chile, China, Denmark, Ecuador, France, Germany, Israel, Italy, Japan, Jordan, Mexico, Morocco, Netherlands, Netherlands Antilles, Palestine, Peru, Portugal, South Africa, Spain, Sweden, Tanzania, United Kingdom and Vietnam.

DENMARK, S.C. (courtesy voorhees.edu) — Voorhees College recently received $300,000 from the United Negro College Fund (UNCF) to create a Liberal Arts Innovation Center (LAIC) for Healthcare Access and Equity. This grant builds on Voorhees’ participation in the UNCF Career Pathways Initiative.

These funds will support the institution’s desire to assist in eliminating health disparities and mitigating healthcare access and equity issues among rural and minority populations, both nationally and internationally.

Voorhees is one of four Historically Black Colleges and Universities (HBCUs) to receive the grant. The institution works to address the call to action from the liberal arts community to better infuse core skills and competencies from technical fields into the liberal arts.

The innovation center at Voorhees seeks to illuminate the problematic and address the critical need from the liberal arts community, provide a systemic platform for modeling and testing best practices, establish systemic mechanisms for researching and disseminating new knowledge, and produce a comprehensive training and development program for students, faculty, staff, and community advocates.

Dr. W. Franklin Evans, ninth president and CEO of Voorhees, said this is a significant stepping stone for the institution. “The establishment of the UNCF LAIC (Liberal Arts Innovation Center) for Healthcare Access and Equity fully advances the Voorhees’ mission to become nationally recognized as a premier, comprehensive liberal arts institution focused on student success, excellence, and integrity,” Evans said.

Dr. Ronnie Hopkins, provost and vice president for academic affairs, said the institution’s efforts will sustain a comprehensive and coordinated liberal arts center. The vision is for the center to provide global leadership in addressing rural and minority healthcare issues through direct and virtual services, facilitating scholarship and training, and providing a platform to advance the discourse on access, equity, and ethics from a liberal arts and interdisciplinary approach,” Hopkins said.

He said Voorhees plans to partner with Denmark Technical College, Benedict College, Berea College, Wilberforce University, St. Monica University, Beau, Cameroon, Central West Africa; and the University of Ghana, Legon, Accra, West Africa, Ghana to expand the range of the healthcare access and equity for rural and minority populations.

Dr. Kendall Williams, assistant professor of public health, will serve as the LAIC’s co-executive director of healthcare access and equity and D. Alexander Miller, assistant professor of sociology, will serve as the LAIC’s co-executive director of liberal arts.

The grants will be administered via the UNCF Career Pathways Initiative (CPI), funded by the Lilly Endowment, Inc. CPI is a three-pronged comprehensive approach to delivering career pathways for students: guided pathways, curricular enhancements, and integrated co-curricular engagement.

Tucked into a corner of the kitchen in Spartanburg Methodist College’s cafeteria, freshman Marshall Langley gets to work.

Before him are rows of bright green cupcakes. He injects them with lime filling – it helps keep the cupcakes moist, and the tang balances out some of the sweetness – and then he tops them with cream cheese icing. The key lime cupcakes are a hit.

“I get compliments all the time, people saying something was really good, that they enjoy the variety,” said Langley, dressed in his black-and-red chef’s jacket. “And that motivates me to keep creating new things and make them better.”

Langley, 18, was born in Eastern North Carolina and moved to Spartanburg when he was 9. He graduated from Dorman High School in January 2019 and is studying science at SMC with a strong interest in microbiology.

Baking is a passion for Langley, one he discovered on his journey to college.

In the 11th grade, Langley had the opportunity to start working at Daisy Cakes in Pauline through a culinary arts program at the R.D. Anderson Applied Technology Center. Daisy Cakes and its founder, Kim Nelson, gained national fame in 2011 thanks to an appearance on the reality TV show “Shark Tank.”

In October 2017, Langley started working at Daisy Cakes and began learning the trade. His hours and responsibilities grew, and Langley took the extra courses needed to graduate high school early was so he could spend more time working in Pauline to save up money before going to college.

When he started at Spartanburg Methodist last fall, Langley thought the desserts in the dining hall could have a little more flare. He wondered aloud if maybe he should try making them.

Word got around. It wasn’t long before Langley heard of an opportunity for him to pick up some of the baking duties. He started in early November at just a few hours a day, but that escalated to about 30 hours a week as Thanksgiving approached.

Langley likes to find recipes and put his own spin on them – adding Jell-O mix to cakes and cupcakes help with color, flavor and consistency, for instance.

“When I first started here, I made cupcakes and cakes – about 25 cupcakes a day, and it took two days to go through them. But now, I’ve been making 150 to 200 a day, and they’ve been going by the end of the night. It’s crazy,” Langley said.

“I got a lot of experience on how to bake at Daisy Cakes,” Langley explained. I also learn new techniques and recipes from YouTube videos. It’s a hobby for me. I find it really enjoyable. I always wanted to try different recipes out, but never really had the time or energy when I was at home. But now that I’m at SMC, I can do it and make money, so I’ve been trying out different ideas.”

Kansas City, Kan.-based Pioneer College Caterers is the contract food service provider for Spartanburg Methodist College.

Pioneer’s food service director, Jeff Rehn, said about 60 students currently work for the outfit – some only put in a couple of hours a week, others work more. He said you can’t know a student’s skill in the kitchen until you see what they can do. Langley impressed him from the start.

“You never know how God’s going to work and the doors that are going to open and close,” Rehn said. “Before Marshall came in, we needed help with desserts. And for someone to walk in like that, who is a student, and take it to the next level, was just really very neat.”

Rehn’s goal is for students to not only learn food service skills while working for Pioneer Catering, but also how to manage their time, be accountable and take ownership of their work. He checks in with his student workers to make sure they are keeping up their grades, so he knows whether to scale their hours back.

Langley’s typical day consists of classes in the morning, baking from roughly lunchtime to dinnertime, and then studying and doing homework in the evening.

“My thing is, I hate being bored,” Langley said. “I don’t like sitting down for 10 minutes and just doing nothing. I like to constantly keep moving and doing things. I just love working. At some points, I worked more than 50 hours a week at Daisy Cakes. That’s why I love working here at SMC – I don’t see it as a job, but something that’s just fun, something to do that I enjoy.”

While the food industry does employ some microbiologists – large-scale production facilities in particular need them to check and maintain safety and quality standards – Langley’s career focus right now is in the pharmaceutical field. But he’s been thinking recently that perhaps he can use a pharmaceutical career to save the money needed to one day open his own diner or restaurant, one where he would be in charge of the cakes, cookies and pies.

“I kind of fell into baking,” Langley said. “Before I started at Daisy Cakes, I didn’t think it would be that enjoyable. But it turned out to be really fun, so I’ve kept it up.”

In just a few short weeks, Langley’s reputation has grown. Rehn said he’s been approached at Pioneer-catered events about the new student baker in the kitchen, and a recent batch of strawberry cupcakes was particularly well-received.

But if you have a favorite, get it while it’s hot.

“I try not to make the same thing twice,” Langley said.