FAQ
Frequently Asked Questions
Q. How much does Encuentro Dominicano cost?
A. Encuentro Dominicano is the same cost as a semester at Creighton. It will have some additional expenses including the flight down to the DR and International Travel Insurance that costs $35 a month. You may also want to bring money for any purchases in country including travel, transportation, etc.
Q. Where will we live in the Dominican Republic ?
A. You will live and eat most of your meals at the Centro de Educacion para la Salud Integral (CESI) or in English, the ILAC Center (Institute for Latin American Concern). The ILAC Center is located in Santiago, Dominican Republic, and is a non-profit Jesuit institution that houses volunteers to serve the rural areas of the Dominican Republic. The ILAC/CESI Center also has a church, and therefore it serves as the parish for the community around it. A separate ILAC Office is located at Creighton University in Omaha , Nebraska. The ILAC Office is part of Creighton University's Ministry Department, and its purpose is to coordinate the groups of American student and professional volunteers that go to the ILAC/CESI Center in the Dominican Republic to serve the rural Dominicans and Haitians.
The Center is a fenced in compound with a security gate and guard that is safe, clean, and extraordinarily beautiful. One must remember, though, that we are guests of a Roman Catholic MISSION, and that our behavior, (faculty, staff, and students) must always respect this fact.
Q. Is the Dominican Republic Safe?
A. If it was not, Creighton would not sponsor an overseas program there— but, precautions need to be taken as is true when one travels anywhere for basic safety. The Academic and Residence Life Directors, as well as the ILAC Center Staff will constantly monitor the safety of the country and we are in touch with the U.S. Embassy if anything arises.
Q. Can I cover my CORE requirements if I study in the Dominican Republic ?
A. YES!!! The new curriculum and program are specifically designed to make it easier for students of all majors and all colleges to participate. We will have a variety of Creighton professors traveling down to teach intensive three week courses as a well as a variety of online courses that students can arrange with professors here at Creighton.
Q. What if I don't speak Spanish very well or at all?
A. Immersion is an amazing way to learn a language very quickly. If you are open and willing to try, language skills can vastly improve simply because you have to use them. While we encourage students with at least a year of Spanish under their belt, exceptions can be made for those eager and willing to learn.
Q. What is the philosophy behind Encuentro Dominicano?
A. Since the 32 nd General Congregaton of the Society of Jesus (1975), the Society has focused its mission on “the service of faith and the promotion of justice.” In a talk given at Santa Clara University in 2000, the General of the Jesuit Order, Peter-Hans Kolvenbach, proposed that these two deliberately open phrases may be interpreted as meaning respectively, “the service of faith . . . [by bringing] the counter-cultural gift of Christ to the world,” and the “justice of the Gospel which embodies God's love and saving mercy.” Kolvenbach in his interpretation of this widely used phrase emphasizes Ignatius' desire to combine words with deeds. Social action in the name of the justice of the Gospel must be combined, he proposes, with much analysis and reflection. In 2003, Kolvenbach added the gloss that the promotion of justice needs to combine academic rigor with social activism.
In applying these principles to contemporary higher education in Jesuit universities, Kolvenbach proposes that students be educated in “solidarity for the real world,” and “solidarity is learned through contact rather than through concepts [only].” “When the heart is touched by direct experience, the mind may be challenged to change. Personal involvement with innocent suffering, with the injustice others suffer, is the catalyst for solidarity which then gives rise to intellectual inquiry and moral reflection.” Kolvenbach adds that “students, in the course of their formation, must let the gritty reality of the world into their lives, so they can learn to feel it, think about it critically, respond to its suffering and engage it constructively.” Finally, he proposes that “insertion programs,” “off-campus contacts” and “hands-on courses” at Jesuit universities should not be “too optional and peripheral, but at the core of every Jesuit university's program of studies.”
Q. What is the Encuentro Dominicano chain of command?
A. In Residence life matters, Mr. Nick Fagnant, Director of Student Life, will be responsible, in cooperation with Radalme Peña, the Executive Director of CESI, for major residence life decisions relating to students. The Director of Student Life reports directly to Mr. Dusten Crichton, Associate Director of Residence Life, and Dr. John Cernech, Vice President of Student Services.
In Academic life matters, Dr. Thomas Kelly, the Campus Coordinator, will be responsible for all issues of an academic nature. The Campus Coordinator will collaborate with Radalme Peña on the topics of service sites and immersion communities; otherwise he will be responsible for all matters that are academic. The Campus Coordinator reports directly to the Dean of the College of Arts and Sciences.