Only months before leaving on SST, six Goshen College students learned that they would go to Ecuador, not Peru. The transition brings sadness and concern, as well as joy and new opportunities to past and future SST students. Logistical issues with visas and banking were the main reasons for the change, according to Jan Shetler, director of international education. While the SST program in Peru had a greater emphasis on sustainability studies and cultural differences, the program in Ecuador allows for a greater focus on Indigenous cultures and their struggles for equality, she said. Jerrell Ross Richer, professor of economics,...

By Record • September 5, 2019 • Features

You can always count on a few things from Ken Newbold. A hard-working attitude in administrative initiatives, a smiling face around campus and an extra cheering voice in the stands at Maple Leaf athletic events. As of Aug. 31, Newbold’s encouraging presence has been a bit more scarce as he has moved on from the various roles he has played at Goshen College, most recently as presidential consultant. Newbold’s journey at GC began in the fall of 2014 as he was ushered in as provost by former President Jim Brenneman. Newbold’s impact was felt instantly as he helped run day-to-day...

By Nick Yutzy • September 4, 2019 • News

After 14 years, 37 units and over 600 students, this summer’s Study-Service Term in Peru will be the last for the country. Instead, beginning with the fall 2019 unit, Ecuador will become the South American location, making it the 25th country to be part of the SST program. The decision was first announced to students on Tuesday evening at a meeting with the fall unit. By the end of the night, all those signed up for Peru SST for the 2019-2020 school year had heard the news. Tom Meyers, current director of international education, explained that the decision had been...

By Megan Bower • March 27, 2019 • News

A plenary lecture on Tuesday evening by Elaine Meyer-Lee, associate vice president for global learning and leadership development at Agnes Scott College, marked the opening of a two-day global education conference at Goshen College. The lecture took place in the Church-Chapel.   Meyer-Lee works with the SUMMIT program at Agnes Scott College to prepare students to thrive in a global community through a curriculum based in global learning and leadership development. Meyer-Lee is also a former Goshen student and traveled to Haiti on SST in 1984.   The conference, which ran from March 5-6 and was entitled “Global Education for...

By Siana Emery • March 10, 2019 • News

Jill Steinmetz, a 2018 Goshen College graduate, is currently serving as a digital media specialist for Mennonite Central Committee as a part of their Service and Learning Together program in San Pedro Sula, Honduras.   Steinmetz knew from a young age while listening to stories of past volunteers in her Mennonite church in Northwest Ohio that she wanted to work abroad for MCC.   She was intrigued by the impact these volunteers had on their communities and the unique experiences they had and she wanted to become a part of that herself.   She initially intended on taking a gap...

By Courtney Crapser • March 8, 2019 • Features

The Good LIbrary Art Gallery is currently home to an exhibit recognizing the 50th anniversary of Goshen’s Study Service Term. The exhibit, entitled “Brought Home: Objects and Stories from 50 Years of SST,” is comprised of artifacts students and faculty members brought back to the U.S. from their SST experiences. There is a wide selection of exotic objects, fine art and folk art, including paintings, textiles, toys, carvings, costumes, jewelry, ceramics, baskets, masks and metalwork. Some of the objects were gifts from friends who went to foreign countries, while others were brought back by the travelers themselves. All of these...

By Emily Cummings • March 8, 2019 • Arts

Goshen College hosted a two-day conference this week to reflect on the past 50 years of Study-Service Term (SST) and to look ahead at the future of the program.   The “Global Education for All: Renewing our Vision” conference began on the evening of March 5 with a lecture by Elaine Meyer-Lee, associate vice president for global learning and leadership development at Agnes Scott College.   Wednesday began with a panel of former SST leaders and international education directors who reflected on the past and significance of SST. They were followed by the “Global Education for All” convocation, featuring student...

By Megan Bower • March 7, 2019 • News

Two Goshen College faculty members will be stepping into new leadership positions beginning July 1. Beth Martin Birky will transition to the position of associate dean; Jan Bender Shetler will transition to director of international education. Birky, who currently is serving as Title IX deputy coordinator, is a 1983 GC graduate and holds a master’s degree from Arizona State University and a doctorate from Loyola University Chicago. She has served in numerous roles on campus since 1993. Most recently, Birky has taught English along with women and gender studies classes and served as English department chair and WGS director. Previously,...

By Kristin Troyer • January 17, 2019 • News

Since its inception in 1968, Goshen College’s Study Service Term (SST) has sent over 7,000 students to 24 different countries. And for the past 15 years, Tom Meyers has worked as director of international education at GC — a role which involves overseeing the SST program and further developing it. For Meyers, a graduate of Goshen College, the SST program has been a big part of his life. Meyers has had the unique advantage of experiencing SST as a student, faculty leader, parent and director. As director of international education, Meyers has a long list of responsibilities: organizing all the...

By Cecilia Garcia • November 7, 2018 • Features

For just over half an hour Wednesday morning, the Umble Center was packed for a convocation detailing the 2018 Senegal SST unit. Goshen College sends groups to Senegal every other summer. This past summer’s Senegal unit was one of the smallest in SST’s history, consisting of only eight students: junior Ethan Lapp, seniors Naomi Peters, Lukas Thompson, Zach Ganger, Spencer Aeschliman, Ben Meyer Reimer and Alex Steiner and 2018 graduate Morgan Yordy. The unit was led by Tom Meyers, director of international education, and his wife, Julie. “The group was a delight to work with,” said Meyers. “Small groups can...

By Siana Emery • October 24, 2018 • News

September 12, 1968 marked the inception of Goshen College’s Study-Service Term, with the first units embarking for Costa Rica, Guadalupe and Jamaica. Almost exactly 50 years later, 32 faculty, staff and students met for the SST search conference with the goal of reassessing the distinguished program. Throughout the course of the weekend intensive, participants tackled this question: “How can we strengthen Goshen College’s international education core, including SST, to make it more effective, engaging and possible for our students in the current global context?” Under the leadership of Davydd Greenwood, retired anthropology professor and international studies professor at Cornell University...

By Siana Emery • September 26, 2018 • News

Goshen College is preparing to send a third group of 20 high school sophomores, juniors and seniors to Guatemala City in the summer of 2019 for Study-Service Theology Term (SSTT). The study-abroad program in Guatemala is made possible by a grant from the Lilly Endowment, based in Indianapolis. Goshen College is one of 94 colleges and universities around the nation to receive a grant intended to give high school students interested in theology and ministry the chance to explore their future in the church. However, Goshen is the only institution that uses this fund to take high school students abroad...

By Nick Yutzy • September 26, 2018 • News

This past weekend, 24 faculty and staff and nine students from across the campus community convened at the Amigo Centre in Sturgis, Michigan, for the SST search conference. The conference, beginning the evening of Sept. 14 and concluding mid-day on Sept. 16, was an intensive weekend spent discussing the past, present and future of Goshen College’s international education requirement. Attendees will continue working with these concepts throughout the school year. The conference was guided by the question: “How can we strengthen Goshen College’s international education core, including SST, to make it more effective, engaging and possible for our students in...

By Siana Emery • September 19, 2018 • News

In 1968, Goshen College launched the groundbreaking Study-Service Term (SST). 50 years, nearly 8,000 students and 24 countries later, the college is celebrating the program’s landmark anniversary with another pioneering step in international education — reevaluation. In an academic year guided by the core value of “global citizenship,” the 50th reunion of SST will bring both celebration and assessment. Consistently ranked as one of the top study-abroad programs in the country, SST seeks to provide a transformative experience for Goshen students, placing them in developing nations rather than typical study-abroad locations. Unique attributes of the program, such as placement with...

By Siana Emery • September 12, 2018 • News

While many students headed home for the summer, 31 Goshen College students jumped on planes to Dakar, Senegal, and Lima, Peru, last May for a summer abroad. For Tom Meyers, Director of International Education and leader of the Senegal Study-Service Term unit, the eight-student group tied for the smallest group he’d ever led. “It was great,” Meyers said. “A small group can be problematic, but it can also be very helpful. In this case, the group got along great.” Conversely, the Peru unit was composed of 23 students. Anne Buckwalter, Naomi Peters and Spencer Aeschliman, all seniors at Goshen College,...

By Carter Mckay-Epp • September 5, 2018 • Features