Welcome back, Dukies. As a lot of you know, Duke’s largest racial controversy of the year (or at least, so far) occurred last week. You may have noticed that I did not take advantage of writing about the racial conflagration. In the aftermath of an Asia Prime-esque explosion of civil rights and self-importance, I let Duke down. Yes, it’s true: I failed to write about applying for Duke Engage programs. Rather than let the opportunity to discuss the largest racial controversy since segregation itself walk out on me, I’ll write about it for you now.
As I watched fellow students feverishly bust out applications about “how good/interesting of a person they are” and cram their entire life experience into a few paragraphs, I couldn’t help but think about the benefits of Duke’s global community engagement craze. It now seems to be an essential part of the Duke experience to go somewhere else to “help” other people. Privileged students choose to travel to undeveloped nations and lend their undergraduate expertise to the poor, unfortunate souls who reside there. While you’re there, be sure to email your besties at home with your iPhone bragging about how you’ve “found yourself” by learning about a country’s culture, prancing around in some kente cloth and doing “like so much awesome work.”
Going along with the helping abroad craze, I’ve even helped a broad or two in my time at Duke. Besides the contentment of knowing I personally probably saved an entire village, here are my favorite aspects of DukeEngage and how it spends its $30 million endowment.
1. You came to Duke for an education, but you need to spend your summers in the third world in order to really get the well-rounded experience.
Thanks for coming to Duke. Now that you’ve completed half of your undergraduate degree, you are ready to be shipped to another country to make a lasting change. No, sadly you cannot just drive to Durham, pay $60,000 and expect to receive a wholesome education. Rather, Duke has to ship you off to another country in order for you to have a holistic college experience. You honestly thought you could just stay at Duke for four years and come out with a full education? If you haven’t gone to Africa and hugged a black baby, you haven’t made the most of Duke’s resources. Shame on those who spend their time wallowing around campus or at summer jobs … you just so aren’t … Duke.
2. Fixing an undeveloped country is a “learning experience” for kids.
Duke houses some of the most intelligent and influential professors in the world. Rather than use them, let’s send college students with little to no real world experience to help underdeveloped countries. Pay no attention to the governments or other experts who have already been trying to solve problems like poverty and disease in those countries for decades. You, as smart as you are, can totally get funding to go over there and save the world in two months!
“Sorry to hear about your country’s crippled economy and lack of government. We can send some college kids over to do their best! We could send other, more experienced people, but think about all the experience they’ll get!”
The true key to effective change is longevity. Rather than establishing a stable organization overseas that can plan five years down the road and bring in people who are committed to the organization for long-term service work, we believe sending a swarm of bright-eyed, bushy-tailed undergrads with temporary projects every summer is much more effective.
3. Duke spends millions to get students involved.
Save yourself the swipe of Daddy’s credit card, pack your Louis Vuitton heels and use Duke funding to fly to Africa! Forget the fact that millions of dollars are being spent to transport and house students in these foreign countries. Don’t even think about how many malaria nets (around $10 a piece) or hepatitis B vaccines ($3 per dose) could have been distributed with your Duke Engage budget. Rather, think about how effective it is to use around $2,000 to fly a student halfway around the world for two months of hugs and sightseeing.
Witnessing DukeEngagers every summer, I feel a huge sense of satisfaction surrounding the entire program. The formula for change is simple, really. “Go to a third-world country, do a small project, hug some third-world kids, take lots of pictures for your Facebook profile and come back a changed person with global awareness and valuable experience.” Now that you’ve gone and helped a poor village, you have a new line to write on your resume. Congrats! Job recruiters think you are a good person. Enjoy your new six-figure job and a closet full of Armani suits.
I understand that students carry out their projects and do make some changes in the countries they are working in. But rather than send service workers with long-term plans to help these undeveloped nations, it’s much better to send college undergrads at a less than stellar price. It would be a total waste to use the money setting up schools or putting permanent doctors in those regions. Instead, try throwing millions at undergraduate students who travel to “fix” complex global issues that have lasted for decades. As a bonus, you’ve got a killer photo of your favorite kid who is still living in extreme discomfort due to intestinal worms on his mud floor! That counts for something, right?
Mean Boy once hugged three starving Vietnamese children while wearing a kimono in Cambodia.
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