Hi Everyone,

Hope your first week is going well so far. Sorry this is really last  
minute getting this out there considering the meeting is in half an  
hour but if you are interested in the class/program (even if you can't  
make the meeting) please get back to me ASAP! We need enough people to  
make this class possible. Any questions, let me know! Thanks!

Lena



ENVS 295/ CDAE 295 - HIV/AIDS Prevention Education in Migrant Haitian
Communities: a travel-study in the Dominican Republic

IF you're interested in traveling to the Dominican Republic (DR) this
semester to participate in an innovative HIV/AIDS prevention education
project, contribute to ongoing community projects in health, literacy,
and sustainable development, and immerse yourself in a cultural
experience of a lifetime, THEN you won't want to miss our
organizational meeting this Wednesday.

On Wednesday, August 29th at 7:00 p.m. in 105 Aiken we'll be meeting
with any students interested in a service-learning course to the
Dominican Republic over Thanksgiving Break.  The class will meet over
4 evenings leading up to the November trip to discuss readings,
participate in Grassroot Soccer training, and plan fundraisers for
community projects.  Grassroot Soccer is an activities-based
curriculum for HIV/AIDS prevention education that was first piloted in
the DR by a similar UVM class 3 years ago.  The
program has expanded as "Futbol para la Vida" in Batey communities in
the DR, small communities of migrant workers largely from Haiti or of
Haitian descent.  Subsequent classes have worked closely with the
community of Batey Libertad to build a health clinic, a local school
and peer educator training center, a literacy center, homes for
families, and the expansion of soccer programs and "Futbol para la
Vida" into other batey communities.  Students will receive 3 credits
from Environmental Studies or Community Development and Applied
Economics at the 200-level.

The November trip will be the first of 3 travel classes to the DR and
Batey Libertad this year.  John Hayden of Plant and Soil Science will
lead a winter break course focusing on developing a community farm at
Batey Libertad.  McKew Devitt of the Romance Languages Department will
lead a spring break trip focusing on developing a literacy program at
Batey Libertad and other service-learning projects.

I've attached a short project summary of "Futbol para la Vida" to this
e-mail.  Some web pages for more information include:
--> http://www.bateylibertad.org: Batey Libertad Coalition, a student-founded
organization at UVM that supports various projects at Batey Libertad,
including youth soccer programs and Futbol para la Vida.
--> http://www.grassrootsoccer.org: The Africa-based NGO that is the
inspiration for our HIV/AIDS prevention education programs in the
Dominican Republic.
--> http://www.onlyagame.org/shows/2005/11/20051112_8.asp: A National
Public Radio story about our Grassroot Soccer inspired programs in the
DR.
--> http://www.sciencemag.org/cgi/content/full/313/5786/473: An
article from a special issue of Science on the status of HIV/AIDS in
the Dominican Republic, with particular attention to Haitian batey
communities.

We hope to see you this Wednesday at 7 p.m. in 105 Aiken.  Please feel
free to e-mail with any questions beforehand.  And please help spread
the word about this class and organizational meeting.

Good luck with the start of your semester,

Jon and Pat Erickson