Twenty-five English and social studies teachers from across the U.S. and Puerto Rico left for South Africa June 22 to spend six weeks studying the history, people and culture of South Africa as part of a summer institute hosted by the University of Arkansas at Monticello's School of Social and Behavioral Sciences.

   The institute is being funded through a grant from the National Endowment for the Humanities to encourage American school teachers to develop curriculum materials for their classrooms to incorporate information about the African state.

  The NEH grant is paying international airfare, transportation costs in South Africa and lodging and meals for all participants.

   Dr. Richard A. Corby, professor of history at UAM, is the project director. Corby has taught and conducted research in Africa for 10 years and has previously directed similar programs in other regions of Africa. Kay Grant, a recently retired social studies and English teacher at Drew Central High School in Monticello, will assist Corby.

   Dr. Liesel Hibbert, professor of English at the University of the Western Cape in Cape Town, will oversee all aspects of the program in South Africa.

   The 25 participants were chosen in a national competition. The teachers' homes range from Massachusetts to Hawaii and from the state of Washington to Puerto Rico.

   The teachers will live in both urban and rural areas of South Africa, spending their first three weeks in residence at the University of the Western Cape, where they will hear lectures on the various aspects of history and culture from South African scholars.

  After the first three weeks, the group will travel extensively, including trips to the National Arts Festival in Grahamtown, Tsitsikamma National Park, Durban, the largest African port on the Indian Ocean, and Johannesburg. The teachers will also spend two days in a village to learn about farming and rural life.
Teachers participating in the institute are:

   - Dr. Janet M. Adkins, St. Petersburg High School, St. Petersburg, Fla.;

   - Dr. Ajile A. Amatullah-Rahman, Westlake High School, Atlanta, Ga.;

   - William P. Bohen, Hamburg High School, Hamburg, N.Y.;

   - Lauren L. Bradshaw, Marion High School, Marion, Ark.;

   - Mark J. Buenzle, Upper School, Brooklyn Friends School, Brooklyn, N.Y.;

   - Alexandre Cerqueira, Caribbean Preparatory School, San Juan, Puerto Rico;

  - Adrian Cleckley, Carl Sandburg Middle School, Alexandria, Va.;

   - Marshia Coleman, McClellan Magnet High School, Little Rock, Ark.;

   - Phillip J. Davis, North Kitsap School District, Spectrum Community School, Kingston, Wash.;

   - Lynn J. Galvin, Phoenix Preparatory Academy, Phoenix, Ariz.;

   - Stephanie A. Harrison, South Forsyth High School, Cumming, Ga.;

   - Kathleen Harsy, Riverside Brookfield High School, Riverside, Ill.;

   - Laurie C. Hughes, Oceana High School, Pacifica, Calif.;

   - Diana Laufenberg, Mount Elden Middle School, Flagstaff, Ariz.;

   - Chon Lee, Lincoln Middle School, Santa Monica, Calif.;

   - Gholnecsar E. Muhammad, Wirth Parks Middle School, Cahokia, Ill.;

   - Lesley C. Miller, St. Francis High School, Mountain View, Calif.;

   - Paul A. Ryder, Deland High School, Deland, Fla.;

   - Leslie S. Stewart, Kahuku High and Intermediate School, Kahuku, Hawaii;

   - Deborah B. Strother, Brown County High School, Nashville, Tenn.;

   - Trisha E. Tepavchevich, Hubbard High School, Chicago, Ill.;

   - Brian M. Thelen, Hinsdale South High School, Darien, Ill.;

   - Donna M. Van Slyke, Brandon High School, Brandon, Miss.;

   - Jeff E. Vogel, Prospect Hill Academy, Cambridge, Maine;

   - and Kevin C. Witte, Kearney High School, Kearney, Neb.

    For more information, contact the School of Social and Behavioral Sciences at (870) 460-1047.

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