2014 SUSI is Well under Way!

Dr. Maddalena Marinari and Dr. Phil Payne are again directing one of the Study of the United States Institutes (SUSI) this summer. Sponsored by the U.S. State Department, the program brings to campus student leaders from Colombia, Ecuador, and Venezuela for a five-week institute on American history, government, and institutions. Here are a few photos from some of the extracurricular activities the students have done so far. Enjoy!

At the Chautauqua Institution with two of the day's speakers

At Niagara Falls

Ropes Course at Great Valley

Attending a local jazz class

History Major Shannon Conheady Visits the Tenement Museum in New York City

This summer I had the opportunity to travel to New York City with a group of twenty exchange students from Venezuela, Colombia, and Ecuador, who were taking part in a Study of the United States Institute at St. Bonaventure. After seeing all of the usual sites such as Broadway and Times Square, we travelled to the Tenement Museum in the Lower East Side. The Museum was originally home to thousands of people who lived in rather horrible conditions. The building was sealed off by the landlord after he was shut down and upon the reopening of it, thousands of artifacts from its residents were found. The room that my group visited was home to a Jewish family. The father of the house sewed clothing for a living, working, as many did, from his own household. The house itself had three rooms, all aligned, with only one window. There was one bedroom where the parents slept, one room which housed the kitchen and the children’s bed, and another which had the sewing station.

We went on a moderately hot day, in an age where fans are prominent. They lived in this house with very little air circulation and the stove, which was needed to heat the iron for the clothing, was on all day. I could not imagine the immense heat in that household. The house had several artifacts, including hand sewn dresses, a doll, and an old iron, among many other objects. This visit really opened my eyes to how bad conditions were at the turn of the nineteenth century, though some conditions continue to be this bad in cities. This housing arrangement was ideal for fires, diseases, and early death from smoke inhalation. The idea that people still live in apartments like this, though they may not be called tenement houses, is appalling. Housing is a real issue in big cities where people live in bad conditions because they cannot afford to move out of them. This museum showed me that conditions were horrible for new immigrants from Eastern and Southern Europe to America during this time period, but it also made me realize that people still live in bad conditions and something needs to be done to change it.

A History Major's International Experience on Campus (by Shannon Conheady)

The most common way that we, as students, learn about history is through textbooks and classrooms. It is often said that history is boring and pointless to study. As a student of history I beg to differ: history is all around us and the best way to see that is to interact with it. It happens every day; is your personal day going to make it into the books? Maybe not, but that’s no reason not to give the study of history a second thought. 

This summer I have had the opportunity to work with students from Venezuela, Ecuador, and Colombia through the Study of United States Institutes program, sponsored by the U.S. State Department. The History Department at St. Bonaventure University is hosting one of the institutes on U.S. History and Government. Twenty students are living here on campus for four weeks and have the chance to study, explore, and discover both New York State and United States history. I have also learned much about the cultures of these three countries and their unique histories. I have read about the countries in Latin America throughout my education but interacting with students who originate from these countries has been the best way to actually gain information about the local peoples. For the last three weeks, three other mentors and I have traveled with the students to a variety of locations. We returned from four days in Chicago, Il. last week and will be traveling to New York City soon. The students have participated in various classes on campus relating to the study of U.S. history and government taught by a variety of professors and staff members.

Study of the United States Institute at St. Bonaventure University (Summer 2012)

St. Bonaventure University hosted a Study of the United States Institute about American government and history for student leaders from Central and South America, a program sponsored by the United States Department of State. Assistant Professor of History Maddalena Marinari served as academic director of the program. Please follow this link for more information: http://www.sbu.edu/alumniAndFriends.aspx?id=39738