Dr. Holly Carter meets with Prime Minister

Dr. Holly Carter, Director of International Education for Queens, traveled to the Cameroon in early July bringing her caring and volunteering spirit with an organization called 'A Place of Hope'.  The charity, based in Charlotte, works to educate AIDS orphans in the Cameroon, was founded by a Cameroonian who lives in the Charlotte area and now supports 750 students who have lost one or both parents to HIV/AIDS.

A Place of Hope also distributes supplies to countless numbers of children.  This trip was made even more special with the donation of hundreds of backpacks via the "No Backpack Day" in some of the Charlotte-Mecklenburg schools.    Holly not only assisted in the experience, but was there to create a lasting partnership with the organization.

"I was there to help distribute these fundamental supplies to the children and to see if Queens can create a partnership for students to work with this mission or perhaps create internships.  On the last day of the trip we met with Prime Minister, His Excellency Philémon Yunji Yang, former Cameroonian Ambassador to Canada.  In this meeting I had the chance to explain to him about Queens and our international programs; he was very excited about the links we could form and how we can teach each other about the world."

Holly is working to expand options for Queens' students to meaningfully engage in international service and learning.  This opportunity in the Cameroon is one of many new types of programs that Queens' students can become involved.  In the past year international experiences have been broadened to include internship opportunities in Peru, Bolivia, the Dominican Republic, and Ecuador.  Semester-long study abroad has been broadened to include the International Student Exchange Program (ISEP) which gives students choices of semester long programs in 50 countries around the world, and new exchange agreements have been signed with ESSCA Business University in France, London School of the Arts, Regents College in London, and St. Andrews University in Scotland.    New service opportunities like this one in the Cameroon are growing, and we hope to have many choices for students to get into different cultures around the world."