Atlantis Project - Angra do Heroismo, Terceira: November 2009

Last Update: January 14, 2:45PM

After a successful 2009 edition of the Atlantis Project at UNC-CH, we are very excited to spread the word about this great summer opportunity for students at Carolina.

The Atlantis Project at UNC-CH enables a group of UNC-CH undergraduates to explore the island of Terceira (population: 54,000) in the Azores archipelago in the North Atlantic.

Students live in the town of Angra do Heroismo (a UNESCO World Heritage Site) at the island’s university housing, participate in internships with a public organization on the island and engage with the community through (1) discussions with local professionals and leaders and (2) through the creation and execution of events with positive social and/or environmental impact. The third edition of the program will run from May 14 until June 30, 2010, and will offer internships at the following organizations:

• Hospital de Santo Espirito de Angra do Heroismo: multi-department internship in the local hospital including scrubbing in the OR.

• Secretaria Regional do Trabalho e Solidariedade Social: social security division of regional government

• Camara Municipal de Angra do Heroismo: local government; experience program through several areas of this local institution, both in the urban and rural parts of the island (basic Portuguese or Spanish fluency required)

• Secretaria Regional da Educacao e Formacao: working with English classes from Kindergarten – 12th grades at local public schools

In addition to internships, the Atlantis Project is implementing a new component called 'Community Connection' to foster relationships between Carolina students and the Terceirense community. Each participant is required to set up two events for the entire group. The first, Discussion, should be arranged individually with a local member of the community that is informational and discussion-based. The participant is in charge of providing the group with background information on the event contact before the meeting, structuring the discussion and assuring each participant responds to the discussion on the blog. The second, Service, should be action-based and does not necessarily require a local contact. It can be done in groups of 3 so there will be approximately 4 events. The events should be community-based, and can be anything such as trash pick-up, discussion on American culture, football with students, etc.

The native language of the islands is Portuguese, but knowledge of the language is not required for participation in the program. Thanks to the generosity of the organizations and individuals supporting the Atlantis Project, the program itself is free of cost, and students only have to consider the cost of their flight, university residence housing (subsidized) and personal expenses in Terceira. Past participants have traveled to other islands after completion of the program.

Applications are due January 20, 2010. To apply, please answer all of the following questions and e-mail to UNCAtlantisProject@gmail.com.

Name:
Year:
Major:
Internship position of interest:

Hospital --- Education --- Local Government --- Regional Government (Social Security)

How familiar are you with Portuguese? (Knowledge of Portuguese is not a requirement for the program):

Fluent Conversational Basic Not at All

What are you involved with or passionate about at school?

What attracts you to the Atlantis Project?

Describe experiences you have had, if any, with cultural immersion. If none, what do you hope to get out of the Atlantis Project?

What languages do you speak?

The Atlantis Project is not graded or for credit. How will you make the most of this experience without official guidance?

The team facilitator helps coordinate the group, plan events and is the liaison between the AP group and local (Azorean) contacts. In the 2010-2011 school year, the team facilitators will help arrange the AP11 edition. Would you like to be considered for this position?

Please e-mail to uncatlantisproject@gmail.com

_______________________________________

Frequently Asked Questions:

What costs are there to consider? Your flight, your housing (approximately 300 Euros), your food and personal expenses. The cost of living (groceries, dining out) is very reasonable on the island.

I'm graduating in May. Can I still apply? Yes! Graduating seniors are eligible.

Where exactly will we be living? In the residence of the island's university, ideally located a couple of minutes walking time from the center plaza of Angra do Heroismo. You will be living among university students (who are mostly from the islands or mainland Portugal, but also come from other countries - Argentina and Angola are past examples) as well as other European students participating in Erasmus (Europe-wide internship program). Will I have a roommate? Yes. Depending on the rooms available, you may be living with either a student from our program or a university student. Each room has its own bathroom.

Is Terceira safe? Terceira is very safe, and the residence is guarded 24-hours a day. The security guards log everyone's time in and out of the residence.

How does the application process work? The written application (above) is due on January 20. Shortly thereafter, within a week, we will be calling back for interviews. We are not asking for GPAs or standardized test scores, etc... We're looking for students who will be passionate about the program and about giving and taking all they can from the experience and the different components required (from the internship to events). As there is no credit given for the program, and therefore no threat of a good/bad grade, it will take motivation and dedication to the project from each participant. As such, we want only those students who will give 100+ percent to our program and the overall experience. The students selected to be participants will be notified around the middle of February. There will be approximately 12-15 students chosen to participate; year in school will not be a factor in the selection process.

_______________________________________

News article published on front page of 'A Uniao' during AP09: http://www.auniao.com/noticias/ver.php?id=16583

Interview done for AzoresTV.com:
http://www.azorestv.com/index.php?vid=296&mod=videocategoria&cate=8

Photos of AP09: