Application deadline: 2 Feb 2004
Please email or contact Maria Rogal if you are participating so we can follow-up with you on logistics and your project.
3 credits for UF spring semester
ART 4930/HUM 4956/ART 6928
$925 (airfare additional)
Contact
Professor Maria Rogal
UF School of Art and Art History
352 870 8878
or mrogal@ufl.edu
RESOURCES
Getting There
Cancun (CUN) is the airport of choice (Playa del Carmen is easily accessible 30 minutes south of Cancun).
We recommend purchasing your ticket as early as possible. Please let Maria Rogal know if you have any questions on flights, etc. Spirit Air offers great deals from Fort Lauderdale to Cancun and other budget flights are available from the Miami or Atlanta Airports, with occasional deals from from Orlando or Tampa.
Spirit Air (low budget travel from Fort Lauderdale to Cancun)
Student Universe (web site with good airfares for students/faculty; must register first with .edu address)
STA Travel (Student Travel Agency with offices on UF Campus)
Continental Airlines
Mexicana
Aéro México
Delta Airlines
Expedia
Orbitz
Passports and Visas
US Citizens traveling to México can use a tourist visa. These are issued at port of entry and can be issued for one month to three months.
If you are not a US Citizen, please check with the UFIC for specific requirements related to your student visa and to be sure your visa allows for return to the USA.
US Department of State Passport Services
Visa requirements for US Citizens
Visa requirements for Citizens of other countries
Information on Mexican Tourism
Visit México
Maya Riviera
DOWNLOADS
Questionnaire
(Word Doc / 32k)
Promotional Poster
(PDF / 2.7mb)
Program Overview
(Word Doc / 40k)
A unique and exciting opportunity to critically explore and experience tourism development projects and their implications as they relate to issues of identity, development, cultural hegemony, urban development, migration, and multimedia ethnographic documentation within the context of cultural production. Student participants gain intensive, on-site fieldwork training in ethnography and cultural anthropology and develop new skills in interdisciplinary research methodologies as they relate to cultural studies and art making.
Students gain hands-on training in the ethnographic methods of cultural anthropology in order to develop their own individual research project within a larger program of focused research. Students will have the opportunity to explore topics and mediums of interest in the first person while working in small groups in an environment of cultural immersion. The overall program and project culminates in a multi-authored, multi-media ethnographic document that is designed and developed for academic dissemination.
WHO SHOULD APPLY
Research outcomes will be directly relevant to the student’s area and topic of study and is therefore appropriate for all major areas within the SA+AH, as well as to other related major areas at UF, including architecture and photojournalism.
TOPICS OF EXPLORATION AND RESEARCH
• The culture of Spring Break and the complex life on the ‘Maya Riviera’
• Attraction and interactions between Mexicans, Yucatecans, Mayans, Europeans, Canadians,
and US North Americans
• Economic, social and cultural development
• Class relationships between different cultural groups in a cosmopolitan setting
• Forms of hybridity, transculturation and cultural fusion in relation to identity
• Cultures of consumption and commodification of cultural belongings and identities
• The production and consumption of the Mexican/Mayan/Yucatecan imaginary
ABOUT PLAYA DEL CARMEN
Playa del Carmen has been selected specifically as a point of departure for this project because of its extreme social, cultural political and economic complexity as a part of the ‘Maya Riviera’/‘Mundo Maya’/Mexican-European-US tourism machine. Playa del Carmen is particularly well suited location for this project in part because of its proximity to Florida but also because of its specific characteristics as a pivotal part of the Mexican tourist industry.
CREDIT AND COST
3 credits (ART 4930, HUM 4956, or ART 6928)
Credit may be applied toward Graduate studio or criticism courses, and toward undergraduate 2D and 4D studio courses, and humanities requirements.
$925 per participant, includes UF graduate or undergraduate tuition, on-site housing, most meals (breakfast, lunch and 4 evening meals), local transportation, selected materials and supplies. Airfare additional.
Students are eligible for Financial Aid and Bright Futures Scholarship Credit. For Financial Aid questions, please see Ms. Erica Beard in the Financial Aid Office.
PROGRAM DETAILS
Program Faculty
This is a collaboration with the Directors of the Open School of Ethnography and Anthropology (OSEA), México, who bring extensive theoretical and pragmatic knowledge in the areas of anthropology, ethnography and Mexican culture to the program.
Maria Rogal, School of Art and Art History, University of Florida
(Specialization: Art and Design, Culture, Identity, Social Responsibility)
Dr. Quetzil Castañeda (PhD, University at Albany, SUNY)
Director and Professor, The Open School of Ethnography and Anthropology, México
Former Fulbright Scholar, Universidad Autónoma de Yucatán
Specialization: Ethnography, Anthropology, Identity, Culture, Tourism
Dr. Juan Castillo Cocom (PhD, Florida International University)
Director and Professor, The Open School of Ethnography and Anthropology, México
Specialization: Ethnography, Anthropology, Sociology, Mexican Politics and Identity (including issues of Indigenous/Maya identity)
For more information on the program faculty, visit the OSEA web site
Program Location: Playa del Carmen, México with follow-up in Gainesville
The tourist destination of Playa del Carmen, now the fastest growing city in the western hemisphere, is located just 35 miles south of Cancun and within close proximity to Cozumel, the ecological/tourist theme park Xcaret, and the Maya archaeological site of Tulum.
Program Structure: The program is based on seven days of intense coursework, fieldwork and experiential learning in Playa del Carmen, México. Upon return to the US, students are responsible for producing an appropriate product that is a direct outcome of the program and overarching project on tourism in Playa del Carmen, México. The Program faculty will meet with students as a group the week of April 13th at UF for follow-up critiques and discussions. The final due date of the students’ projects is 14 May 2004. The credit will be recorded for the spring 2004 semester.
Registered students will be provided with readings, materials, and project development assistance prior to departure in order to be able to take advantage of the program upon arrival in México.
This program is designed for 10–12 student participants.
Language Requirement: None
Dates: March 6 – 13, 2004 (on-site) with project follow-up (week of April 13th) and completion of project on or before May 14, 2004;
Spring Semester 2004 Registration (note there is NO late registration penalty)
Financial Aid Information: Because this program is offered during the spring semester, students are eligible for Financial Aid. This may be applied towards the Bright Futures Scholarship (up to 17 credits per semester).
Financial Aid may be included where appropriate. Additional information may be found through the Financial Aid Office, specifically Ms. Erica Beard.
Billing: You will be billed for the remainder of the Program (beyond the $250 deposit) by the UFIC. If you are on Financial Aid, you may wait until Financial Aid comes in to complete this process.
UFIC Application Deadline: February 2, 2004 ($250 deposit due).
See the UFIC Study Abroad Application at http://www.ufic.ufl.edu/forms/oss/StudyAbroadApplicationForm.pdf
Other Requirements: 2.5 UF GPA. Contact Maria Rogal for additional information on the program and how it can support student research and project interests, and for application materals and questions.
Please fill out our Questionnaire (Word Doc / 32k) and email it to Maria Rogal. The submission instructions are at the bottom of the Questionnaire. Your responses will allow for the faculty to more successfully structure and design the research and training according to student interests, skills and motivations.
This Program is beyond a traditional classroom-based learning and is intense. It requires full participation during the 7 days of the program, and includes follow up upon return to UF. It is the means for the real experience of ethnographic fieldwork. This learning experience is a full time cultural immersion – one of documenting Spring Break and the related events and complex interactions.
QUESTIONS
About the UFIC Application
Disregard the cover sheet deadline dates, the application deadline for this program is February 2, 2004. NOTE: This program at this time DOES NOT require letters of recommendation, official transcripts or a statement of purpose for the application.
The flight itinerary and passport copy do not need to be in by February 2nd, but must be on file before we leave Gainesville (week before Spring Break). The passport size photo required for the application does not need to be an official passport photo, but simply a photo cut to size in which you are clearly recognizable.
What is the Project Methodology?
The project design is based on the innovative combination of specific pedagogical and research agendas. The primary objective of this program and project is to provide student participants with the opportunity to gain intensive, on-site fieldwork training in ethnography and cultural anthropology and develop new skills in interdisciplinary research methodologies as they relate to cultural studies and the production of media imaginaries. Specifically, the students learn through interactive participation, discovery, observation, interviewing, multi-media documentation, analysis and critical thinking.
The principal project directors will design an umbrella research agenda that details specific possible projects from which students have the opportunity to select their own investigations. Students may choose to work individually or in small groups with one or two partners on their selected topic, theme or issue. Through guided supervision by the project directors the students will then design the research project that they will undertake during the time period.
The overall program and project culminates in a multi-authored, multi-media ethnographic document that is designed and developed for academic dissemination.
The program will be flexible while retaining a structure for hands-on, interactive and collaborative learning. Students will have the opportunity to explore topics and mediums of interest in the first person while working in small groups in an environment of cultural immersion.
Will I have the opportunity to collaborate or work with a team?
Absolutely. This is encouraged. Prior to departure, participants will design the underpinnings for the project they will develop in Playa del Carmen and may choose to work in groups of 2-3 students. Under the framework of this project, all project resources and materials collected will be available to the group, with credit given as appropriate.
Do I need to bring my own equipment?
Yes. All participants are required to bring their own equipment appropriate for conducting professional research. This may include audio or video equipment and appropriate materials (film or card) necessary for documentation.
Do I need to be an Art major to participate?
The program welcomes students who are commited to learn ethnographic methods and who have an interest in Mexican culture. It is open to all students at UF.
How will we prepare for this project?
Readings and resources will be provided in advance and on-site. These will provide a background so that participants will be prepared to hit the ground running – asking thoughtful questions as well as be prepared to develop an appropriate project in order to conduct research in the field.
Two pre-departure meetings to discuss logistics and project development will be conducted by Rogal on or around February 13th and February 27, 2004. At the first meetings, students will learn more about the program, participating faculty, and learn more of each other’s interests as well as have the opportunity to understand the larger project which will be conducted. It is the expectation that the student then briefly outline their proposed individual project and/or choose to work with the collaborative team of Rogal, Castañeda and Castillo Cocom to research and produce an ethnographic document and journal articles on the tourist culture of Playa del Carmen – with a specific emphasis on Spring Break 2004.
How will I be evaluated?
Students will be evaluated based on two primary areas: participation, discussion and research while in the field and the realization of a final product appropriate to the program topics. Both parts require students have a proactiveness and independent attitude in exploring above-mentioned issues, and in investigating and documenting the culture of Playa del Carmen. Final products must be based on the student’s proposal – to be finalized on day three of the program and submitted to the faculty for approval. This includes work that may be conducted in collaboration with the faculty, which will be encouraged. Students will retain full rights to their intellectual property. Students will be required to share their source materials with the overarching project for use in the final documentation of this experience.
What health precautions should I take or what health issues should I be concerned with?
There are no extra-ordinary health issues that should concern you as a participant. Unlike other parts of Latin and Central America, travelers do not need to worry about taking precautionary medicines to prevent any number of illnesses. The health conditions of the Yucatán are good enough to attract more than a million tourists a year, year in and year out.
This program is supported by the College of Fine Arts, the School of Art and Art History and the International Center, University of Florida, Gainesville, FL, USA and by the Open School of Ethnography and Anthropology, México and USA.
Copyright 2004. Rogal, Castañeda. All rights reserved. Updated 25 Jan 2004.