Contact: Maridith Geuder
When Mississippi State exchange student Wouter Dingjan needed items from a local discount store, he decided to walk to his destination.
More than an hour and several miles from the university later, he realized that life in the rural South is a little more spread out than in his native Holland. "I never dreamed the store was so far," he said with a laugh.
Dingjan is among 13 exchange students spending a semester at MSU's School of Architecture. The students are part of two separate exchange programs being sponsored by the school to help participants better learn about differences in architecture education and in culture.
"Housing is one way to involve people in the culture," said architecture professor Robert Craycroft, MSU coordinator of a North American exchange program funded by the Fund for the Improvement of Postsecondary Education.
Students from Mexico and Canada are participating in a FIPSE project titled "Design, Culture, and Community," which promotes interactions between universities in their countries and the U.S. Mississippi State and the University of Illinois are the only two American architecture schools currently involved, Craycroft said.
"The program is designed to prepare students to function in the global economy of North America," he added. "The experience enhances their professional abilities in diverse settings."
In addition to those in the U.S. Department of Education-funded FIPSE program, students from England and Holland are participating in a longstanding School of Architecture exchange program with schools in their countries.
Mississippi State architecture students will spend time at schools in countries represented by the exchange students, and all will benefit from learning to think and see in new ways, explained architecture professor Jane Greenwood, who teaches many of the exchange students.
"With increased globalization, we often design structures for people we've never met before in places we've never been," she said. "Architecturally, our challenge is to find the essential qualities of what makes a good dwelling."
In discussions and in projects, students are exploring whether there can be a culturally specific response to housing, she said. Exchange students in her classes will work on developing theoretical designs for low-income housing specifically suited to the Starkville community.
Both Mississippi and visiting students say their interactions have been enlightening.
"Mexico City is the biggest city in the world and moves at a very rapid pace," said Salvador Gil, a student at the capital city's Universidad Autonoma Metropolitana. "Here, we're seeing a clear contrast between city life and rural life. It's a valuable education."
Maella Gonzalez, a Mexican student at Universidad Autonoma de Yucatan, agrees. "I wanted to compare my society with this one," she explained. "I've learned that it's a big world."
During the three years of the FIPSE exchange program, each participating school acts as a host for exchange students and sends their own students to the other host institutions. Students receive a stipend to support their travel.
"Our students have enjoyed the opportunities to see other ways of teaching and designing," Craycroft said. "And we've enjoyed having the added dimension that exchange students bring to our studios.
"It's been a joy to have these students at Mississippi State."