MSW Students Find Transformation in Faculty-Led Puerto Rico Immersion Course
Twelve days. Twelve MSW students. One island still rewriting its story after hurricanes, earthquakes, a pandemic and decades of political struggle.
This summer, Boston University School of Social Work (BUSSW) sent a group of 12 MSW students and one alumnus to Puerto Rico for the school’s annual travel course, a 12-day, three-credit cultural immersion and service experience led by BUSSW Professor Luz Marilis López. What they found there, students say, changed how they think about social work, and about themselves.
“It is not an exaggeration to say that I feel truly transformed by the twelve days I spent in Puerto Rico,” said Younes Challabi, a dual degree MSW/MPH student.
Learning from History and Resilience
The course paired academic rigor with hands-on service. Students took part in historical site visits, workshops and group discussions that traced the island’s history of colonization and the resilience of its people through Hurricane Maria, earthquakes, the pandemic and ongoing socio-political struggles. They collaborated with faculty from the University of Puerto Rico Beatrice Lassalle Graduate School of Social Work, the InterAmerican University of Puerto Rico, the University of Puerto Rico, School of Public Health, and the Hispanic/Latino Behavioral Health Center of Excellence.
Social Work Service Rooted in Dignity
Students also completed service work at Hogar Padre Vernard, a shelter that provides lunch, clothing and other resources for individuals without homes. For Andrea Walingjom, an MSW student, the visit reshaped her understanding of the profession.
“At Hogar Padre Vernard, social work meant helping with daily chores, sharing a meal, or just being there with the guests.” Walingjom said. “I was reminded that everyone deserves respect and value, and this shelter gives people that dignity.”
Throughout the trip, students compared social work practice within the Latino and Latine culture of the island to how it is practiced on the U.S. mainland, and considered what that comparison means for serving Latino communities at home. Assignments included journal entries, a photovoice project and a group presentation, giving students space to process what they were learning in real time.
Lisa Ross, an MSW student, found the photovoice project especially powerful. Through photographs of El Yunque, Old San Juan and other locations, she connected themes of colonialism, migration, environmental justice, and resistance to the lived experiences of Puerto Rican people. Ross said:
This experience helped me appreciate how storytelling and visual narratives can be powerful tools for advocacy and empowerment.
Cross-Cultural Courses Shape Lives
The trip also marked a full-circle moment for one of the group’s hosts. Alex Casiano, chancellor of Inter-American University’s Metropolitan Campus, welcomed the students to campus this year. Twenty years earlier, he had been part of a Puerto Rican student delegation that visited Boston University, an experience he says shaped his own professional path.
Melissa Costa, a BUSSW MSW graduate, served as the program’s liaison in Puerto Rico. She assisted López with logistics throughout the course and supported students along the way.
For the MSW students who took part, the course offered more than a syllabus. It offered insight that will continue to inform both future practice and who they are as people for years to come.
Learn more about Professor Lopez’s work