Dell-Jones stands before an art installation of silk cocoons by the Moroccan artist Safaa Erruas.
The Chronicle of Higher Education has named St. Petersburg College a Top Producing Institution in the Fulbright U.S. Scholar Program for the 2019-2020 academic year. SPC is one of 26 associate and baccalaureate institutions in the U.S. named in that category.
This recognition comes from SPC adjunct professor Dr. Julie Dell-Jones’ appointment as a Fulbright Scholar in Morocco. Dell-Jones is at Hassan II University at the Ben M’Sik campus, where she taught Media in the US and Educational Technology in the Fall 2019 semester. She is now teaching Intro to Media Studies and Oral Communication.
Ready to Return
Dell-Jones chose Morocco after several trips there; though, when she applied, it had been 15 years since she’d visited.
“I have always loved this country. I wanted to learn about the Amazigh (Berber) culture and history. I read about the tribal jewelry, textiles and other artisan products. Inevitably, I also researched the language and gender issues. I was overdue for a visit, and I wanted to see how much had changed and what had remained the same.”
Her time in Morocco has helped her professionally by allowing her to experience a very different type of educational organization.
“Since I teach non-native speakers of English at SPC, learning how other countries organize their educational system has been a valuable lesson,” she said. “SPC students in ESL benefit from having English available around them in various ways, but it is still necessary to make efforts to get them out of their comfort zones.”
Some things are no different than in the States, including the obstacles students face in getting an education.
“Like at SPC, I try to get to know the real challenges for students, so that I might be able to offer a work-around,” she said. “This may mean creating a new assignment for a student who can’t access WiFi, or bringing a snack for students who have been on campus the majority of the day and will be taking a test on an empty stomach.”
The appointment keeps her on her toes, with most of her time spent planning lessons and teaching.
“Since which courses I will teach is decided very close to the start of the semester, there is a lot of in-progress planning in order to stay ahead of the students,” she said.
The experience is not all work, however. She has been able to travel and immerse herself in the culture and language.
“I attended a conference on multilingualism in Agadir, and I saw the majority of art exhibits during the International Art Festival in Rabat,” she said. “I try to attend various art shows in Casablanca and hope to return to Marrakech to see more of the visual arts there.”
Dell-Jones, who earned her doctorate in Second Language Acquisition and Instructional Technology from The University of South Florida, has been teaching English for Academic Purposes: Advanced Writing, Reading, Speaking & Listening, and Integrated skills at SPC since 2017. She also teaches French and English as a Second Language at other institutions. Already fluent in French and Spanish, she is also learning Darija, the Moroccan variety of Arabic.
“When I began studying this language via YouTube videos and a former colleague from Casablanca, I learned that the Moroccan Darija is considered the Arabic dialect that is farthest from the classical or formal Arabic,” she said. “I am studying Darija on my own, with an occasional tutor, but my learning is “shweeya,” or, very slow!”
Traveler’s Best Friend
One thing she couldn’t leave behind was her 70lb Australian Shepherd mix, Sophie. Prior to leaving the States, she researched how a dog would be received in Morocco and Casablanca, where many do not see dogs as family pets. Though bringing Sophie has required many logistical challenges, including travel, culture, housing and the effects of the move on her canine friend, she is sure that it was right to bring her.
Sophie, Dell-Jones’ Australian Shepherd mix, gets lots of attention and has helped her make friends.
“Other Americans who are working here are often surprised by how many Moroccans I have managed to meet and befriend,” Dell-Jones said. “I credit Sophie because she is almost always the catalyst for meeting people. She accompanies me almost everywhere, and I usually encourage people to pet her, resulting in a sort of dog-ambassador role for her. I have lost count of the number of times people have waved to me from across the road and called out her name.”
In addition to teaching and learning, Dell-Jones has some projects working, as well, including a reading club, a mini photography course, and, thanks to Sophie, a visual ethnography of Casablanca’s dog park community.
“I have become a regular at the dog park near my neighborhood,” she said. “There is such an interesting mix of ages, economic backgrounds, languages spoken, and, of course, types of dogs. I’m really interested in the perspectives of dog owners in this community regarding how dogs are viewed in Casablanca.”
Can’t Win if You Don’t Enter
Dell-Jones’ advice for anyone interested in applying for a Fulbright? Don’t give up.
“This was not my first application, so I am perhaps a model of ‘try, try again,’” she said. “As a graduate student, I had applied to do research in Sweden, but I was not selected. After graduation with my doctorate, I applied as a scholar in Mexico and was selected as an alternate. I explained this to my friends as getting fourth place at the Olympics, which, ultimately, is not an ideal outcome. When I found my latest Fulbright attempt was successful, I was ecstatic to come to Morocco.”
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U.S. News & World Report ranked St. Petersburg College third among the 28 colleges in the Florida College System, according to their 2021 Best Colleges study.
