English professor Thomas Hallock wants to show his students “peace and understanding — one tortilla at a time.”
This semester, he will work as the Garcia Robles Chair of U.S. Studies at the Universidad de las Américas Puebla in Cholula, Mexico, under the Fulbright Scholar program.
Hallock is teaching two courses at UDLAP, a basic English course and an advanced English writing course.
The writing course is linked to Julie Armstrong’s senior capstone course at USF St. Petersburg. The two classes will communicate via email throughout the semester. They will write collaborative essays and workshop each other’s work, which will be available at www.pueblajournal.com.
Anna Maria Lineberger, a graduate student, will facilitate the communication between universities and conduct research on cross-cultural instruction in composition.
“My academic specialty is understanding and writing about place, and this is a chance to bring students into international dialogue and broaden their perspectives,” Hallock said.
He feels this is very indicative of USF St. Petersburg and its goal to think across national lines. Hallock commends USF World for being helpful during his venture and the support they give to all Fulbright scholars.
“When people know the details of one another’s lives, especially through writing, I think that’s when real understanding comes,” Hallock said.
