By Rita Wisen
Faculty member Pat Cole has been approved to go on a sabbatical to Latin America during the fall semester. She will be studying the "sustainable economic level" of life in Guatemala, El Salvador and Nicaragua for her doctoral dissertation.
Cole will live among and interview mostly very poor women who live in the mountain villages of the area.
Cole said, "The emphasis of sustainable economic level is how they manage to survive." Through her studies she hopes to answer the question, "How do they make it from day to day?"
"These people live in extreme poverty," she said. "There is very little paid work available. They live off the food they grow. There is little access to medical care."
Although Cole will be doing research starting in May, her sabbatical will last from August to January. She is also presently preparing for the change in living conditions by receiving immunizations.
IVCC is preparing for Cole’s leave by hiring someone part time to take her place. This teacher will take over some Introduction to Sociology, Social Problems, and Family Living classes until Cole returns.
Cole is working on a Ph.D. from Loyola. Having completed all of the coursework, she will be completing her dissertation to receive the degree after she returns from Central America.
Cole qualified for a sabbatical, which pays her in full for the semester, by having taught at IVCC for a minimum of six years and successfully completing the application process, which required final approval from the college board. As the union contract spells out, she must return to IVCC for a minimum of one year after taking the sabbatical.