The following details a few recent programs that took place in 2007 and 2008.

Kokrobitey Institute and the American University of Rome: African Governance and Democracy Institute

Students from the American University of Rome joined the Kokrobitey family in January of 2007 for the 6th edition of the African Governance and Democracy program.

The Kokrobitey Institute and American University of Rome: African Governance and Democracy Institute is an intensive two-week program tailored to integrate a focus on West African politics, historical and contemporary, with an introduction to Ghanaian culture, language and history. Students learn firsthand about Government and Democracy in Ghana through field trips throughout the country, lectures from professors and government officials, as well as classes on culture and history and a community service project.

Urban Scholars Institute

Descendance Aboriginal Australian Dance Theatre

In connection with Ghana’s 50th Anniversary celebrations in 2007, the Australian High Commission of Ghana was proud to bring Australia’s leading indigenous dance troupe, the Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander Dance Theatre, “Descendance”, to Ghana for the first time. The week-long program included performances and workshops with The Dance Factory and Mustapha Tettey Addy’s Obonu Royal Drummers at venues including the Kokrobitey Institute, Alliance Française, National Theatre and Independence Square.

In addition to hosting the dancers and musicians, Kokrobitey Institute developed and ran a powerful day of cultural exchange. It was a unique opportunity for two rich and vibrant cultural traditions to come together in a shared learning experience. Local school children were invited to learn about and participate in numerous aspects of Indigenous Australian culture, including music, dance, face painting and more, while sharing their traditional Ghanaian culture as well.

EF Education First Tours

In July 2007, EF (Education First) Tours and Kokrobitey Institute came together for EF Tours first ever program in West Africa. EF Tours is an international tour organization that aims to give both teachers and students enriching immersion-based travel and learning experiences. EF Tours came to Kokrobitey Institute with the goal of creating a unique immersion-based cultural travel experience in Ghana, West Africa. Kokrobitey developed and ran the first ever EF Tours Ghana program for a group of approximately 25 educators from across the U.S, Canada and Europe from July 14 to July 25. The experience transcended drum and dance workshops and rainforest walks, moving into a space where history was brought alive. A space where people came together across cultural and ethnic lines and truly understood what it meant to be a global citizen, to have an inextricably linked history and future.

International Print-Making Studio

In October 2007, Kokrobitey Institute will be holding an International Print-Making Studio. Art transforms and inspires, provokes and challenges, speaks and educates. The artist has a wide range of mediums with which they can express emotions, thoughts and opinions. The medium of print-making has long been used throughout the world from Asia to Europe to the Americas. Printing as an artistic medium though, has been narrowly explored in Ghana. Kokrobitey Institute sees great potential in expanding the scope of print-making as an artistic and educational medium in Ghana. Accordingly, Kokrobitey Institute is holding a print-making studio, bringing together Ghanaian artists and international print-makers to explore print-making as an art form and how it can be as a vehicle for celebrating and documenting the important events leading to and marking the event of Ghana’s independence. The primary objective of the workshop is threefold: to expand Ghana’s view of print-making to include printing as a valuable artistic medium; to celebrate the events and personalities leading to Ghana’s independence through printed images and words; and to do practical skill-building in print-making for the participating artists.

SaNsA Association of International Artists

Pikworo Project

Kokrobitey Institute invites high school and university students to participate in a two-week historical sojourn into the world and people of Ghana. Designed for both high school and university level students respectively, the Pikworo Project is organized around an interdisciplinary and integrated arts model in which workshops, seminars and field trips support a hands-on learning experience that is simultaneously a significant act of community service. The project will culminate with the construction of a natural earth brick building to be used as a temporary visitor’s center and landmark in the historical village of Pikworo, located in Northern Ghana.

Pikworo served as the first stop where captured Africans, destined for slavery, were held before beginning their arduous journey to Ghana’s coastal forts and ultimately the Americas. Students will be able to explore contemporary Ghanaian culture while also navigating the country’s history.

The construction of the visitor’s center is a symbolic gesture representing the importance of retracing and remembering history, of acknowledging how history has shaped our current world and of our obligation to plan for our future through the lens of the past. The project endeavors to utilize and combine the diverse interests and skills of the students in retracing history and constructing the commemorative structure. The Pikworo Project aims for our collective of students, educators and scholars to serve as the impetus for the proper commemoration of this vital piece of history.

The project will unfold in three parts: Spring 08, Summer 08 and Spring 09. Each session will be attended by students from a range of US based educational institutions as well as Ghanaian and international schools. The Pikworo Project enables students from multiple cultures to work for a common cause, nurturing a sense of global citizenship. The experience will leave students with a deeper understanding of what it means to be a reflective, conscious and proactive learner.

Approximate costs per student for a two-week residential program at Kokrobitey Institute are $1,700, dependent on group numbers. This does not apply to summer ‘Kiddie’ camps with costs supplied on application. The cost includes all accommodation, all food while on campus and during group activities, local transfers and field trip fees, and the Ghana visa fee, The fee does not include return air fare to Ghana, the cost of purchasing a passport, cost of immunizations or personal medical insurance. Please contact Kokrobitey Institute for more information. Institute.

Kokrobitey Institute welcomes applications directly from individual students (over 16 years of age), on behalf of students (under 16 years of age) or from faculty. Applications to study at the Institute can either be to join an existing program, to establish a new program, to apply for an internship or to organize independent research at the Institute.