USM Students Collaborate With South African Youth in Montagu
A summer program led by Professor Tara Grey Coste combines historical tours in Cape Town with a week of leadership workshops in a Western Cape town.
By Jasmine Carter ·
University of Southern Maine students spent this summer in South Africa for a study abroad program focused on experiential leadership. The initiative, run by the Department of Leadership and Organizational Studies, targets both undergraduate and graduate participants. Its primary goal is to move leadership education beyond the classroom and into direct community practice.
The 2026 cohort began its itinerary in Cape Town. Students visited Robben Island and the District Six Museum to study the historical legacies of apartheid and reconciliation. They also attended a welcome event with Ernestine Deane, a Cape Indigenous singer, poet, and ancestral lineage healer. Deane discussed Indigenous perspectives on identity and humanity's connection to the land. These site visits provided cultural context for the group before they traveled to the main program location.
The central component of the trip took place in Montagu, a small town in the Western Cape region. There, USM students worked alongside local young adults for a week. The group participated in workshops based on Appreciative Inquiry and creative problem solving. This methodology directs participants to identify existing community strengths rather than focusing on deficits. Students and local partners engaged in storytelling, dialogue, and collaborative activities to develop practical approaches to positive change.
Professor Tara Grey Coste leads the program. She noted that the experience challenges students to reconsider traditional views of leadership across different cultural contexts. The curriculum emphasizes listening and learning over directing. Participants practiced facilitation skills while navigating differences in language and worldview. The program stressed partnership with local facilitators and community partners rather than external intervention.
The academic structure connects coursework concepts to real-world application. Students applied theories of communication, collaboration, and ethical leadership in unfamiliar environments. The program aims to show that effective leadership relies on curiosity and adaptability rather than possessing all the answers. Relationships formed during the week in Montagu serve as a key part of the educational outcome.
Participants return to the United States with new perspectives on global leadership and community engagement. The program reinforces the idea that communities possess inherent knowledge and resources that warrant recognition. By bringing together USM students and South African partners, the project demonstrates that leadership involves creating conditions for collaboration and shared creativity.
