Together with other students, she came to the Faculty of Education of UP thanks to a long-standing inter-institutional cooperation. In a specially arranged programme, she was mainly engaged in psychology and there was no indication that her teaching and learning programme would be interrupted by a health event. Today, Haven Dangler thanks both the international department at the Faculty of Education as well as everyone else, including the university's Welcome Office, for their help.
She began experiencing pain during a field trip to the Psychiatric Hospital in Kroměříž, and before she knew it, she was hospitalized in the Kroměříž hospital. Over the next two days, Haven Dangler underwent several tests and, after being transferred to the Faculty Hospital in Olomouc, also underwent a surgery. The student from Valdosta State University, who came to the Faculty of Education at Palacký University as an exchange student, is studying psychology in her home country and would like to work in an American prison when she graduates.
"I actually found out about Palacký University and the possibility of this exchange by chance at school when I got a leaflet. I liked the offer, it promised both a lot of information in psychology and the opportunity to travel and get to know another country," said Haven Dangler, who is excited about the Czech stay despite all the health complications.
"I really had a very rich programme waiting for me in Olomouc. Everything was new to me. Every day there was interesting information and a lot of experiences. I also tried to get to know Czech culture," added the young American, adding that she had no problems with her health so far.
"When I was hospitalized during the excursion, I didn't understand anything. I was very confused and immediately phoned Jana Kvintová, the vice-dean for international relations at the PdF UP, who is in charge of the whole programme. I got in touch with her right after I arrived in Olomouc and it was her who helped me a lot," added the student, whose home is a small town in the state of Georgia. When she was transferred to the Faculty Hospital in Olomouc and underwent surgery, she was also given a helping hand by classmates and the university's Welcome Office.
Groups of American university students from Valdosta State University have been visiting Palacký University regularly for many years.
"Our inter-institutional cooperation under the name of the Czech study abroad program has been going on for almost twenty years, interrupted only by the situation related to the pandemic of covid-19. The base for teaching and other activities is always the Faculty of Education of UP, which provides teaching facilities with the necessary technical equipment for American students. The main part of our cooperation is the teaching of psychological disciplines, which the American students always attend with their program coordinator Steven Kohn and other staff of the Department of Psychology and Pathopsychology of the Faculty of Education of the Palacký University," said Vice-Dean Jana Kvintová. Her speech also revealed that American students can choose from several psychological disciplines within the programme at UP, for example Developmental Psychology, Industrial-Organizational Psychology, Abnormal Psychology, Personality Psychology, all of which are based on experiential learning.
"It is within the framework of experiential learning that American students regularly participate in professional excursions to various institutions, where they supplement the theoretical knowledge acquired in individual subjects. This year, they had the opportunity to learn about the Czech system of psychiatric care by visiting the Psychiatric Hospital in Kroměříž, they also visited the P-centre in Olomouc, a school for the hearing impaired and interactively participated in the English language lessons at the Čajkovský Gymnasium," added Jana Kvintová, adding that an integral part of this teaching block is also the subject Czech Cultural Studies, which includes demographic, historical and cultural aspects of the Czech Republic. As part of a rich educational and cultural programme, students also gain intercultural experience.
For Haven Dangler, there have been many so-called firsts in the past month. For the first time in her life, she left the United States for Europe, where she made new contacts, new friends, and gained a wealth of information related to her field of study and beyond. For the first time in her life, she also found herself in a hospital. And in a foreign country. "Thank you all for your help, when I needed it, I could rely on the Faculty of Education of Palacký University."