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Teaching nursing students along the U.S.-Mexico border Teaching nursing students along the U.S. – Mexico border is one of hundreds of ways in which Medical Mission Sisters around the world try to be a healing presence to those in need today. For the past 8 years, Sister Janet Gottschalk has been a Visiting Professor at Texas
A & M International University in Laredo, Texas. Located on the Rio Grande River directly opposite Nuevo Laredo, Mexico, Laredo is one of the fastest-growing cities in the U.S. As the main transfer point for truck traffic to and from Mexico and its manufacturing plants, Laredo experienced such rapid growth that its need for health facilities and nurses became urgent.
The Canseco School of Nursing, where Sister Janet teaches, has over 330 mostly Hispanic students. “As the school began, I was able to supervise community health nursing students in the Spanish-speaking barrios and colonias of Laredo and teach a course on ‘Cultural Competence,’” Sister Janet recalls.
“Over the years, as more bilingual faculty became available and the school grew, I began teaching ‘International and Border Health’ – a course in which ‘Justice for All’ is a major concept and focuses on preparing the students to be ‘world citizens,’” she adds. Initially, the course was taught in a mixture of Spanish and English, and included visits and participation from other nursing schools in Mexico. Now, it is web-based, and is required for graduation from the nursing program. After the first 2 weeks, Sister Janet conducts a 3-day workshop for the students and any other guests they wish to invite. She covers a wide range of topics, from globalization to HIV/AIDS in Africa. Near the end of the semester, she returns to Laredo for the students’ power-point presentations. “At the students’ pinning ceremony, brief excerpts from students’ final papers are read (and printed in small booklets). It is humbling to listen to the students’ changed world views and their commitment to justice and an end to poverty,” Sister Janet shares. “It is also a moment of great pride for the extended families to hear the comments of their relative – usually the first in their families to attend and complete a college program.” Sister Janet adds, “Although I am involved at the United Nations and coordinate the Medical Mission Sisters’ Alliance for Justice Office, I believe this is my most important work of justice.”
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