VUU has been selected as a 2023 Fulbright-Hays Group Projects Abroad grantee. The study abroad project, titled “Africa Rising: Hip Hop, Politics, and Critical Resilience in Senegal”, is a four-week project that will bring Ima Hicks, Assistant Professor of Languages and Literature, six VUU students, and six Richmond Public School teachers to the West African Research Center in Dakar, Senegal in July 2024. This endeavor will help participants understand ways in which youth use a variety of strategies, especially Hip-Hop, and engagement with media and communications technologies, to enhance their role in the change processes of their societies. Rigorous lectures, seminars, and roundtables led by university professors, government officials; and national, local, and regional youth organizations are on the agenda, as are guided visits to culturally and historically relevant sites. Participants will gain knowledge of the history of youth in contemporary Senegal and will learn about the interactions among youth, culture, education, religion, African traditions, and republican institutions. They will also improve their proficiency in the French language and in African francophone culture and will learn elementary Wolof, the most widely spoken language in the multiethnic, multilingual nation.