The Novogratz Bridge Year program in Senegal exposes participants to teranga, a Wolof word that describes the warm hospitality and generous spirit of the Senegalese people. For most of the year, students live with homestay families in the bustling capital city of Dakar, where they support organizations working in areas such as education, youth empowerment, and community development. Excursions and short-term community engagement opportunities in rural areas outside of Dakar provide students with insight into rural village life and issues of environmental conservation, educational access, and healthcare delivery. Participants acquire proficiency in Wolof and French and, through guest speakers and cultural enrichment activities, learn about Senegalese history, politics, art, and Islam.

In Senegal, Princeton University partners with Where There Be Dragons, an organization specializing in overseas experiential education. Since their founding in 1993, Dragons has managed hundreds of unique small-group service learning programs in Asia, Africa, and the Americas. Dragons is dedicated to inspiring youth leadership and responsible global engagement through community-based service projects and cultural exchange.

Program itineraries are subject to change based on conditions that impact local travel logistics, public health, and participant safety.

Arrival and Orientation

Year participants travel to Diakhanor, a village located along the Atlantic coast about a 3-hour drive southeast of Dakar. In Diakhanor, participants are introduced to life in Senegal through a week-long orientation session. Among this remarkable coastal scenery, welcoming community, and peaceful setting, students engage in learning about health and safety and Senegalese cultural norms. During this time, participants also begin intensive Wolof and French classes.  

Fall Enrichment Program

Following orientation, Bridge Year students engage with rural, urban, and peri-urban communities in Western Senegal and gain additional insight into the joys and challenges of daily community life.

The Fall Enrichment Program begins with travel to Kamyaak (Kamiak), where students take part in engagement activities with a rural community centered around Sufi spirituality and sustainable development. While there, students learn about how the community is working with surrounding villages and how they are marketing products nationally and internationally. From Kamyaak, the group travels northwest to the city of Thiès, which is their first introduction to an urban environment in Senegal. They explore the market, visit local community organizations, and prepare for their community stay in Ndioukhane. A small village just outside of Thiès, Ndioukhane has a thriving culture that provides an opportunity to gain insights into the structures of local governance, rural life, and rainy season harvesting activities. During their stay in the village, students have a chance to live with homestay families and collaborate with local educational and environmental organizations.  

Arrival in Dakar

By early October, Bridge Year participants arrive in Dakar and settle into Yoff, a quiet neighborhood located on the beach north of the city center. Here, students take part in another five-day orientation program that prepares them to navigate their new environment. Orientation provides students with a thorough introduction to the city and all that it has to offer, as well as the practical skills required to find their way around, integrate themselves into local culture, and thrive in their homestays and community organization placements.

Homestay

Shortly after arriving in Dakar, program participants move in with their homestay families. The homestay experience is an opportunity to establish relationships, practice language skills, and integrate more fully into local society. Participants can expect comfortable but modest accommodations. One student is placed in each home where they have their own bedroom, furnished with a twin bed and a place to store clothing. While some homes may have showers, participants should be prepared for bucket baths (usually cold, but sometimes heated water is available) for bathing. Most meals are prepared by and taken with homestay families. The typical diet includes rice, millet, beans, assorted vegetables and fish. Participants are welcomed into family life with genuine kindness and hospitality.

Language Instruction

Bridge Year participants engage in Wolof and French language training throughout their stay in Senegal. From October through December, Bridge Year participants receive two to three hours of language training each day, four to five days per week. From January to April, language classes continue with the specific number of hours, as well as the language of instruction (Wolof or French), depending on student interest. One-on-one tutoring, as well as a language buddy program, is also available to any student in need of extra practice.

Placements with Community Organizations

Participants spend 20-30 hours per week, collaborating with local community organizations. Travel time to and from placements depends on the assignment, but can range from a 15-minute walk to an hour-long bus ride. Staff orient students to their respective assignments and provide continuous support throughout the program. Below is a list of community partner organizations in Dakar. This list is not comprehensive; it simply provides examples of the types of assignments in which students might be placed.

• YMCA Senegal runs various programs in adult literacy, youth entrepreneurship, health education, and computer training. They also operate an elementary school and preschool in Dakar. Under direct supervision of a YMCA staff member, Bridge Year participants most often teach English at the elementary school and/or lead activities in the preschool. Students can also participate in YMCA's additional projects, such as the criminal justice program, outer school sports, games, tutoring programs, translating reports, teaching English to staff, or supporting educational projects in rural communities outside Dakar.
• La Télé Citoyenne is a web-based television channel that provides a forum for African youth to discuss  issues of human rights, good governance, and responsible citizenship.  Activities could include supporting the organization's multi-media or communication teams.  
• Ker Thiossane began in Dakar’s SICAP neighborhood as a space where local artists could access multimedia and digital art tools. Ker Thiossane has since extended its mission to include the revitalization of the SICAP neighborhood, adding a youth center and community garden to the existing art space. Bridge Year participants mainly work in Ker Thiossane’s Fab Lab, “Defko Ak Ñip,” helping local artists realize their creative vision using digital art tools. There are also opportunities to support Ker Thiossane’s community outreach programs.
• Naam Joodo is comprised of several small local associations linked to the global Slow Food movement. They work on biodiversity, agriculture, food sovereignty, and dynamics between rural and urban areas. The organization works with many school gardens around Dakar. A Bridge Year participant at this site may support school garden projects, website development, the creation of a seed bank, communication efforts, and event planning.
• Jiw Nit is a Senegalese non-profit organization with French and German branches. They focus on rural development projects in the Fatick region led by an intentional spiritual community. Jiw Nit is also linked to an independent music label.
• Social Change Factory is a Senegalese civic leadership center with branches in Ivory Coast, The Gambia, Chad, and France. Their projects focus on social innovation and research in education, active citizenship, children's and women's rights, and the youth's access to the job market.
• Sunu Thiossane is a Dakar-based youth development agency focusing on art and academic enrichment. This organization is an American-Senegalese initiative that runs school programs through art and academic support. One of their goals is to foster educational opportunities between Senegal and the U.S.
• CorpsAfrica is modeled after the U.S. Peace Corps and sends African volunteers to serve in rural communities in their home countries. Volunteers can work in their home country for one year with the possibility to extend for a second year in another African country where CorpsAfrica operates.
• The Senegal Youth Consortium (CJS) is an association of young social innovators, entrepreneurs, investors, decision-makers, and researchers. Institutions that work with CJS include  international partners, civil society organizations, and private actors committed to supporting the empowerment of young people in Senegal.
   

Cultural Enrichment Activities

Over the course of the program, local experts and other guest lecturers are invited to discuss diverse topics including Senegalese history, politics, public health, religion, gender, urbanization, deforestation, and the arts. 

Bridge Year participants also take part in at least two group excursions outside of the city of Dakar. Excursion destinations depend on many factors including weather, time constraints, student interest, and relevance to the overall program, but a number of different options are available. Possible destinations include the Southern Coast, Kedougou, Kolda, and Saint Louis. To the greatest extent possible, participants are given ownership over the research, planning, and logistics for these group expeditions.

Finally, Bridge Year participants have the opportunity to engage in independent projects or mentorships on topics such as West African drumming, cooking, tailoring, traditional medicine, visual arts, or Islam. The activity may directly enrich the participant’s service assignment or serve to enhance an understanding and appreciation of Senegal and Senegalese culture.

Spring Enrichment Program

In the spring, students work together to plan a two to three-week excursion in the Sine-Saloum Delta and the Gambia. The Sine-Saloum Delta, at the mouth of the Saloum River, is a diverse ecosystem of wetlands, lakes, lagoons and marshes, as well as sandy coasts and dunes, terrestrial savannah areas and dry, open forest. It is home to 400 species of animals and plays a vital role in flood control and regulating the distribution of rainwater for the local people and wildlife. Students, with the support of onsite staff, develop an itinerary that explores life in Serer fishing villages and delves deeper into development and environmental issues. Depending on student interest, it is also possible to travel to the Gambia which shares many ethnic, linguistic, economic, and historical ties with Senegal. Students will have the opportunity to meet with local Gambian leaders, traditional healers, regional development specialists, and other experts in the area.

Program Wrap-up

The final week of the Novogratz Bridge Year Program takes place in a tranquil and eclectic artists enclave called Toubab Dialaw, located on cliffs above a small fishing village outside of Dakar. Here, participants engage in a re-entry workshop to examine lessons learned from their Bridge Year experience and reflect on their return home, their goals for the future, and the ways in which they can best integrate their experience into daily life at Princeton.

• Program Location: Dakar, Senegal 
• Country Name: République du Sénégal (French); Réewum Senegaal (Wolof)
• Population: 17,923,036 (Senegal); 3,326,000  (Dakar) 
• National Symbol: Lion
• Languages: French (official), Wolof, Pular, Jola, Mandinka, Serer, Soninke
• Religions: Islam 95.9% (most adhere to one of the four main Sufi brotherhoods), Christianity 4.1% (mostly Roman Catholic)
• Currency:  CFA Franc
• Fast Fact: In the 16th century when the Portuguese visited the country’s coast, the fishermen said “sunu gaal,” which translates into “these are our boats.” The Portuguese, who understood nothing, simply named their land “Senegal.”