Academic Pursuits
Bridgewater State University is the only university in the United States to offer a minor in Cape Verdean Studies.
Bridgewater's location in southeastern MA, a region with deep historic and personal ties to the Republic of Cabo Verde, makes BSU the ideal location to learn more about the island nation.
Bridgewater students, Cape Verdeans living on the islands or members of the diaspora, Cabo Verde, and our region are enriched with frequent academic exchanges and cross-cultural alliances. The Pedro Pires Institute for Cape Verdean Studies, in collaboration with Cabo Verde and Uni-CV, is pivotal to growing this enduring friendship.
Cape Verdean Studies Minor
The Cape Verdean Studies Minor is designed for undergraduate students. It seeks to provide students with the necessary academic preparation to better understand the social, cultural, and historic contributions of the people of Cabo Verde to the local, regional, and national contexts of the U.S.
The minor is interdisciplinary to provide a broad range of knowledge covering such academic areas as language, culture, and education.
Note: students need not enroll in the minor but may elect to take a course that augments their own field of interest. A greater understanding of Cabo Verde's history and culture helps students gain a deeper understand of the issues that face immigrants here in US.
PPICVS’s academic conferences feature panel discussions on education and language, technology and innovation, culture and social integration, transnationality, music, law and social justice, and literature and language.
The PPICVS invites scholars from diverse disciplines to lecture on a range of issues related to Cabo Verde and its people. Past lectures have focused on political significance, scientific achievements, education, and more. Scholars, leaders, students, and members of the diaspora and the community are invited to attend.
Collaborating with scholars within the university and with colleagues from Uni-CV, the PPICVS partners with individuals and organizations to promote the Cape Verdean language and advance scholarly research.
The Journal of Cape Verdean Studies is focused on the creation and dissemination of research and scholarship relating to Cabo Verde and the Cape Verdean experience and identities within the context of globalized societies.
Conferences
Scholars from all over the world come to BSU’s Pedro Pires Institute of Cape Verdean Studies to discuss complex issues relating to Cabo Verde. In the past, speakers from Portugal, Italy, Brazil, France, Cabo Verde, and the United States have gathered to share their expertise and experiences covering a range of topics, themes, and areas of expertise. PPICVS conferences give scholars an opportunity to share and advance their research with the diaspora and engage with the community.
A sampling of past conferences include:
Conference on Cape Verdean and Diaspora Studies
- Border Crossers: National and Transnational Communities in an Era of Hybridity
- Culture, Social Integration, and Resistance
- Law, Social Justice, and Equality
- Technology, Innovation, and Entrepreneurship in the 21st Century; Challenges and Opportunities
- Migration, Creolization, and Racial Justice
Conference on Women and Gender, Culture, Language, and Education, Migration and Transnationalism
Lectures
The PPICVS invites scholars from diverse disciplines to lecture on a range of issues related to Cabo Verde and its people. Past lectures have focused on political significance, scientific achievements, education, and more. Scholars, leaders, students, and members of the diaspora and the community are invited to attend. A recent series of lectures honored freedom fighter Amilcar Cabral who was an inspiration to those who came after him and a fitting namesake for one of PPICVS’s lecture series.
Programs & Partnerships
The Sister School Project
The partnership between the English Language Learners School (ELL-CV) in Cabo Verde, founded by Professor Zita Mendes, G’13, and the Falmouth public school system in Massachusetts, is a direct result of a collaboration with the Pedro Pires Institute for Cape Verdean Studies, ELL-CV, BSU, and the Falmouth public school system. Read more about this enduring partnership.
English Language Training
In collaboration with the Dana Mohler-Faria English Language Institute at the University of Cabo Verde, students from diverse backgrounds can improve their communication skills in English. Participants have the advantage of experiencing the English language in common settings. Training includes lectures and conversation sequences with different students talking about diverse topics of interest to the group. This hands-on training helps participants to develop more fluency in the language.