
Overseas Faculty Development Seminar Sites
India
Senegal
Senegal
West Africa and The Americas: Continuities and Transformations
Overseas Faculty Development Seminar 2026
This section of the site is the home for information about your upcoming Overseas Faculty Development Seminar with the West African Research Center and the Council of American Overseas Research Centers.
Here you will find travel details, readings about intercultural studies, and information about your seminar destination.
Seminar Information
Intercultural Studies
Participants
Important Dates
Zoom Pre-Departure Orientation #1: October 18, 2024, 11:00am Eastern
click here for recording and notes of this meeting
Zoom Happy Hour: December 11, 2024, 8:00pm Eastern
Zoom Pre-Departure Orientation #2: December 20, 2024, 11:00am Eastern
Seminar Dates: January 3rd - 23rd, 2026
Seminar Information
This seminar, administered by CAORC in collaboration with the West African Research Association and its member center in Senegal, the West Africa Research Center, funds participation in a two-week workshop in Dakar that will also include visits to Gorée Island, Toubacouta, and Saint-Louis, among other locations. This seminar will feature lectures, site visits, panel discussions, and film screenings on the history, culture, arts, economy, and political life of Senegal. Round-trip travel, accommodations, in-country transportation, and selected meals will be provided for the seminar.
About Senegal

Located at the westernmost point of the continent and served by multiple air and maritime travel routes, Senegal is known as the “Gateway to Africa.” The country lies at an ecological boundary where semiarid grassland, oceanfront, and tropical rainforest converge; this diverse environment has endowed Senegal with a wide variety of plant and animal life. It is from this rich natural heritage that the country’s national symbols were chosen: the baobab tree and the lion.
The region today known as Senegal was long a part of the ancient Ghana and Djolof kingdoms and an important node on trans-Saharan caravan routes. It was also an early point of European contact and was contested by England, France, Portugal, and the Netherlands before ultimately
coming under French control in the late 19th century. It remained a colony of France until 1960, when, under the leadership of the writer and statesman Léopold Senghor, it gained its independence—first as part of the short-lived Mali Federation and then as a wholly sovereign state. (Encyclopedia Britannica)
SENEGAL: Africa's Most Hospitable Country in West Africa
Falling in Love in Dakar, Senegal
10 Things You Didn't Know About Senegal
Travel & Logistics
This section will be regularly updated with details about flights and other logistics for your program.
Insert documents or information here?
Vaccination Requirements
There are no vaccines required to enter Senegal, however the CDC and/or your doctor may recommend that you be vaccinated and/or take certain medications while traveling, most often for yellow fever and malaria. As noted in the OFDS handbook, the responsibility and decision for these vaccinations is up to you. We recommend that you contact your doctor and/or an infectious disease clinic in your area as soon as possible to determine your course of action regarding vaccines. Some vaccines may be in short supply in your area, and some take time to reach full effectiveness. CAORC and WARC are not able to pay or reimburse expenses related to vaccines.
Flights
Individual domestic flights will be arranged for participants to travel from their home airport to JFK on or before January 4, 2025, and return home from New York on January 22, 2025.
Outbound:
Delta 216 - January 4th, departs JFK 7:30pm >>> Dakar, arrives 8:15am on January 5th
Return:
Delta 217 - January 22, departs Dakar 11:30am >>> JFK, arrives 3:50pm (same day)
Travel Agent
David Cassel / Principal
David@novustravelltd.com
Direct Phone: 817.275.3330
Cell: 817.733.1611 (emergency only)
Novus Travel Ltd
433 Washington Dr. Arlington, TX 76011
An Affiliate of Travel Experts/Virtuoso Member
www.novustravelltd.com
Travel Insurance
CAORC will purchase travel insurance on behalf of each participant. Details about the insurance policy will be available to each participant before the seminar begins. Any medical costs incurred during the program are to be paid up-front by the participant who can recoup costs by filing a claim directly with the travel insurance company. Details about your policy will be sent via email.
WhatsApp Group
Join the WhatsApp group for the seminar here.
This will be our primary way of communicating during the OFDS program. Many of the OFDS WhatsApp chats continue to remain active for long after the program as the participants use the group to keep in touch and share professional and personal news.
Hotel
Participants will stay in single rooms in hotels or other similar accommodations. Guests are not permitted to join the group or share hotel rooms. Links to the specific hotels are posted below:
Dakar: Hotel Al Afifa https://hotelalafifa.com/
Toubacouta: Keur Saloum https://keursaloum.com/en
Saint-louis:: TBD
Program Itinerary
A detailed program itinerary will be posted here after the first pre-departure orientation meeting.
Travel Tips
Here are a few travel tips from Program Director Jeff Badger, along with a sample packing list.