Video helps Spanish Speakers Apply for Passports
Merydawilda Colón, Alejandra Londoño and her father Rodrigo Londoño, and ĢƵ alumna Lidia Martinez and her son Amado Placencia, Jr. admire the new passports in a scene from the video. Below: The cast and crew, and a scene shot at the post office.
Galloway, N.J. – A video developed by ĢƵ students, faculty, and staff is helping Spanish speakers apply for U.S. passports.
The project, developed through ĢƵ’s Diplomacy Lab, was led by Jessie K. Finch, assistant professor of sociology, and Merydawilda Colón, executive director of ĢƵ’s Center for Community Engagement.
Working with Andrés Rodriguez and Rebekah McNeely of Passport Services, the team developed
a script and storyboard in Spanish that was then brought to life by members of ĢƵ
Production Services, specifically Jeffrey Topping, Amanda Martinez, Shannon Aungst,
Mark Jackson, and Scott Huston.
The video stars Colón, ĢƵ undergraduate student Alejandra Londoño and her father Rodrigo Londoño, ĢƵ alumna Lidia Martinez and her son Amado Placencia, Jr. U.S. Postal Service clerk Gloria Guzman makes a special guest appearance.
The seven-minute film walks viewers through a 10-step process to obtain a passport for the first time.
“The goal of this project is really to demystify a complicated process for a population that may not have access to a wide-range of resources,” Finch said.
Finch said Londoño, whose parents are from Colombia, was instrumental in setting up free naturalization classes offered by the ĢƵ Center for Community Engagement. Classes are held each from 6-7:30pm on Tuesdays from September through May at the Carnegie Center in Atlantic City.
“Often the first thing the new American citizens want are to register to vote and
to get a U.S. passport,” Finch said. “This video project was a natural extension of
the naturalization classes.”
Having taught community naturalization classes for three years in Atlantic City for permanent residents who are becoming citizens, Finch and Londoño had ample practice at helping break down complex government procedures.
The video can be viewed on the and on ĢƵ’s Diplomacy Lab Projects website. It can also be viewed on .
Launched in 2013, Diplomacy Lab is a partnership between the U.S. Department of State and U.S. colleges and universities. Partner schools conduct research around various topics presented to them by the State Department in areas including climate change, democracy and human rights, counterterrorism, global health, and energy security.
Over the course of a semester, professors guide students in developing a final work product that accomplishes the goals outlined by the Department. Students have opportunities throughout the semester to discuss their research with State Department officials.
ĢƵ Associate Professor of Political Science Tina Zappile is ĢƵ’s Diplomacy Lab Project coordinator.
More information and other ĢƵ projects can be found at stockton.edu/diplomacylab/
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Contact:
Diane D’Amico
Director of News and Media Relations
Galloway, N.J. 08205
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