A day that forever changed my life. That was the day that I stepped off of a plane and onto the ground of Cape Town, South Africa — a place that would become my home for the next six months. It was a day in which my world was completely turned upside down. It was a day that I will never forget.

I had the honor of participating in Marquette's South African Service Learning Study Abroad program last fall. It is by no exaggeration that I say that my semester in Cape Town is the single most defining moment in my life thus far. My experiences there, specifically taking classes at the University of Western Cape (a traditionally all black and colored university) as well as working with a South African non-governmental organization (the Amy Biehl Foundation) changed the way that I look at the world and ultimately shifted my life goals. There is not a day that goes by that I don't think about Cape Town, about the people that I worked with, about the things that I saw, about the work that I did.

Last week a decision was made to suspend the South Africa Service Learning Program after this spring, as the university has been unable to secure funding. I can hardly describe my reaction when I heard the news — I was devastated. I cannot even dream of what my life would be like without these experiences. I think that studying abroad and seeing the world is such an important opportunity. I have always felt that the South Africa program went one step further, though, with its service learning component.

My experiences with the Amy Biehl Foundation Trust (my service learning site) were by far the highlights of the program. I assisted in teaching an African dance class for children whose ages ranged from 7 to 12 years old, as well as taught 10 grade-seven students how to read in English. These are not things that students can experience without the structure of such a program. These children and the lessons that they taught me have found a very special place in my heart. The thought that future Marquette students would not have this opportunity to form these relationships and have similar experiences deeply pains me.

I have always been very proud of being a Marquette student. However, when a university whose mission is defined by its dedication to "faith and service in action" and who wishes to create "men and women for others" as well as instill in its students the philosophy of "cura personalis — care for the whole person" cuts a program that fulfills all three of these aims, I am left quite confused. It is my hope that the university will revisit this decision, and ultimately choose to keep this life-changing opportunity alive for the rest of the Marquette community.

Cotton is a senior in the College of Arts & Sciences.