An almost-empty glass jar stands on Dennis Hanno’s desk, and in it floats the dead maggot of an African Tumbu Fly. The students and professors who wander into his office look at it with amazement, as he holds the glass jar up.

Leave it to Hanno to tell you how the worm twisted into his arm after he was bitten by a spider in Ghana, West Africa, this past January. For the goat-teed Isenberg School of Management Dean, whose arm has since healed, the experience was just a part of the job.

Under Hanno’s direction, a team of 12 undergraduate students and two alumni completed what might be the most unusual three credits offered thus far at the Isenberg School of Management at the University of Massachusetts at Amherst. In a class titled ‘Business Development and Global Citizenship,’ the 15 visitors spent the last 10 days of their winter break creating, maintaining and guiding a local computer center in Sekondi, Ghana.

The center provides residents of Sekondi with public education and access to computers. The idea for the project was initiated by professionals in the Nursing School at the University of Massachusetts. The Nursing School operates an ongoing program in the same locale, in which student nurses get a hands-on experience in their healthcare studies.

‘Students from the nursing [program] had gone there for 5 to 6 years, to operate a health clinic for people in the community,’ said Hanno. ‘Leda McKenry, a nursing professor, asked the leaders of the community what other [type of help] would be useful.’

Hanno visited Sekondi last August, meeting with local business leaders. He recognized the need for training and access to computer technology, namely in the area of personal computing. Upon returning to the United States last fall, he designed a special course that would take undergraduate students abroad during Winter Break. The students would create the center, applying what they learn at business and computer classes.

While over 40 students were interested in the program, only 12 were chosen to participate, due to the unusual nature of the trip, said Hanno. The 12 Students who participated were either business or economics majors, and most of them were upperclassmen. They underwent cultural training and received vaccinations as preparation for their departure.

The students spent the first three days of their visit setting up six computers in what was officially announced as the ‘Center for Business Development and Training.’ The small room, whose walls were painted green, was open for business on the fourth day. The 12 University of Massachusetts at Amherst students ‘were inundated,’ according to Hanno. About 40 people showed up during the first afternoon, and ‘most of [them] …haven’t even looked at a computer,’ said Hanno.

The students trained locals to use Microsoft Word and Microsoft Excel. In addition to the work they did, students also traveled to different tourist sites in the country. The most profound cultural challenge that impressed Hanno was the amount of attention the group received.

‘We were like the Backstreet Boys. We had to sprint to our van,’ recounted Hanno of one of the trips the group took. The group visit was also announced at the local newspaper and radio. ‘It was a strange sensation for the students to always be the center of attention. We were primarily white and not from the area.’

About 50 to 100 people showed up to say goodbye to the class, said Hanno. The students, however, did not finish their work after coming back to the US. In fact, participants are currently putting together training materials to send back to Ghana.

The expenses of the trip were subsidized by various organizations, including the University of Massachusetts Alumni Association, the African Student Association, and Arthur Andersen, a consulting firm that also donated computers and paid for shipping costs. The Isenberg School of Management also contributed three computers for the center.