Utah’s gymnastics team is back in the gym after starting off the summer a bit differently. The Red Rocks traveled as a team to Ghana for a cultural exchange.
The trip came together thanks to several groups, including the Who Rocks the House Collective, Redmond Farms and the University of Utah’s Center for Business, Health and Prosperity, along with its partner Ensign Global University in Ghana.
“They’re so busy year-round, competing, being student-athletes that we wanted to give them time to be young adults away from the U., away from the pressures…and to enjoy Ghana, to experience Ghana, to have cross-cultural learning,” said Jon Murphy, director of student experiences and student programs for the U.’s enter who also works in Ghana with the partners.
Murphy and the partners were able to develop an exchange that provided a variety of experiences for the team, ranging from public health seminars, visits to ecotourism sites, service projects with local students, dance and art exchanges and travel to rural communities.
“It’s about creating these experiences to learn from the world outside of being a University of Utah student-athlete, and to have partners that can see the value in that is, I mean, it’s unmeasurable. It’s incredible” said Utah head coach Carly Dockendorf.