Spring Semester in Thailand » share the experience!

meet the Ajarns (professors)

Michael and Ann Leming
Dr. Michael Leming is Professor Emeritus of Sociology, Anthropology and Asian Studies at St. Olaf College where he has taught for more than 35 years. He is the author of more than 25 books in sociology and anthropology. Ann A. Leming is a Retired Professor in the Education Departments of St. Olaf College and Carleton College for more than 30 years related to the education of exceptional students. Since 2001 the Lemings have directed the Spring Semester in Thailand program, which is affiliated with Chiang Mai University, and have brought more than 300 American students to Thailand since 1990. Michael Leming is responsible for the sociology and anthropology classes in the program and Ann Leming directs the internship program.

Pirapon Israbhakdi
Pirapon Israbhakdi is the In-country General Coordinator of the Spring Semester in Thailand and teaches history in the Faculty of Humanities of Chiang Mai University. He has worked with the Lemings in directing Thai studies programs in Chiang Mai for more than 20 years. He is the logistical coordinator in Thailand for all aspects of the program and as a licensed Thai tour guide, he has special responsibilities for field trips and weekend excursions.

Pitsamai Arwakulpanich
Pitsami Arwakulpanich is the deputy dean and professor in the Faculty of Fine Arts of Chiang Mai University. She directs and teaches in the SST course Principles of Lanna and Thai Fine Arts. She has taught at Chiang Mai University, Chulalongkorn University (Bangkok, Thailand), and Milliken University (Grand Rapids, MI). She received her bachelors’ degree from Chulalongkorn University (Bangkok, Thailand) and Master of Science degree in woven textile design at Philadelphia University.

Anek Kimsuvan
The courses in Thai language (oral and written) are directed and taught by Anek Kimsuvan. He received his bachelor’s degree from Chiang Mai University and his M.A. and Ph. D. in Linguistics from Heidelberg University in Germany. Dr. Kimsuvan is one of only a small number of Full Professors in the Faculty of Humanities at Chiang Mai University where for more than 30 years he has taught both linguistics and German language.

Mar 05 2012

Wake Up & Dream!

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This blog post is brought to you by Dr. Michael Leming, known to all of us as “Ajaan Mike.” This past weekend he was better known as Santa Claus!

Dear Friends:

Last night we did our final performance of “Wake Up and Dream” We had three shows this weekend, in which 5 of our students (DJ, Joanna, Caleb, Justin, and Abby) were part of a 60 person cast of people with and without disabilities. It was pure magic, joy, and love. Our support in the Chiang Mai community is growing stronger as we had about 70-90% percent of a full house during each show.

Here’s a video of scenes from the weeks of practice; it gives you an idea of the love and joy contained within this whole project and production.

Are miracles happening today in our world? I don’t know about today, but during the past four weeks we had one boy with severe autism (who would not speak before he came) who began to sing and thanked the audience for attending after the show. There was another boy with Cerebral Palsy who has been confined to a wheel chair his entire life, began to walk with a walker his father constructed for him out of plumbing pipe. We had many parents of the disabled not only provide support for their children but became a part of the show. One female parent even sang two songs in the show. Finally, four parents are now stepping up to lead the program in our absence.

But more than this, there was love all around among members of our cast. In the break between the shows on Saturday, the actors and parents spontaneously sang and danced together for an hour. Jeanne Calvit our director from Interact Center (Minneapolis) is a magician and miracle worker and we were all the recipients of her magic and vision. It is so fun to be a part of this magic and love that was the real mission and goal of this show. It gave us the ability to wake up from our normal ways of living and thinking about the disabled and the chance to think about how we can change the world.