Pacifique Niyonzima doesn’t focus solely on the tragic events of 1994 in Rwanda when 1 million people were killed in 100 days.

But he is proud of what’s happened since, how families and communities came together to rebuild Rwanda into one of the safest countries in Africa. 

That pride led Niyonzima, who grew up in Kigali before moving to the U.S. for high school in 2011, to launch a study-abroad program to give Kent State students a powerful lesson in reconciliation.

Kent State’s Rwanda After Genocide study abroad program takes students to Kigali to study the 1994 genocide against the Tutsi and the country’s ongoing efforts to rebuild through peace and unity. The next group goes this summer, with an April 15 deadline to apply. 

The three-week program immerses 10-15 students into the reality of the genocide, which the United Nations called a premeditated catastrophe. Participants gain a deep understanding of both the genocide, and the country’s ongoing journey to peace through visits to memorials, conversations with local organizations and collaboration with students from the University of Rwanda.  

Niyonzima first witnessed the benefit of global learning experiences on a study abroad trip to Italy while completing his master’s degree in Higher Education Administration at Kent State. That inspired him to create a similar opportunity in Rwanda. 

While Niyonzima was proud of Kent State’s global presence in countries like Italy, Paris and the United Kingdom, he wanted to see this kind of representation in other parts of the world.  

“I believe there is so much that the world can learn from Rwanda, and I am so happy I can contribute to that,” Niyonzima said. 

In 2017, Niyonzima launched the first Rwanda After Genocide program, where he established partnerships with the University of Rwanda, government institutions like the Ministry of Unity and Reconciliation and the Rwanda National Police. These partnerships allow students to interact with locals who have been impacted by the genocide and understand how Rwanda continues to rebuild. 

“When you see what happened and see where Rwanda is today, you can see that what we think is impossible is possible, like forgiveness,” Niyonzima said. “I see the importance of forgiveness because there is no way the country could move on and become what it is today without it.” 

Now, he’s pursuing a doctorate in Inter-professional Leadership and Cultural Foundations of Education, with a focus on expanding academic opportunities between the West and Rwanda here at Kent State.

Sarah Schmidt, an assistant professor in the Department of Political Science, who has led the trip since the beginning, said the program is intentionally designed to combine classroom learning with real-world experiences.  

As part of the itinerary, students visit the Kigali Genocide Memorial, where they walk through the mass graves and memorial gardens honoring victims. Students witness the tangible scale of the tragedy while paying their respects to the lives lost.  

Students also participate in a memorial walk led by a survivor, who takes them through the village and shares their first-hand account of the genocide. In addition, they engage in storytelling sessions with perpetrators, where they learn how propaganda and brainwashing contributed to the genocide. 

The emotional intensity of these experiences allows students to deeply reflect on the events of the genocide while seeing Rwanda’s resilience and efforts toward peace.  

Students leave the program with a deeper perspective on the world, having seen how Rwanda rebuilt itself into the thriving, developing country it is today. 

“Students’ stories keep me eager to keep this program going,” Schmidt said. “The genocide changes mindsets. The resilience, and current state of Rwanda, is truly unmatched.” 

Niyonzima emphasized the deeper message he hopes students take away from this program. 

“The most important thing is forgiveness,” Niyonzima said. “It may be hard to forgive but when you see what Rwanda has been through, how they implement this reconciliation and forgiveness and how this helped the country to move forward, I think that is very important for our students to learn.”  

For more information or to apply, students can visit the Global Education website at https://www.kent.edu/globaleducation/education-abroad/rwanda-after-genocide 

Lexie Sweeney is a reporter. Contact her at [email protected].