By April Sorrow

To learn firsthand about Hispanic culture, Kate Whiting traveled to rural Mexico. Her experience there, she said, made her better able to serve the growing Hispanic population in Georgia.

Whiting is a University of Georgia Cooperative Extension agent in Peach County. She and 16 other UGA Extension agents and specialists took a two-week study trip to Veracruz, Mexico in May of 2008. The group included agents from Bartow, Clarke, Clayton, DeKalb, Elbert, Houston, Liberty, Laurens, McDuffie, Peach, Pierce and Thomas counties.

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	• Cross-Cultural Studies: Mexico 2008

"The opportunity to interact with families and see them in their day-to-day lives helped me understand the cultural aspects of their lives and some ways we are different," Whiting said. "(The trip) gave me a better overall understanding of the culture and having this knowledge makes it easier to communicate with my Hispanic population."

An estimated 7 percent of Georgia's population is Hispanic, but that percentage can be two or three times larger in some individual counties. The cross-cultural studies program gives UGA Extension workers new skills to serve this growing segment of Georgia's population, said Jorge Atiles, associate dean for outreach and extension for the UGA College of Family and Consumer Sciences.

"The state demographics demand that (extension agents) need some cross-cultural training," he said. "Whatever their area of expertise, sooner or later they will work with Latin Americans."

Living with host families, the group immersed themselves in Mexican culture, took language classes and visited local schools, social service centers, farms and rural outreach centers connected with the Universidad Veracruzana. "They are exposed to the culture beginning with breakfast in the morning. They are immersed in the family. They learn what life is really like in a Mexican home," said Glenn Ames, director of the UGA Office of International Public Service and Outreach.

"Their hospitality and attention to leisure time really impressed me," said Edda Cotto-Rivera, a UGA Extension radon and diabetes educator in DeKalb County. "They take time to be with their family, walk their kids to school and have family meals."

Cotto-Rivera especially took note of the differences in Mexican meals. This information, she said, helps her plan and deliver effective nutrition programs in DeKalb. "Their nutrition is different," said Cotto-Rivera, who grew up in Puerto Rico and speaks Spanish. "The spices they use, even when they eat their meals is different."

Mexican family members come home for lunch for a three- to four-hour siesta before returning to work. In the U.S., Mexican families may not be able to do this. "They may not have that family meal at lunch anymore, and they lose that family connection," Cotto-Rivera said. "It is hard for them to make that transition. When we teach programs, I stress that they used to have that time together and that it is something of value they need to go back to."

Cotto-Rivera delivered a parenting class for Latin Americans with Children's Healthcare of Atlanta and based her advice on what she observed in Mexico.

Agents across the state used the experience to tailor programs to the Latino community. Following the trip, one agent began writing 4-H letters aimed at Spanish-speaking children and families. Others are looking at nutrition training, remembering what foods are preferred by the Hispanic ethnic group. Cotto-Rivera also used her newfound insight when she served on the cultural and language barriers committee of the Hispanic Health Coalition of Georgia.

"I was really touched to see parents walking their children to school in Vera Cruz," Cotto-Rivera said. "When families come to Georgia, they can be very busy and I encourage them to be more present in their children's lives. I tell them, 'I know that you are familiar with spending this time and it is important to your family.'"

The UGA group also visited Palmas de Abajo, a community where 25 percent of the residents have immigrated to the U.S., mainly to Georgia. "More than 100 people were waiting to meet us. They came to listen and talk to us," she said. "Some of them had family members living here in Georgia and they were able to connect to us. To talk to them at that level, to share that connection, meant a lot."

A similar UGA delegation visited Honduras in 2007 and another will go to Guatemala this year. The program is partly funded by the U.S. Department of Agriculture Cooperative State Research, Education and Extension Service.