Digital humanities projects foster student leadership
Seeing historic locations with one’s own eyes, hearing sounds of a bustling city, feeling cobblestone walkways underfoot, and smelling and tasting delicacies from a foreign culture are experiences that last a lifetime. Digital humanities is a revolutionary step in the way students experience classes, encompassing all the senses and allowing students to collaborate and work together to create a project that goes beyond print media.
The Xul Solar museum, opened in 1993, features the work of Buenos Aires-born artist Oscar Agustín Alejandro Schulz Solari (1887-1963). (Contributed photos)
Mikaela Trank, a 2025 East Carolina University alumnus now seeking her master’s degree in Hispanic studies, played a significant role in the creation of a digital humanities geo-map of Buenos Aires, Argentina, after a study abroad trip in 2024. She acquired leadership, technology and accessibility skills through the project. Now, she is using the digital map to impart knowledge to the next generation, sharing its content with approximately 200 fifth- through eighth-grade students to whom she teaches Spanish at Saint Peter Catholic School in Greenville.
“Being able to share another location with my students is a wonderful thing. To take a map of this beautiful place that I was able to visit and bring it back to share with my students so they can see these sites from a different perspective — and not just a Google search — was super important,” said Trank.
Digital Humanities Buenos Aires Project
Explore the artifacts and vibrant culture of Buenos Aires through the eyes of ECU students.
ECU student Sarah Chambers stands under an art exhibit of umbrellas called the Solar de French in the oldest neighborhood of San Telmo in Buenos Aires. (Contributed photos)
The “Digital Humanities Buenos Aires Project” is the subject of a May 2025 Innovation in Language Learning and Teaching journal article, “Fostering learner engagement in study abroad context through digital mapping,” authored by Dr. Laura Levi Altstaedter, associate professor in the Thomas Harriot College of Arts and Sciences Department of Foreign Languages and Literatures, and educational technology support technician Lily Johnson.
The idea sprang from a colleague’s previous class project on Barcelona, which led Levi Altstaedter to incorporate similar mapping projects into her 2019, 2022 and 2023 study abroad courses. These projects included one to two students and were largely managed by Levi Altstaedter.
Cafe Tortoni is a cafe near the heart of the city of Buenos Aires, where writers and actors have visited. (Contributed photos)
As time progressed, her goal was to increase the number of student participants and give them more ownership and responsibility over the projects. Therefore, in June 2024, along with Johnson, Dr. Magalí Krosl, senior teaching instructor of Spanish, and Dr. Mauro Falasca, associate professor in the College of Business, the team expanded and took 13 ECU students on a monthlong study abroad trip to Buenos Aires.
Working with a host university, Universidad del Salvador, Levi Altstaedter and Krosl taught two summer courses to the ECU students, allowing them to work simultaneously on the digital map and earn course credit toward their degrees.
With his breadth of knowledge on the city of Buenos Aires, Falasca coordinated logistics. He accompanied students to various locations, providing details of significance to help students develop a deeper understanding of the spaces around the city and what they may want to consider including in the final digital map.
“He helped them capture the essence of the place through the eyes of the students,” said Krosl.
“We wanted all the students to have a key role in sharing responsibility,” said Levi Altstaedter, who was able to support the leadership roles of the students through a Truist, formerly BB&T, Active Learning and Leadership Development grant. “Professor Krosl and I allowed time in class for students to work in their assigned roles, and the students took leadership in getting things done.”
Krosl said, “The whole group self-managed nicely. We were like the coaches, the mediators, the people behind the scenes. It was very well designed, and the kids thrived in their roles.”
Student roles included an artifact compilation manager, artifact curators, written caption coaches, audio caption coaches, a production manager and a mapping expert.
“My favorite location was probably Teatro Colón — a really big theater that took more than 20 years to build. It has this grand reputation,” said Trank, who served as the mapping expert, programming all the data into the ArcGIS software used to develop the digital map. “It is absolutely gorgeous, and while we were there, they were beginning to put on ‘Sleeping Beauty.’ So we got to see some of the set. It was stunning.”
Buen Día is an art studio owned by Guille Pachelo. Pachelo is a contemporary artist from Argentina known for paste-up, pop art and murals using bright colors to catch people’s attention. (Contributed photos)
Other locations students visited and documented for the project included numerous museums, a political building, a café, an opera house, a cemetery and an artist’s gallery, among others.
An important part of the project was to make sure the digital map, containing 14 locations, was accessible to all individuals and as inclusive as possible. When Levi Altstaedter, Krosl and Falasca approached Johnson with the idea of supporting the technological side of the project, she was very interested in its accessibility.
“Being able to access resources was one of the things about the project that was really interesting to me,” Johnson said. “We can’t expect them [students] to be experts going into it, but it is really important. It’s an opportunity for students to learn how knowledge can be shared.”
Johnson assisted Trank from campus, answering technology and accessibility questions.
“I communicated a lot with Lily because I had never worked with ArcGIS before, but she helped me from countries away to understand the software,” Trank said. “Everyone has the right to learn, no matter what. If you have a disability, it should never prohibit you from learning or growing as a person or learning about a culture that you have an interest in.”
With funding from an ECU Undergraduate Creative Research Achievement Award (UCRC), Trank was able to take on fewer paid jobs outside of the university and complete the digital map during her fall 2024 semester. She entered all the locations, photos, voiceover recording, and Spanish and English-language text for the digital map.
“Building a community of learners and people who care about access to information in the digital world is incredibly important,” said Johnson. “Now, Mikaela gets to present and share geo-mapping with her students. It is education for the future generation.”
In February, two students, Emily Saddison and Kaylie Williams, used their study abroad experience in Buenos Aires to document “The relation between the environment and humanity,” visiting two gardens, an ecological reserve and a zoo. In their digital map, they included a bit of history about the city from 2014-25, and aerial land maps depicting changes over the same time frame.
Levi Altstaedter said the mapping projects have become a staple of her study abroad programs. She hopes to continue them if resources allow, even though they may continue to evolve.
“This was a wonderful program,” Trank said. “I’m so glad to have been a part of it. I would love to see more people do geo-maps in the future.”
The Ateneo Grand Splendid bookstore is an old building that was once a theatre. While the stage and decor remain, the building now houses a large bookstore. (Contributed photo)