Tuesday, January 31, 2012

Marist College Semester Program Open to Others


Academic Programs International (API) is pleased to introduce Marist College’s innovative new semester-long study abroad program in collaboration with the University of Havana in Cuba, beginning in September 2012. This new program has been designed with faculty at the University of Havana to provide a focus on Caribbean Studies through coursework in the Facultades de Artes y Letras (Arts and Humanities) and Filosofía e Historia (Social Sciences) as well as the Colegio Universitario San Jerónimo located in historic old Havana. API is pleased to promote this program for Marist College, which is open to both Marist and non-Marist students. Marist is  currently accepting applications for the fall 2012 semester.

The program will include two courses specifically designed for students on the program, covering the culture, politics, and economics of the Caribbean, as well as a pre-semester intensive advanced Spanish language course. Students will also enroll in regular University of Havana courses from the areas of Latin American, Caribbean and Cuban art; music; Cuban and Caribbean culture literature and history; philosophy; and the cultural and political processes of Cuban society. Coursework will be complemented by educational excursions (included in the program fee) and tentatively include trips to Las Terrazas (eco-village and UNESCO Reserve), Cayo Jutía (tropical island off the northwest coast of Cuba); Soroa (Castle of Clouds); Trinidad (UNESCO World Heritage Site), Santa Clara (Capital of Villa Clara), Cienfuegos (UNESCO World Heritage Site); Oriente (Capital of the Eastern Province), and Baracoa (Cuba's oldest city). Students must have strong Spanish language skills and be ready to take coursework in the Spanish language.

Housing in a small hotel setting, with other program students, is guaranteed on the program. Breakfast is also provided as part of the program fee. A Resident Director will be on site in Havana throughout the program to assist students in registering for courses and cultural adjustment. Priority deadline for fall 2012 is February 22 (applications accepted thereafter on a space-available basis). Applicants are encouraged to apply early.

More information on academics, logistics, applying for the program, a selection of photographs, etc. is available on our website http://www.apistudyabroad.com/programs/cuba.

Best regards,
Jeramy Johnson

(Mr.) Jeramy Johnson - Vice President of Development 
Academic Programs International (API)
Learning Transformed. Life Transforming.

301 Camp Craft Road, Suite 100
Austin, TX 78746-6501 USA
+1.800.844.4124 (Toll Free) 
+1.512.600.8900 (Phone) 
+1.512.600/8999 (Fax)

Monday, January 30, 2012

First Flight from Houston


Houston airport's first charter to Cuba takes off Thursday

Published 07:10 p.m., Monday, January 30, 2012
The first Cuba-bound charter flight from Bush Intercontinental Airport departs Thursday with a Houston-based group taking advantage of relaxed travel rules that went into effect last year.
The flight, aboard a Miami-based 737, will include 80 passengers with visas specified for "people-to-people" exchanges, the Houston Airport System said. The group will fly into Havana and return to Houston on Sunday.
The Airport System issued a statement calling the trip "a wonderful, historic opportunity" that could help Bush Intercontinental with its goal of becoming a major "gateway" to Cuba.
"While we do not have word today on any other charters over the near term, this is the first of what we expect will be many flights between Houston and Cuba as IAH becomes the gateway of choice for travelers authorized to fly to Cuba by the U.S. government," the statement said.
No information was released on the travelers, who asked not to be publicly identified, or what they plan to do in Cuba.
The Obama administration a year ago announced it would ease travel prohibitions from the half-century-old embargo to increase family-related travel and trips by authorized groups in a small number of specific areas, including agriculture, medicine, education and religious activity.
Other restrictions remain in effect. For example, it is still illegal for Americans to vacation on the Caribbean island.
Last March, Bush Intercontinental was added to the list of U.S. airports that could handle flights to Cuba.
Laura Murillo, president of the Houston Hispanic Chamber of Commerce, said she was not aware of the plans for the Thursday flight, but she said the chamber welcomes "anything that can help our business community move around and get around to the places they want to visit."
Marazul Charters, a major player in arranging legal U.S.-to-Cuba flights, set up the Thursday flight.
The airplane belongs to Miami Air International, a carrier licensed to fly to Cuba. CEO Ross Fischer said he could not comment on his clients for Thursday's trip, but said the company is interested in increasing flights to the island from Houston.
Fischer praised the airport facilities and also noted that Cuba flights originating at Bush Intercontinental are more profitable because the longer flight time allows his company to charge more. He declined to say how much a seat costs.
****************************************
my comment
Like the new but suspended charter flights from Atlanta, JFK and Chicago and other cities without a large Cuban American population, the Houston flight will find it challenging to establish itself unless the White House further liberalizes travel for the rest of us. 
The President could use his authority to give people to people travel a general license which would permit families and backpackers who attest to their non-tourist agendas a more economical way to travel. Their ability to rent cars, use public buses and trains, and stay in casas particulares (bed and breakfasts) will foster greater direct engagement with Cubans than afforded by the group tours which are currently required by the Office of Foreign Assets Control (OFAC), plus provide more direct support to the emerging private sector.

An even easier intermediate step is for the President to grant general licenses to all IRS registered non-profits and third party providers of educational exchange as he did to universities and religious organizations. That would remove them from the time consuming and arbitrary bureaucratic log jam of OFAC.

Finally the President should allow all travel agents and tour operators to book authorized travel instead of only 250 licensed Travel Service Providers that are mostly Cuban American and mostly located in Florida.

The Cuban American caucus in Congress will oppose this as it does even the President's opening for Cuban Americans. They are terrified that too many people will draw their own conclusions about the complicated and evolving reality in Cuba. Their argument about economic impact of even 100,000 non-tourist travelers is nonsensical in the annual context of more than 2.5 million foreign visitors and 400,000 Cuban Americans.

In addition to increasing the impact of exchanges in both countries, a stronger initiative by the President will create hundreds and eventually thousands of jobs in the US travel industry and support services. He will also end the Jim Crow system which privileges the right of non-tourist travel by Cuban Americans over that of everyone else.

John McAuliff
Fund for Reconciliation and Development

Thursday, January 26, 2012

Marquette University Student Program on Theater


Marquette University Summer Faculty-Led Program Announcement

Drama and Performance in Cuba Today

June 27-July 17, 2012

Join Marquette University's Dr. Raquel Aguilu de Murphy, Associate Professor of Spanish, on a program to Cuba this summer.  Through site visits, excursions and lectures by notable figures in the performing arts scene, this three-week program will provide students an intensive, first-hand experience with the Cuban culture, economics, healthcare, and religion, as well as offer an immersion experience in the Spanish language.  The itinerary includes a number of excursions, including viewing live performances of the plays studied and conversations with notable playwrights and actors regarding current issues in Cuban society.
 
This program offers students a unique opportunity to get to know first-hand a country of many stereotypes through the dynamic lens of theater, as well as engage the Spanish language.  Students with at least the equivalent of five semesters of college Spanish are eligible.

To learn more about the program visit our program page at:
http://www.marquette.edu/abroad/cuba-summer.shtml

or the study abroad website at:
http://www.marquette.edu/abroad  

The application deadline is March 1st and students can apply online.

Warm regards,

Mindy Schroeder

Study Abroad Coordinator
Office of International Education
Marquette University 
Tel: +1.414.288.7289
Fax: +1.414.288.3701
mindy.schroeder@marquette.edu
www.marquette.edu/studyabroad
[For students from other schools to participate they must be able to receive credit in their own institution.]

Wednesday, January 25, 2012

Report from a Road Scholar Trip

Iowans on the Go: Cuba is land of contrasts

10:50 PM, Jan. 14, 2012 

Written by
CAROL BRANNON
Special to The Register

Our dream to travel in Cuba came true in November. An adult Road Scholar People to People Program, “Cuba Today: People and Society,” made it possible.

We spent four days in Havana after an hour’s chartered flight from the Miami Airport. We stayed at the historical Hotel Nacional. We spent another four days in Cienfuegos on the southern coast. The weather was always sunny and about 85 degrees.

Our trip consisted of coach excursions, speakers and cultural performances, assisted by the Cuban government Tourism Bureau.

We have fond memories of Cubans. They were friendly and as curious about us as we were about them. Because English is taught as a second language there, we were able to speak with Cubans.

Our first evening in Havana, the head of Architecture spoke about the restoration work being done in Havana. Many public restoration projects were seen throughout the city. We toured a private restoration project — the Patranato Synagogue and Jewish Pharmacy.

Havana transportation provides a multitude of choices from horse-drawn carts, pedi-cabs, two-seater gas cabs, new Chinese coaches to foreign automobiles. American autos up to 1960 are still seen and kept running on Cuban ingenuity.

At the Museo Municipal de Guanabacoa, we met followers of the Santeria religion and witnessed a colorful performance of energetic dancing and music. Santeria is saint worship by Afro-Cubans. We then visited the Church of Regla, site of the Black Madonna.

Yearly pilgrimages are made to the San Lazaro Church, named for the patron saint of the poor. Barefoot pilgrims drag stones many miles. Flowers and religious items are sold outside.

Nearby is a leper hospital run by the nuns. We learned the history of the hospital and care of the ill. We were invited to tour the hospital and meet patients.

Later we visited Ernest Hemingway’s home. It looked like he just stepped out.

Our first day in Cienfuegos we visited the Benny More Art School. Students age 9 and older proudly performed ballet and guitar music.

On our walking tour of Trinidad, we discovered cobblestone streets lined with sugar baron-built homes. Artists create and sell their work there now. Our group of 22 was invited into a home of a 90-year-old woman who still cleans her own house.

Returning to Cienfuegos, we traveled through the picturesque Valley of the Sugar Mills. In 1988 it was named a UNESCO World Heritage Site. Once there were 43 sugar mills. We visited a site with a human powered cane press and shared some raw sugar cane juice. The press was made in 1864 in New York.

One evening we were serenaded by the Cienfuegos Cantores, an a cappella choir. Their repertoire included “Shenandoah.” Truly, music communicates the soul of people.

Cuba is a land of contrasts, much potential and natural beauty. We were pleased to be guests for a week.


Audubon Launches Birding Trips



Cuba with Audubon Nature Odysseys

March 27, 2012 - April 08, 2012


Download Flyer


Join Audubon leader John Hannan for a unique opportunity to interact with Cuban naturalists as you study the birds of Cuba. This 13-day excursion is made possible by the National Audubon Society’s one-year license for travel to Cuba, focusing on the unique avifauna of the island and creating people-to-people connections with Cuban conservationists and environmental communities. The program provides the chance to observe a wide variety of Cuba’s reported 370 species of birds, including highlights such as the Bee Hummingbird and the Zapata Wren.

About Your Leader
John Hannan is an avid naturalist and ornithologist who has spent his entire life traveling and experiencing nature’s beauty. John is currently the Senior Director of Strategic Gifts for the National Audubon’s Atlantic Flyway Initiative and, through his work, he daily sees the birds in their natural habitats throughout their migratory life cycle from the Arctic to the tip of South America. John has columns in two nationally syndicated publications and is a regular contributor to several other publications writing on bird watching, nature travel and conservation. He is an excellent nature photographer documenting nesting and migrating birds for his work and for recreation. He is a frequent presenter at conferences and forums on the topics of conservation, outdoor recreation, and nature.


http://holbrooktravel.com/dated-departure/AudubonCuba

Grand Valley State University Baseball Team Trip Succeeds

Grand Valley State baseball's trip to Cuba makes life-long memories

By Chris Cloonan

Detroit Free Press Special Writer

January 19, 2012  

After a week-long trip to Cuba, Grand Valley State's baseball team returned home this week with a feeling of accomplishment that transcended victory on the field.


Though the team lost its three exhibition games against Cuba’s college all-stars, the Lakers helped foster an opening in relations between two nations that over half a century have teetered on the brink of warfare.


Above all, GVSU’s players came back humbled and full of hope.


"We had this stereotype, you know, that it’s a communist country, that people have no rights," said Jared Cowan, a senior catcher and team captain. Cowan and 29 other players traveled to the island nation to take on Cuba’s national team, comprised of 18- to 22-year-old players from across the country.


"We had been expecting a lot (of hostilities)," he said, adding reflectively that all the negative assumptions "turned out to be totally untrue in our eyes."


After two and a half years of paperwork and speaking with officials from both countries — and four days of studying Cuba 101, in which they studied the nation's history and culture — the team arrived in Cuba on Jan. 3. After a day of practice, they squared off against the Cuban team Jan. 12 in Santiago "Changa" Meduras Stadium before a crowd of about 1,200.


There were many things to which the Lakers had to adjust. For one, they had to swing with wooden bats rather than their usual aluminum ones.


"During batting practice (on the first day), we were terrible," said Lakers head coach Steve Lyon. "But by the third game, the ball was jumping a little bit better."


Knowing that baseball is entrenched in the lives of the Cuban people -- more a national pastime there than in the U.S. -- Lyon did not seem terribly disturbed about the team’s losses. The Lakers lost the first game, 5-4, in the bottom of the 10th inning, and dropped the other two games by scores of 8-5 and 13-5.
Lyon said of the Cuban players, "I would probably say that six to eight guys were draftable. The rest of the team would be good, solid (Division I) players. So we were playing upper level."


The Lakers were not used to the in-stadium graciousness of the Cuban fans, who blew whistles throughout the games.
"That kind of got annoying by the 6th or 7th inning," said Cowan. "But there was a lot of people hootin’ and hollerin’ and it was nice to see the crowd even cheered for our team when we made nice plays."


The friendly nature of the Cuban people surprised the Lakers, who had expected a rude welcoming simply because they were Americans.


"I don’t know if soft-spoken is the word, but they were really nice, really cordial," Cowan said.


"There was a lot of respect between the two teams… It felt like a friendship out there."


Junior relief pitcher Brad Zambron said of the Cuban people, "It was crazy because you wouldn’t think that we’d get the acceptance that we got from them. I didn’t think they’d be that nice and welcoming towards us."


Grand Valley State president Tom Haas, who traveled with the team and even coached first base, agreed with the players. But he expected a gracious welcoming all along.


"The hospitality the Cuban people showed was so heartfelt," he said.


The team may have not been able to speak with the Cubans in their native tongue, but it turns out they did speak a few common languages after all. Haas said he found that "one of the universal languages is smiling."


"Even though we have a barrier with our language, the ability to create something very, very special brought us together," he said.


Between games, GVSU was presented with a flag and the teams exchanged jerseys, hats and other equipment. Many players had discussed possibly framing their Cuban jerseys. As they prepared on Sunday evening to leave Cuba, the Lakers were hoping to get their gifts back home, given the U.S. embargo against bringing non-informational Cuban material.


Cowan, the best part of the trip came after the games. For one thing, the team went on a missionary venture, giving medical and baseball supplies to children. They stopped by a church on the outskirts of Havana and at a ballfield on the way back from church, where they saw children playing.


Cowan said he was deeply touched "to see how the children reacted when we took out baseball hats and gloves (as well as) the medicine that the priest was so thankful for. They were so appreciative. These kids playing barefoot and with broken bats all taped up. (To be able to help them) was really cool."


Even though they lost all three games, the Lakers said they left Cuba with a new perspective on life. Zambron said he is more thankful for the simple things in life.


"We’re very lucky to have what we have. ... They’re happy with anything that they have, in any circumstance. Maybe that’s how we should be. We’ve learned a lot from them, not to be so materialistic. Money doesn’t buy happiness. You can be happy with what you have."


Cowan agreed: "Just to see the way they react over a used glove changed our lives and had an impact on us. Some of us have been coddled and spoiled, ’spoiled Americans.’ We’ve been so blessed."


The trip was the second by an American college, according to athletic director Tim Selgo, who said Alabama made the voyage to Cuba in 2008. This experience is a part of the easing of tensions between the two countries as the U.S. recently lifted certain restrictions on travel. Alabama had a working relationship with the Cuban government before visiting the country four years ago, unlike GVSU.
Only one of the Lakers speaks Spanish, and that wasn’t the only barrier the team had to overcome to finally get to Cuba. Selgo was in a restaurant in Grand Rapids when he coincidentally ran into Marc Bohland, executive director of First Hand Aid, a group that delivers much-needed medical supplies to Cuban hospitals four times per year.


" 'You’ll never be able to do this without my help,’" Selgo remembered Bohland saying. "I realize now that he was 100% correct."


Bohland introduced Selgo to Angelo Fuster, a Cuban exile and business consultant, who assisted in convincing the Cuban government to approve the team's trip. But it proved much more difficult to get the U.S. government to give the OK. After much red tape and some lobbying from local politicians, the Office of Foreign Assets Control at the U.S. Treasury Department gave GVSU the green light.


Cloonan was part of a team of American student/journalists from Stony Brook University that went to Cuba for a week as part of the School of Journalism’s Journalism Without Walls winter program. David Morris contributed to this report.

http://www.freep.com/article/20120119/SPORTS08/120119002/Grand-Valley-State-baseball-s-trip-Cuba-makes-life-long-memories?odyssey=mod%7Cnewswell%7Ctext%7CSports%7Cp

Tuesday, January 24, 2012

Collette Vacations, Leading Tour Operator, Offers Trips


Collette Vacations Rediscover Cuba - A Cultural Exploration

A rich blend of cultures from across the Caribbean and around the world, Cuba is unlike any other country. Join us on an exclusive journey as we spend seven nights in the cities of Trinidad and Havana, soaking in the island’s timeless culture, history, and art. While in Trinidad visit many historic cathedrals and tour the city with your local guide. Enjoy four nights at Havana’s landmark Hotel Nacional. Visit the Bay of Pigs Museum and discover Old Havanna’s architecture. Meet a Cuban family in their very own paladar, a privately owned restaurant. Step inside the home of Ernest Hemingway, almost unchanged from the time the author left in 1960. Explore a former sugar factory and savor a lunch of local specialties. Visit an orphanage and meet with the nuns who have dedicated their lives to helping the children. Throughout your exploration, come to know the Cuban people as few have.



  • Trinidad, Pottery Class, Cienfuegos, Bay of Pigs Museum, Havana, La Cabaña Castle, Maqueta de la Ciudad de La Habana Museum, Guanabacoa, Cuban Fine Arts Museum, Ernest Hemingway Home, Casa Fuster
  • Spend 7 nights in Cuba’s cities of Trinidad and Havana and soak in the island’s culture, history and art.
  • Visit the Ernest Hemingway House (Lookout Farm), almost unchanged from the time the author left in 1960, where he conceived his final masterpiece, The Old Man and the Sea.
  • Tour Old Havana and learn about the city’s architecture and restoration efforts from a local city planner.
  • Visit the Bay of Pigs Museum and discover the history behind this important event.
  • Enjoy a harbor cruise in Cienfuegos and learn about the local fishing industry.
  • Experience La Perla del Sur, the Pearl of the South, as you tour Cienfuegos.
  • Enjoy a city tour of Trinidad and explore its charming streets, cathedral and unique houses frozen in time.

Monday, January 23, 2012

University of Richmond Students Study Music and Dance


SCHOLARS IN RESIDENCE | WEB UPDATE

Students travel to Cuba to study music and dance

Published: January 21, 2012, 2:33 am ET
Collegian Reporter
Cuba is infamous. Hearing its name conjures images of cigars, mobsters, dirty dancing and dictatorship. Rich with history and controversy, Cuba has become a forbidden land and the subject of government embargoes and restrictions.
This winter break, 30 University of Richmond students, members of two Sophomore Scholars in Residence (SSIR) programs, traveled to Havana to study Cuban music and dance.
Led by Michael Davison, professor of music and the faculty mentor of the Salsa Meets Jazz SSIR program at Richmond, and Myra Daleng, director of dance and the faculty mentor of the History of Dance SSIR program at Richmond, the students traveled to Cuba to film, photograph and gather information to create short documentaries on the rhythmic Cuban culture.
Sophomore Josh Grice, a member of the Salsa Meets Jazz program, said: “[Cubans] all shared the same mindset, that salsa is in their blood. …I really didn’t understand that until I got into Cuba.”
Music is what Cubans live for, said sophomore Kati Miller, who traveled to Cuba with the group. “And people there,” she said, “if they don’t play an instrument then they sing, and if they don’t sing they dance.”
Cuba is one of the top three superpowers in contemporary music, along with the United States and Brazil, Davison said, and the Cuban people have a strong sense of pride over their music’s influence. Top-scale musicians even get paid more than doctors, he said.
“The people have very little,” Daleng said. “The average salary is $12 a month…so at that point they have music and dance, and it’s just everywhere you go.”
Despite the blossoming culture, Cuba remains a third-world country. “I’ve been all over the world,” Davison said, “[Cuba] is one of the safest places in the world because no Cubans can have guns.”
Davison and Daleng still prepared their students for the reality of the nation’s contentions. Davison’s advice for the men was simple: Stay away from Cuban girls. He warned them they would want their money. He prepared the women by informing them there were often bathrooms that did not have running water, toilet paper or toilet seats.
Despite Cuba’s poverty, Davison said, “I’d never tell a Cuban this, but sometimes even though you have nothing, you have everything.”
Davison and Daleng organized activities for students including trips to Chinatown, night clubs and the National Ballet of Cuba where they saw the Nutcracker. They also took part in dance classes where students were taught the basics of the cha-cha. Having been to Cuba 18 times before, Davison organized a private demonstration of the rumba on the famous Callejón de Hamel, an alley known for its dance performances every Sunday.
“We went to the Tropicana, which is the best night club in the world,” Davison said. “It’s outside. It’s the only club that Castro didn’t shut down, so it’s like 90 minutes, non-stop music, 25-piece live band and probably 500 dancers.”
Miller, who plays the tenor saxophone in the university’s jazz band, said the visit to the Tropicana had been her favorite part of the trip, calling it a “fabled place” she had always wanted to see. “It was so out of a book,” she said, “like all these people were smoking like big, fat cigars and drinking Cuban rum, and everyone was dressed up.”
Grice and Miller both had the opportunity to speak with many Cuban people during the trip, and Grice said he had felt a sense of unity. He said he had not felt an anti-American sentiment. In the past, government restrictions limited the ability for travel to Cuba because of strained relations, but the Obama administration has reopened travel for educational purposes, according to the State Department’s website.
“When you mention you are from the United States, they laugh,” Grice said. “They joke with you and are like ‘Oh you’re our enemy.’ They’re not serious about that. They love Americans.”
Miller agreed that the Cuban people were always approachable and joyful, but said she saw government propaganda, which spoke out against the United States. “There was this huge sign that had a picture of George Bush and called him a terrorist… and called capitalism the detriment of the human species,” she said. Miller said, however, that the people have found a way to live despite the corruption, and it is through music that they find joy.
The students’ documentaries will be shown at 5 p.m. April 11 in the Adams Auditorium.
Contact reporter Maria Ratjik at maria.ratjik@richmond.edu

Friday, January 20, 2012

Two California Chambers Plan Trips


Published: Thursday, Jan. 19, 2012

Pismo Beach Chamber of Commerce plans Cuba trip

Arroyo Grande is also planning trip; both trips open to nonmembers

 | clambert@thetribunenews.com

The Pismo Beach Chamber of Commerce is planning a trip to Cuba for its members and other San Luis Obispo County residents this summer — possibly making it the first chamber in California to get the opportunity to travel to the country in decades, according to chamber Chief Executive Peter Candela.
At least 30 and as many as 90 people might be able to join the chamber’s trip, which is scheduled for nine days starting June 12.
The Arroyo Grande Chamber of Commerce is also planning a trip to the Communist island nation through the same company, Chamber Explorations, in September.
Candela said he’s been trying to organize a trip to Cuba for the past three years, including in his previous role as head of the Morro Bay chamber.
“It’s historical on a couple of levels,” he said, noting the United State’s 50-year travel and trade embargo with Cuba. “We don’t know what’s going to come out of it. We want the opportunity to show members and the community what that country is all about.”
The Pismo Beach chamber’s trip will be open first to members and then to others in the community because of its distinct nature, he said. A general orientation will be held Feb. 2; those interested in learning more can call the chamber at 773-4382.
Both trips cost the same: $3,899 per person, which includes a direct flight from Los Angeles International Airport, Cuban medical insurance and “people-to-people interactions with Cuban citizens,” according to the company’s website.
The Arroyo Grande chamber will also sign up at least 30 people or more depending on interest.
That chamber’s trip starts Sept. 11 and is also open to nonmembers. An informational meeting is Feb. 1 at 5:15 p.m. at South County Regional Center, 800 W. Branch St.
“For me, it’s a trip-of-a-lifetime kind of thing,” Arroyo Grande chamber President and CEO Judith Bean said. The itinerary includes a total of six nights in Havana and two nights in the city of Trinidad.
According to the itinerary, U.S. law requires that all travelers joining the program adhere to the full-time schedule.
Restrictions on family travel to Cuba were lifted in April 2009.
In January 2011, exceptions to the U.S. embargo were announced, allowing other Americans to visit the country if they do so for educational, cultural or religions reasons, or on “people-to-people travel” with a licensed operator.
The operator must sponsor or organize “educational exchange programs to promote contact with the Cuban people,” according to a travel advisory issued by the U.S. Treasury Department last summer.
Roughly 1.7 million tourists visited Cuba in 2001, generating about $1.85 billion in gross revenue; by 2010 that number was 2.53 million visitors, and had generated $2.4 billion, according to the U.S state department.
Canadians comprise the largest number of foreign tourists to Cuba, with nearly 1 million visiting the island in 2010.

Provisional List of Organizations Receiving Travel Licenses in 2011

OFAC does not publish a list  on its web site of organizations receiving people to people or other specific licenses for travel to Cuba the way it documents with updates licensed Travel Service Providers .

In response to a Freedom of Information Act request by alongthemalecon blogger Tracey Eaton, OFAC provided a data base of its licenses which can be seen here.

Study of the excel spread sheet suggests that the following organizations received travel licenses in 2011, but consider this provisional and unverified until OFAC confirms the information.


A.R. Savage & Son, LLC
Alex Rosenberg Fine Art
ALTA
Alumnae Association of Smith College
American Friends of the Ludwig Foundation of Cuba
American Museum of Natural History
American Shipping and Chartering
Americana Marine Services
Americas Media Initiative
Amherst College
Anglican Church in North America
Arizona State University
Arlene Collins Photography, LLC
Art Encounter
Asociation of Spanish Baptist Church of Florida ABC, Inc
Athletic International Missions (AIM)
Atlantis Sevens USA
Austin-Lehman Adventures, LLC
AYSO-Southernmost Soccer Association
Barreto & Romero, P.A.
Berklee College of Music
Biehl & Co., L.P.
Bill Warner Photography
blacjac Entertainment Group Corporation
Cal Alumni Association UC Berkeley
Cal-Cuba Art Project
California State University at Los Angeles
Californians Building Bridges
Caribbean Conservation Trust, Inc.
Caribbean Cultural Center African Diaspora Institute
Caribbean Medical and Humanitarian Relief Corporation
Carnegie Museums of Pittsburgh
Cathedral Basilica of the Sacred Heart
Caytrans Project Services
Caytrans Projects Services Limited
Center for Cuban Studies, Inc.
Center for Global Justice
Center for Inter-American Legal Education, Inc.
Center fro International Policy
Central Park Conservancy
Cernuda Art Consultants, Inc.
Chamber Explorations
Clean Caribbean & America (formerly Clean Caribbean Cooperative)
Clipper Project Shipping, Ltd.
Colony Club
Columbia Coastal Transport, LLC
Columbia University
Commonwealth of Virginia Department of Agriculture and Consumer Services
Congress of the United States
Corcoran Gallery of Art
Cornell University, Cornell's Adult University
Cosmos Club Chess Group
Cotecna Inspection Inc.
Council for Accreditation of Counseling (CACREP)
Council on International Educational Exchange
Couturier Gallery
Crimson Shipping Company, Inc.
Cross-Cultural Solutions (Insight Cuba)
Cuba Cultural Travel
Cuba! Cuba!
Cuba! Gallery of Fine Art
Dartmouth College
Dartmouth Office of Alumni Relations
Debevoise & Plimpton LLP
Derek Prince Ministries
Disarm Education Fund
Dodgertown West
Duke Alumni Association
Duke University Office of Export Controls
Elderhostel, Inc.
Elim Fellowship
EMASS Senior Softball Association, Inc.
Environmental Defense Fund
Environmental Defense Fund, Inc.
Ernest Hemingway Foundation of Oak Park
Faith Presbyterian Church of Baltimore
Federacion de Baloncesto Puerto Rico
Federacion de Luchas Asociadas de Puerto Rico
Field Street Baptist Church
Filmsters LLC, of Annapolis
First Baptist Church of Jonesboro
First Presbyterian Church
Florida Baptist Convention
Florida Keys Tropical Research Ecological Exchange Insitute, Inc.
Food for the Poor, Inc.
Ford Foundation
Forest Hill Church
Foundation for Caribbean Studies
Friendly Planet Travel, Inc.
Friends of Caritas Cubana, Inc.
FRONTLINE CARGO LOGISTICS, LLC
Galeria Cubana
Global Connection International
Global Gallop LLC
Global Links
Golden & Cowan, P.A.
Grace Episcopal Church of Orange Park
Grace United Methodist Church
Grand Circle Foundation
Grand Valley State University
Gulf South Forest Products, Inc.
Harmonic Insurgence
Harmony Free Will Baptist Church
Harte Research Institute for Gulf of Mexico Studies
Harvard Alumni Association
Harvard-Radcliffe Orchestra
HATUA International
Hebron Baptist Church
Herald of Truth Ministries Inc.
Hollins University
Horns to Havana and the Center for Cuban Studies
Hunter Street Baptist Church
IBC Airways
Illume Productions, INC.
Imagine Press
Indiana University- Jacobs Scool of Music
Indianapolis Museum of Art
Institute for Internaitonal Urban Development
Inter-American Dialogue
International Association of Drilling Contractors
International Mission Board Southern Baptist Convention
International Port Corporation
IRUN Athletics
Jewish Solidarity
Joaquin Mendez, P.A.
John D. and Catherine T. MacArthur Foundation
Joni and Friends Total Access
Jubilee American Dance Theatre
Julie and Marty Belz Charitable Foundation
LakePointe Church
Latin American Medical School
Lexington Institute
Light Street Presbyterian Church
"Lighthouse" United Methodist Church of Boca Grande
Lions Clubs International Foundation
Living in Faith, Inc.
Louis Armstrong New Orleans International Airport
Luhring Augustine Gallery
Lyndhurst Community Presbyterian Church
Manatee to Manati Sister City Association
Maryland Department of Agriculture
Massachusetts Foundation for the Humanities
Masters Fine Arts, LLC
Medical University of South Carolina
Metropolitan Pavilion
Miller Farms and Associates LLC
Milton Breakers Baseball Team
Miss Porter's School
Montgomery Botanical Center
Montverde United Methodist Church
MTO Leadership Development, Inc.
National Audubon Society, Inc.
NATIONAL BOARD FOR CERTIFIED COUNSELORS
National Democratic Institute
National Endowmnet for Democracy
National Geographic Society
National Trust For Historic Preeservation
Nature's Edge, Inc.
Nature's Strongholds Foundation, Inc.
Navitaire, Inc.
New College for Interdisciplinary Arts and Sciences, Arizona State University West Campus
New Life Church Canton Inc.
Nicaro Friendship Foundation, Inc.
North Carolina Museum of Art
Obsidian Arts Center
Oceanside Museum of Art
Office of William Jefferson Clinton
One World Running
Operation USA 
Pan American Development Foundation
PanAmerican ArtProjects
Park Cities Baptist Church
Patino & Associates, P.A.
People to People International
Philharmonic Center for the Arts
Port of Beaumont
Port of Houston Authority
Princeton University Alumni Association
Project Por Amor
Project Troubador
Puerto Rico Baseball Federation (Federacion Beisbol Aficionado De Puerto Rico)
Puerto Rico Basketball Encounter
Puerto Rico Pharmaceutical, Inc.
Rabinowitz, Boudin, Standard, Krinsky & Lieberman, PC
Ragazzi Boys Chorus
Reach Out Ministries
Register International, Inc.
Revelle Shipping Agency
Russell Kronick/Liam Power-Kronick
Rutgers, The State University - Camden Campus (the "University")
Saint John's Church of West Hartford
Saint Paul's United Methodist Church
San Diego Black Sox Baseball Club
San Francisco Girls Chorus
Santa Barbara Museum of Art
Santa Monica Saints Rugby Club
Sarah Lawrence College
Savannah Country Day School
Sea to Shore Alliance
Sea World Skies - U.S. Government Solutions
Senior Softball - USA
Setaf-Saget SAS
Sir John Soane's Museum Foundation
Social Science Research Council
Society of the Sacred Heart, U. S. Province
Spoleto Festival USA
St. Augustine-Baracoa Friendship Association
St. Paul School Madrigal Singers and String Ensemble
Stanford University 
Suarez & Taylor
T. Parker Host, Inc.
Tampa Bay-Cuba People to People Outreach
Tampa International Airport
TBS Shipping Services Inc
Temple Beth Sholom
Temple Sinai
Tesoros Encantados LLC
Texas Department of Agriculture
Texas Grain Sorghum Association
Texas Grain Sorghum Association
Texas Seed Trade Association
The Art Institute of Chicago
The Aspen Institute
The Boulder-Cuba Sister City Organization
The Broadway Ambassadors
The Carter Center
The Center for Democracy in the Americas (CDA)
The Center for Global Education, Augsburg College
The Center for the Study of Cuban Culture & the Economy
The Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints
The Colonial Williamsburg Foundation
The Committee on Illinois
The Commonwealth Club of California
The Cuban American Policy Consortium
The Episcopal Church Center
The Florida Orchestra
The Friendship Association
The Gallery on Greene
The Houston Seminar
The International Sociology of Sport Associaton
The Metropolitan Museum of Art
The Nature Conservancy
The New York Botanical Garden
The Ocean Foundation
The Phillips Collection
The Royal Oak Foundation
The Solid Rock Evangelistic Association
The Synergos Institute, Inc.
The University of Georgia
Thomas Jefferson Foundation, Inc.
Tiffin University 
Titan Maritime, LLC
Tufts University
Tulane University
UCLA Alumni
United Americas Shipping Services, Inc.
United States Olympic Committee
United World Mission
University of Arizona
University of California, Davis
University of California, Santa Barbara Alumni Association
University of Mary Washington
University of Maryland -College Park
University of Michigan Men's Glee Club
University of Nebraska Lincoln
University of Puerto Rico, Rio Piedras Campus
University of Tennessee Knoxville
University of Washington Alumni Association
University of Washington Botanic Gardens
University of Wisconsin La-Crosse-Learning In Retirement
US Fencing Association
US Rice Producers Association
USA Rice Federation
USA Youth Debates   
US-Cuba Veterinary Cooperation Society
Vassar College
Vulcan Productions
Wakka Wakka Productions
Westminster Presbyterian Church
Wild Well Control, Inc.
Wisconsin Medical Project
Witness for Peace
Word Alive International Outreach
World Affairs Council of Philadelphia
World Chicago
World Security Institute
Wyoming Cuba Society
YM BioSciences USA Inc.
Zamora & Hillman