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Global Scholars Program Wins International AwardThe MU Global Scholars Program recently received the Andrew Heiskell Award for Innovation in International Education in the category of Outstanding Faculty Program. Administered by the Institute of International Education (IIE), the purpose of the Heiskell Awards is to to promote and honor the most outstanding initiatives being conducted in international higher education by IIE's network of member universities and colleges. As one of the world’s leading nonprofit international education organizations, IIE designs and implements a variety of programs including the Fulbright and Humphrey Fellowships and the U.S. AID Global Training Program. Jim McCartney, Interim Director of the MU International Center, travelled to New York City to accept the award at IIE’s January 28, 2002 Board of Trustees meeting. As a winning program, Global Scholars will be showcased by IIE as a "best practice” in their publications, on their web-site and at other national and regional events. The award also includes a $1,000 prize. More information about the Global Scholars Program is available at: /funding/faculty/gsp.html Greater Diligence Required of Students & ScholarsMU international students and scholars can anticipate a series of significant changes in the way their nonimmigrant status is monitored and maintained as early as Fall 2002. One result of the USA Patriot Act, passed in the aftermath of the September 11th terrorist attacks, was the funding of a foreign student electronic tracking system. The new system, called the Student Exchange Visitor Information System (SEVIS), has been initially funded to the tune of $36.8 million. More recently, the U.S. House of Representatives passed H.R. 3525 known as the ‘‘Enhanced Border Security and Visa Entry Reform Act of 2001.” The Senate version is nearing a vote and President Bush is certain to sign the final version into law. Both of these legislative actions will result in several key changes in the way international students and scholars are issued visas, admitted at U.S. ports-of-entry, and monitored throughout their academic and research programs at the University. In more practical terms, the SEVIS program intends to develop a real-time interactive web capability between U.S. universities and colleges and the Immigration and Naturalization Service (INS). In order to comply with federal regulations, international student/scholar advisors will "log-on” to the SEVIS website and utilize applications to generate certain forms, update information regarding a student or scholar’s change of address, change in degree program, extension of program, and school transfer notification. It will also allow "real-time” submission of electronic reports on all international students that are currently enrolled each semester, or upon request by the INS. Other important features of the new laws include introduction of tamper-resistant documents readable at ports-of-entry, biometric identification cards, required "check-in” at the University, and reporting to the INS within a specified period after initial entry into the United States. These changes will require international students and scholars to become more diligent in adhering to the conditions of their nonimmigrant status, keeping track of their immigration documents, and communicating with International Student and Scholar Services (ISSS) at the International Center. ISSS advisors can help students and scholars develop their own personal "immigration file” and point out critical dates and issues regarding the F-1 and J-1 status. As it becomes available, more information regarding SEVIS will be available at: /. Conference to Explore the "Changing Colors" of MissouriCurrently representing just over 2% of the population statewide, the number of Hispanic persons in Missouri is increasing at an astronomical rate - up 96% in the last decade alone. The upcoming "Cambio de Colores (Change of Colors) in Missouri” conference will bring together scholars and policy makers to address the impact and needs of the state’s growing Latino community. Under the leadership of MU’s Hispanic and Latin American Faculty and Staff Association, the conference will take place March 13-15, 2002 at the Reynolds Alumni Center. Panels will address topics ranging from demographic changes in Missouri to the resulting cultural and economic dynamics in our local communities. More information about the conference, is available at http://www.decolores.missouri.edu/. Social Work Professor uses Photography to Capture Student InterestAnne Dannerbeck’s Social Work 220 course, Human Behavior in the Social Environment, offers students much more than just a writing-intensive credit and the introduction to theories of human development and behavior promised in its description. It provides many with a new understanding of cultural diversity and their first window to the world beyond the United States.
Her efforts and interests came together in the Summer of 2000. With the help of MU contacts at the E.A.R.T.H. Institute near Limon and a grant from the Global Scholars Program, Dannerbeck traveled to Costa Rica to explore and photograph how an environment that is rich in natural resources impacts human behavior. Dannerbeck has fully integrated this experience - and the resulting 800 or so photographs she brought back - into SW220. At the onset of each semester she challenges students to reassess what it means to be "normal” by having them first take a critical look at their own culture through an account of the seemingly exotic "Nacirema” society. They later write arguments both for and against difficult topics such as female circumcision and polygamy. While Dannerbeck illustrates her lectures as much as possible with photos and stories from abroad, more in-depth international case studies provide students with a closer look into the variety of ways in which environment effects human behavior. One such case study follows the daily life of "Chepita,” a woman with whom Dannerbeck stayed while in Costa Rica. Her corresponding photo essay vividly illustrates the roles and responsibilities faced by Costa Rican women in the middle-adulthood life stage. "For many students, coming to a Research I university represents the most diverse social environment they have ever experienced,” Dannerbeck notes. One of her goals for SW220, therefore, is teaching students "to approach variations in human behavior by attempting to understand it rather than judging it.” Student response indicates that she is succeeding. In a recent evaluation one student noted, "I actually feel that from this class I learned more about different people and cultures than in any other class. It has helped me realize I need a broader perspective.” More information about Anne Dannerback’s course SW220, and an example of her photo essays from Costa Rica, are available on-line at: http://web.missouri.edu/~swdanner. Faculty Guidance Critical for U.S. Student Fulbright ProposalsWith a little help from faculty, motivated students can have the unique international experience that comes with a Fulbright grant. Established almost a half a century ago, the U.S. Fulbright Program is now more relevant than ever. Arkansas Senator and Missouri native J. William Fulbright sponsored the program’s authorizing legislation in 1946 to increase mutual understanding between the people of the United States and other countries. The Institute of International Education (IIE) coordinates activities relevant to the Fulbright U.S. Student Program. Graduating Seniors and current graduate students who are U.S. Citizens* and possess the appropriate language skills are eligible to apply (*note: a separate Fulbright program exists for foreign students and scholars). Grantees develop individual projects, which may include university coursework, independent library or field research, classes in a music conservatory or art school, special projects in the social or life sciences, or a combination of these activities. Application Procedures MU students may obtain application forms or gain access to the on-line application materials from the International Center (N52 Memorial Union). A "Statement of Proposed Study or Research” forms the heart of the application and should describe the purpose, rationale, and methodology for the project. In addition, students must provide three letters of reference from faculty, and a language evaluation when applicable. Student applications must go through a campus review before being forwarded to IIE for final consideration. Preliminary proposals submitted to the International Center by September 16, 2002, will be critiqued and returned to applicants for revision (note: this step is required for undergraduate applicants). Final proposals are due to the International Center no later than Monday, September 30, 2002. Campus-ranked applications are then forwarded to and reviewed by a national committee. If successful, a final review by a binational commission will include representatives from the host country. How Faculty Can Help Faculty members play a vital role in helping students to craft their proposals. Some of the best proposals reviewed by the campus screening committee were perfected through several drafts with the assistance of faculty mentors. The student Fulbright awards are highly competitive, but they are well within the reach of students who are willing to put forth the time and effort. The payoff is the reward of spending a year abroad, carrying out an exciting research project, and making lifelong contacts with people from around the world. Crossing Customs: International Students Write on U.S. College Life and CultureLike the rest of our colleagues in student and academic affairs, professional staff in the field of international student and scholar services in higher education thrive on new ideas and information to help us serve our clientele more effectively. Though, for obvious reasons, the information we immerse ourselves in is primarily immigration related, ISSS staff typically have an insatiable passion for developing greater intercultural understanding that will enlarge their perspectives and make them more effective advisors, and beyond that, more fulfilled in their professional and personal lives. Starting with this issue of the MU International, a review of a publication, book, article, or film related to our field will be presented. It is our hope that you might be stimulated to check out these resources for yourselves, but if not, that you will at least be introduced to a few of the topics that interest us. Our first review is by David Currey, Director of International Student and Scholar Services. Crossing Customs: International Students Write on U.S. College Life and Culture, edited by Andrew Garrod and Jay Davis, is an interesting compilation of personal narratives written by international students on their "sojourner” experiences both before and while studying at Dartmouth College, one of America’s most prestigious Ivy League institutions. The stories are engaging and challenge the reader to enter into the personal lives and perspectives of the authors. After you read them, you can’t help but feel as though you’ve met them at your campus. Take the story of Yu Chen, a student from the People’s Republic of China, who shares about the struggles of her family during the Cultural Revolution, her introduction to feminist perspectives by a visiting American Fulbright scholar, and her experiences in the American classroom at Dartmouth. Her story revolves around the theme of singing the "Unsung Songs” of significant women in her past and present, particularly her mother. Yu Chen provides some telling insights about her first impressions of American students, the challenges of idiomatic language, and the affluence of American society. More significantly, she tells a story of personal transformation, her quest for fulfillment and the path of discovery that she is committed to. Whether you agree with Yu’s worldview or not, you can’t help but admire her enthusiasm, intensity and pursuit of life. Other narratives are just as compelling and encourage the reader on. This is an excellent read for those that seek to know more about the experiences of international students at American universities and colleges and reassuring to those of us who support and value their participation in our campus community. You can check this book out at the Ellis Library (LB 2376.4.C76). Norwegian Athlete Brings Multiple Talents to MUEvery semester MU hosts students and scholars from around the world serving in various capacities. Some are here seeking degrees, others are visiting faculty or staff, and still others are here as visiting researchers or observers. Each issue of MU International will introduce one such visitor to the greater MU community. From his home country of Norway, Junior Knut Sommerfeldt came to MU not just as a talented decathlete, but also as a gifted violinist. A double-major in music performance and communications, Knut has found success at MU in the classroom, on the field, and in the performance hall. Though arriving in the United States with a strong background in English, like most international students, one of Knut’s biggest challenges upon arriving in Missouri was the language. "Slang and daily conversation went over my head in the very beginning,” he says. "I was lucky enough to have my sister, a former track athlete who graduated last year, around to help me out.” Additional assistance in making the transition to American life came from his dorm roommate. The chance to pursue interests in both track and music was a unique opportunity MU offered Knut, one that the school system structure in Norway would have made difficult to realize. This opportunity, however, has come with its own price, as Knut must juggle the demands of his classes, track workouts and meets, and violin rehearsals and recitals. "Many people have asked me if I really have time to be so dedicated in both track and music,” he notes. "I feel that you can’t make time, but you can take your time and make what you want out of it.” Thanks to flexibility on the part of his coaches and music professors, Knut has found that he can manage his busy schedule and still have time to spend with friends at the end of the day.
When asked what he misses most about Norway, Knut mentions both his family "and the fact that you can put on your skis at home and go skiing, ice skating in the winter, being surrounded by mountainous and pretty landscape.” A difference he has found between Americans and Norwegians is that Norwegians tend to be more introverted. Although he finds Americans to be more outgoing and easy to get to know on the surface, "you must perhaps work harder to get to know their true self.” Already finding success as a student maintaining a 3.78 GPA, Knut’s dreams extend far beyond doing well in his classes. "As an athlete my main goal is to make the Olympic Team for Norway in 2004 and go to Athens,” he says. "Another dream is to be able to make a career in music, preferably as a soloist.” So keep an eye on the Olympics coverage in 2004! If you see a decathalete pull out a violin as Norway’s national anthem is playing, you’ll know you’re witnessing the hard work of an MU alum pay off. International Center Welcomes New ISSS CoordinatorRichard Porter, Coordinator of International Student and Scholar Services (ISSS), joined the ISSS staff team on January 14, 2002. Richard spent the past three years as an international student/scholar advisor at the University of Houston, which enrolls over 3,000 international students. Prior to his position at Houston, he spent five years teaching in Japan. Richard is tasked with coordinating MU’s employment-based permanent residence processing, as well as overseeing H-1B processing. He received his M.A. in Education (1991) and a B.A. in Communication Design-Instructional Technology (1986) from California State University-Chico. He is accompanied by his wife, Noriko, and two children, Hannah and Kenny. Please join us in welcoming Richard to the MU community! He can be contacted at: porterrh@missouri.edu. Teaching the Teachers: College of Education Offers Summer Mexico ProgramMU Direct and the University of Missouri College of Education offered a pilot study abroad program during the summer of 2001 at the Universidad Internacional/The Center for Bilingual Multicultural Studies (Centro Bilingue) in beautiful Cuernavaca, Mexico. The Centro Bilingue has long been the location of the University of Missouri’s Summer Mexico program for MU students. Led by Judy Elliott, Foreign Language Specialist in the College of Education, this new program has served to further strengthen MU’s ties with the Centro Biligue by extending the opportunity to study in Cuernavaca to members of the broader community. During summer 2001, ten students, teachers and professionals were immersed in Mexican culture and the Spanish language through participating in this program. All were placed with Mexican host families and attended classes at the Centro Bilingue. In addition to working on their language skills in a formal classroom setting, the group made treks to the Pyramids of Teotihuacan, the Museum of Anthropology in Mexico City, and Taxco to experience Mexican culture first hand. The Spanish teachers also made special trips to public and private schools in Cuernavaca. Excursions within Cuernavaca, cooking classes at the Centro Bilingue, and visits with local legends in music, history and art allowed participants to gain special insight into this special area of Mexico. The group met on June 15th, and quickly bonded during their flight to Mexico. Some of the participants already knew each other prior to the start of the program, however. Don and Sue Hartman, from St. Peters, MO, participated in the program together. Don had never studied Spanish but decided to accompany his Spanish teacher spouse. Jessica Mason, from Viburnum, MO, encouraged her former high school student, Salinda Ragsdale—a beginning medical student, to join the trip. Salinda spent much time with her Mexican physician host father at the hospital practicing her Spanish. Julie Exedine had traveled to Mexico in 1994 with the MU in Mexico program, which was also directed by Judy Elliott.
MU Direct is currently recruiting participants for the second University of Missouri College of Education "Mexican Culture and Spanish Language Immersion” experience during the summer of 2002. The program will run for two weeks (June 14 - 29) and will once again be held in Cuernavaca, the "city of eternal spring.” For enrollment information contact: MU Direct: 1-800-545-2604 or see their web-site at: http://mudirect.missouri.edu. For program questions contact: Judy Elliott at elliottj@missouri.edu, (573) 445-3194 or 882-2497 MU Faculty to Accompany Summer France ProgramThis summer as many as 30 MU students will travel once again to the heart of Paris to participate in MU’s French language and culture study abroad program. Designed to provide students with a total language immersion experience, the 6-week MU Summer France program places students with French host families, offers four levels of French instruction, and coordinates field trips to both the Loire Valley and Giverny. Unlike previous summers, students this year will board a plane to Paris alongside one of MU?s own faculty members. French professor Valerie Kaussen will accompany the students to Paris to teach alongside French faculty at the Institute for the International Education of Students (IES). Of the four MU-equivalent courses offered through the program, Professor Kaussen will teach French 106?Intermediate Composition and Conversation. By teaching this course, Kaussen will ensure that students receive the same high caliber French instruction offered by the Department of Romance Languages and Literatures here at MU. Similarly, Professor Kaussen?s participation will provide students with an MU connection as they gain exposure to the new and different teaching styles of their French professors. In addition to Kaussen?s course, IES French faculty will teach French 206?Advanced Composition and Conversation, French 230?Introduction to French Literary Analysis and French 353?Special topics in Contemporary France. According to Kaussen, "Teaching in the Summer MU program gives faculty members the opportunity to participate in our students’ discovery of Paris and the challenges and exhilarations of living and studying abroad.” Stemming from her own interest in the multicultural aspects of Paris, beyond providing language instruction Kaussen hopes "to introduce students to the rich variety of culture (music, art, literature, food) that Parisians of Caribbean, African and North African descent bring to the city.” This year marks the beginning of what the Department of Romance Languages and Literatures and the International Center hope to be a long-standing opportunity for MU faculty participation in the MU Summer France program. Mary Jo Muratore, Chair of the Department of Romance Languages and Literatures, explains "it is essential for faculty members to participate actively in our study abroad programs not only to ensure that the students are taking full advantage of the educational experience, but also to monitor the level and quality of the courses our students are taking.” MU Students Win Gilman ScholarshipsThree MU Study Abroad students have won Gilman International Scholarships for winter semester 2002. Casi Lock and Alethea Dalton each received $5,000 and Valerie Kobzej received $3,000 to be applied to their semesters abroad. Lock is studying at the University of Guadalajara in Mexico, Dalton at Sophia University in Tokyo, and Kobzej is participating on the Missouri London Program. "When I found out, I was on cloud nine all day,” said Lock. "I had never won anything that big before. Then I called my mom.” The Gilman International Scholarship was created by the Institute of International Education to increase study abroad opportunities for students with financial need. To apply for the scholarship, a student must be an undergraduate with a federal Pell Grant with plans to study abroad. Selection criteria include academic performance, quality of the application, diversity of the applicant, and diversity of the study abroad location. More information is available at www.iie.org/gilman. Lock, Dalton and Kobzej were three of 122 winners from a pool of 539 applicants. Growing up on a farm in Carrollton, Missouri, Lock plans to return home to promote Study Abroad upon her return from Mexico. "I want to promote Study Abroad to [high school] students from rural areas,” Lock said. "The interest isn’t there and I want to promote awareness of other cultures.” The International Center congratulates these outstanding students and wishes them the best of luck during their semester abroad. |
Joining the Department of Social Work in 1996, interest in multicultural issues has always come naturally for Dannerbeck, who often uses stories from her experiences in Europe, Africa, and the Americas to illustrate major themes and topics to students in her class. As her research recently moved increasingly toward Hispanic issues, Dannerbeck also developed a fascination with photography as a means of communicating cultural information. Consequently, she found herself back in the classroom - as a student both brushing up on her Spanish and learning the principles and techniques of photojournalism.
Although pursuing two vastly different dreams places extra demands on his time, Knut finds his interests to be mutually fulfilling. "When I play the violin it releases tension and competitive thinking from my sport,” he explains. "When I am on the track it gives me the buffer from stress and makes me think about something other than school or music.” 
The program participants derived many benefits from their experiences in Mexico, which have direct applications for their classrooms or their work. The Spanish teachers collected teaching materials for use in their classroom, and learned new practical Spanish words and phrases to pass on to their students. Their new or expanded knowledge of history, culture, and social issues of Mexico has been useful in working with the Hispanic populations in their communities. The group members all improved their spoken Spanish, a skill that has been valuable to all participants. Program participants were able to receive three (3) College of Education credit hours (undergraduate or graduate) upon completion of an extensive project and presentation regarding a selected aspect of Mexican culture, or they could simply audit hours from the University of Missouri-Columbia.