The Office of Student Leadership and Civic Engagement (SLCE) and the Office of International Affairs will host International Education Week from Nov. 14-18 with events highlighting different cultures, international awareness and multicultural education.
International Education Week began at NSU about four years ago with the Office of International Affairs. This is the first year that the two offices have collaborated for International Education Week. Allison Foster, director of SLCE, said the collaboration has been a success.
“This all began when Dani McCalla, our graduate assistant for student leadership development, brought up the idea of collaborating with the Office of International Affairs for International Education week back in May,” Foster said. “This is something SLCE has always wanted to do to make the events a more university-wide week.”
Nov. 14 kicks off the week with the OXFAM Hunger Banquet at 7 p.m. in the Alvin Sherman Library, room 4009. At the banquet, students will discuss how poverty affects certain countries and what can be done to overcome this global issue.
On Nov. 15, there will be a variety of international foods in the UC food court from 11 a.m. to 2:30 p.m. International students submitted recipes for the event.
On Nov. 16, a multicultural festival will take place in the Health Professions Division Library/Terry Building Clock Tower Courtyard from 11:30 a.m. to 1:00 p.m. At the festival, students can sample different foods from around the world, listen to live music and join a multicultural club.
On Nov. 17, Global Village, an exhibit to highlight the countries represented on campus by the student body, will take place in the University Center Spine from 12-1 p.m. Also on Nov. 17, attorney Aaron Blumberg will hold a workshop to help international students understand the basics of student visas and work visas from 2-4 p.m. in Carl DeSantis Building, room 3031.
On Nov. 18, the Nova International Student Association (NISA) will host their first annual Tie-Dye event in the Alvin Sherman Library quad from 3:30-5 p.m., where students can customize white T-shirts to celebrate campus diversity.
NISA president, Leydi Arboleda, said she feels as though this year’s International Education Week has more student-friendly platforms.
“This year’s activities are more student-oriented while also incorporating international awareness, even to the international students themselves,” Arboleda said.
Alejandra Parra, co-coordinator of International Education Week, said she expects this year’s events to reach farther into the student body and raise more awareness about the diversity on NSU’s campus.
“NSU is a diverse community so we usually see different cultures interacting with people from different cultures,” Parra said. “I think we should have more events like these throughout the year, maybe every month, to always have an active energy of international awareness.”
For more information on International Education Week, students can contact Parra at aleparra@nova.edu.
