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International students meet local 5th grade pen pals

After exchanging letters for several weeks, 45 UW international students met their 5th grade pen pals from White Center Heights Elementary School for the first time on December 5. “I really enjoyed participating in the Pen Pal program,” says Bader Al Farhan, a sophomore student from Kuwait. Read more from FIUTS…

Vice Provost to visit UW Rome Center

The Vice Provost for Global Affairs will meet with faculty and staff at the UW Rome Center during his visit to the city from November 16 – 22.  The meetings will familiarize the Vice Provost with the facility and its operations. Together with Rome Center faculty and staff, Vice Provost Riedinger seeks to put the center on a more sustainable and dynamic footing.

The Office of Global Affairs is exploring opportunities to expand programming for UW students at the Rome Center, including study, research, and service learning, and also to position it as a host for scholarly conferences and a base of operations for faculty conducting research in Italy. “We’re looking at what more we can do to make the Rome Center a true platform for teaching, research, and student engagement,” says Vice Provost Riedinger.

UW welcomes Humphrey fellows

The University of Washington’s Evans School of Public Affairs is hosting ten Hubert H. Humphrey Fellows this year. Mid-career professionals from a variety of fields, this year’s fellows hail from Africa, Asia, Eastern Europe, the Middle East, and South America. Humphrey fellows are selected for their dedication to public service and potential for leadership.

Only 17 U.S. universities host Humphrey fellows each year. Since 1987, UW has hosted more than 300 fellows from 100 nations. Kenneth Peavler coordinates a weekly leadership seminar for the fellows on campus. He sees UW as an ideal base for Humphrey fellows, offering “world class opportunities”.

Fellow Naseer Uddin Sarwar, Director of Pakistan’s Department of the Auditor General, will focus on issues of government accountability and transparency during his time at UW. “I aim to develop a personal relationship with the Evans School, and to strengthen the relationship between Pakistan and the U.S.,” he says.

Paula Correa, a Uruguayan fellow who serves as the Entrepreneurship Programs Specialist in her country’s Ministry of Industry, Energy and Mining, is excited to learn about and use new technologies while at UW. She says, “I’m taking a class where the students are all in front of computers… it’s totally new for me and not what I expected from a university course”.

Throughout the year, the Hubert H. Humphrey Fellows Presentation Series will feature talks by the current fellows highlighting their expertise. On November 21, fellow Estelle Antilahy will present “Challenges toward Water Supply and Management in Developing Countries: A Case Study of Madagascar”. Follow the UW Hubert H. Humphrey Fellows on Facebook for updates on future presentations.

Back: Mohamed Elkaramany (Egypt), Bakhadur Khabibov (Tajikistan), Naseer Uddin Sarwar (Pakistan) Middle: Mohammed Laid Slougui (Algeria), Bo Liu (China), Seokhoon Cho (Republic of Korea) Front: Estelle Antilahy (Madagascar), Paula Correa (Uruguay), Aziza Msaaf (Morocco), Maria Lille (Estonia)
Back: Mohamed Elkaramany (Egypt), Bakhadur Khabibov (Tajikistan), Naseer Uddin Sarwar (Pakistan)
Middle: Mohammed Laid Slougui (Algeria), Bo Liu (China), Seokhoon Cho (Republic of Korea)
Front: Estelle Antilahy (Madagascar), Paula Correa (Uruguay), Aziza Msaaf (Morocco), Maria Lille (Estonia) Photo: Evans School of Public Affairs

 

Meeting of public universities features Vice Provost

Vice Provost Riedinger attended the annual meeting of the Association of Public and Land-Grant Universities (APLU) from November 10 – 12. A member of APLU’s Commission on International Initiatives Executive Committee, he served as a discussion panelist and engaged with university leaders from across the country around issues related to international education.

The panel discussion, titled The Future of International and Foreign Language Education: What More Can Government and Universities Do Together?, explored opportunities for partnership between the US Department of Education and public universities to support world language and international education.  The panelists also discussed the need for universities to equip graduates for success in the global economy.  Maureen McLaughlin, the US Department of Education’s Senior Advisor to the Secretary of Education and Director of International Affairs, as well as leaders from the University of Arizona and The Ohio State University also participated as panelists.

Vice Provost Riedinger also attended a working dinner convened by APLU President Peter McPherson to brainstorm strategies for increasing US student participation in study abroad in the absence of increased federal funding for scholarships.