Karen Wiley Sandler, chancellor of Penn State Abington, recently announced a new articulation agreement between the college and the Eastern Center for Arts and Technology, the technical school serving the nine school districts in eastern Montgomery County. The pact facilitates the transition of Eastern commercial art graduates who are seeking admission to Abington's Art Program.
The Penn State Abington students - a dozen native English speakers and 12 new international undergraduates - were clearly apprehensive about being paired up for the mandatory assignment. A palpable sense of "otherness," an unseen divide, permeated the classroom at the first group meeting of the International Conversation Partners Project, according to Roxanna Senyshyn.
But six weeks made a world of difference. At their final group meeting, the boundaries had dissolved. The sounds of easy conversation permeated the classroom as the students traded stories about celebrating first Halloweens, experiencing Superstorm Sandy and discovering the pleasures of frozen yogurt.
"The students initially saw lots of differences among themselves, but now they see the similarities," said Senyshyn, senior lecturer in ESL (English as a Second Language)/English, and Communication Arts and Sciences, said.
The journal entries below are excerpts from two different students involved in the International Conversation Partners Project at Penn State Abington. The project is a requirement for Teaching English to English Language Learners (CI280), a required course for Childhood and Early Adolescent Education majors.
The Penn State Abington Office of Continuing Education will host information sessions for nurses who want to earn their bachelor of science degrees as well as other adult learners seeking to upgrade their skills in a competitive job market.
Penn State Abington students will have the opportunity to incorporate the benefits of international education into their coursework this spring through four courses with short-term travel components. The curriculum will require students to travel to Nicaragua for an examination of the Sandinista Revolution, to Italy for robotics and to England for criminal justice and religious studies.
Despite the crush of papers and exams as the end of the semester approaches, Penn State Abington THON members remain focused. With a boost from nearly $4,500 collected during the third and final canning weekend, they are more than halfway to the $50,000 fund-raising goal for the 2013 IFC/Panhellenic Dance Marathon.
The day before Superstorm Sandy hammered the area, Penn State Abington's Jose Rodriguez was like the eye of the hurricane. The college was hosting the North Eastern Athletic Conference (NEAC) cross country championships, and the head coach of the Abington teams calmly managed a near-constant stream of questions and concerns from student-athletes, coaches and staff.
The Penn State Abington student chapter of Entrepreneurial Action Us (Enactus) is partnering with the Abington Office of Development and Alumni Relations for the campus' first Philanthropy Day. The goal is to fill the Career Closet at Abington with interview-appropriate attire for students from 11 a.m. to 2 p.m. Thursday, Nov. 15.
Penn State Abington, the home to a growing population of international and immigrant students, is joining educational institutions, embassies and community organizations worldwide to mark International Education Week (IEW), running through Friday, Nov. 16.
For the seventh consecutive year, the Penn State Abington Lion Ambassadors (LAs) are staging Camp Out for Hunger to help feed the hungry this holiday season. The campus community donated more than 3,200 pounds of food last year, enough to help feed hundreds of people for four months.