A Message from the Associate Provost for International Programs

Our annual State of Global Engagement presentation for 2020 focused on Race in a Global Context. If you missed the online presentation live, you can access it here. We continue to hear from students and faculty originally from other countries with complex identities not captured within US racial constructs and look forward to continuing to expand this conversation in our globally diverse community.  

At the end of the term with so much going on at SCU and in the world I want to express my gratitude for the many people who actively work to make SCU’s global community inclusive. I wish you and your families happy and healthy holidays! 

We are happy to update you on many new global initiatives and programs here.

Susan Popko
Associate Provost for International Programs

Call for 2021-22 Study Abroad Application Reviewers, expressions of interest due Tuesday, December 15. All faculty and staff are encouraged to participate and both previous and new reviewers are welcome. Submit the Study Abroad Review Committee Expression of Interest form.  Serving as a reviewer is a great opportunity to learn more about education abroad at SCU and engage with 2021-22 student applicants. The reviewer commitment includes watching a 15-minute video online prior to January 8, 2021, and two to three hours of reading and evaluating applications between January 8-19, 2021. Contact Sara Branley, Director of Study Abroad with any questions at studyabroad@scu.edu.  

New Shanghai Start Program for SCU international undergraduates in China launched for Winter/Spring 2021. Students will take courses as an SCU cohort through East China Normal University (ECNU) at ECNU’s Baoshan Academic Center and will join campus in-person in Fall 2021. 

Announcing Global Fellows for our new Global Innovation Fellowship and Global Community Engagement Fellowship launching December 2020 through Winter Quarter.  Congratulations to: 

• Sophia Parra '22, Sociology and Philosophy major - Global Community Engagement Fellow
• Katherine Elkind '22, Finance and Music major - Global Innovation Fellow
• Jacklin Kertayasa '23,  Marketing and Economics (BS) - Global Innovation Fellow

Student applications for 2021-22 study abroad programs are due Monday, January 4, 11:59pm PT. Students should apply here and can access online advising resources here. To date, 1,753 students have viewed advising webinars and resources on our Youtube channel and 496 attendees participated live in our 41 live webinars.  

New Virtual Global Internships created for Summer 2021. Students in all majors are invited to apply for internships in one of seven different countries to take place virtually. Apply by January 4, 2021 11:59pm PST. Students who complete virtual internships with an international organization differentiate their resume, earn essential work and cultural skills, and grow their professional network.

International Education Week (IEW) 2020 was a (virtual) success. Thank you to all students, faculty and staff who participated in the busy week of over fifteen events focusing on international issues and global cultures. IEW 2020 included events ranging from The Legacy of the Salvadoran Martyrs - A Panel & Vigil to The Roerich Pact and the Banner of Peace: Protecting the Achievements of the Human Spirit, to Being BIPOC Abroad, to Endangered Languages. If you are looking for a good playlist of global music or an international recipe for the holidays, you can still access those here: Music Around the World; Flavors Around the World.

• Undergraduates - Consider adding an International Studies Minor to your degree
• See this helpful resource on  Teaching Across Time Zones for online teaching and learning
• Connect with an SCU international partnership or explore new partnership opportunities
• Stay up to date on international travel for SCU during COVID-19
• The highly politicized landscape of immigration policy changes rapidly. Stay up to date on Immigration Policy affecting SCU

Find us on social media - ISS and Study Abroad now have Instagram and Facebook! Follow us @scu.iss & @scustudyabroad

2020 - 2021 Global Engagement Photo Contest Winners 

In case you missed the 2020 - 2021 Global Engagement Photo Contest Winners announced during International Education Week, please help us congratulate our winners once again. This year’s Global Engagement Photo Contest had a mashup theme of Throwback Thursday: Together Around the World. We asked students, faculty, and staff to show us what made them feel connected during their international journey. What brings us together to unite us as humans? What does an “international education” mean to them? The SCU community voted for their favorite submissions and decided on the winners below.

First Place: 

"The woman I met last night", Thailand, University Honors Program Summer ‘19
submitted by Maggie Menendez ‘22, Individual Studies

"I drove past this woman nearly every day and thought to myself "she would be beautiful to photograph." However, I always want to ask before taking someone's portrait -- since I don't speak Thai this was a challenge. However, my final week in Thailand I spent a night at the local temple and met this woman! The next day when I passed by she invited me over to photograph her."

Second Place: 

"Adopt the pace of nature <3", United States. Summer ‘20
submitted by Vidhi Gandhi ‘20. International Student, Business Analytics

"Hiking to these mesmerizing waterfalls. This picture is truly a rainbow in the sad corona period."

Third Place: 

"The hope amid pandemic", United States, Spring ‘19
submitted by Manas Prakash Sadhwani ‘21, International Student, Computer Science

"The photo was taken when Indian PM made historic decision to lockdown 1.3+ billion people and as a way to bring people together asked to light candle/light at 9 PM. So we decided to do the same here in USA."

Honorable Mention: 

"Always", United States, Summer ‘20
submitted by Hsiang Chao ‘21, International Student, Computer Science and Engineering

"Take this picture in Twin Peak, San Francisco. The graffiti "Life is beautiful" encourages me."

Meet our International Student Social Media Leader 

Cecilia Fan is a student employee in Global Engagement leading social media accounts primarily for international students; you can follow her posts @scu.iss on Facebook and Instagram. 

Cecilia is pursuing her MBA and decided to go directly into her graduate program after finishing her undergraduate degree at SCU in June; her decision was motivated by the pandemic. Cecilia is from Beijing, China and completed high school in the Bay Area, followed by her undergraduate degree at SCU. She decided on Santa Clara after falling in love with the university on a campus tour, enticed by job opportunities in Silicon Valley and California weather. As an undergraduate, Cecilia double majored in Finance and Economics and minored in retail studies and additionally served in leadership positions, such as the Associate Student Government Marketing Chair and Vice President of Public Relations. As well, she was the Social Media Director for the Retail Studies Student Association and utilized social media in her ASG positions. When all activities moved online in Spring 2020, Cecilia helped ASG election promotions transition to an all online format. Cecilia hopes to eventually work in marketing in Silicon Valley. She shared that a bright spot for her in the midst of the pandemic has been the additional time at home, which has allowed her to adopt a cat, Lemon, and an Italian Mastiff, Luigi.

Observe Filipino Rizal Day

December 30

Dr. José Rizal is best known for being an ophthalmologist, author, educator, and a Filipino nationalist and revolutionary. He was a proponent of achieving Philippine self-government peacefully through institutional reform, believing that a peaceful stand was the best way to avoid further suffering in the country and loss of Filipino lives. As a political figure, Rizal was the founder of La Liga Filipina, a civic organization that subsequently gave birth to the Katipunan, a secret society which would start the Philippine Revolution against Spain that eventually laid the foundation of the First Philippine Republic.

As a young man, Rizal had graduated from the Jesuit-led school Ateneo Municipal de Manila and later in his life, while in exile, he befriended, worked with, and taught alongside the Jesuits. However, in 1896, Rizal was arrested and stood trial as he was implicated in the revolution. He was convicted on charges of rebellion, sedition, and conspiracy and sentenced to death. On December 30, 1896, he was accompanied in his last moments by two Jesuit priests whom he was close to. 

December 30 was thereafter declared “a national day of mourning”, for Rizal and other victims of colonization throughout the previous three centuries. Each year at Rizal Park, in the city of Manila, flags are flown at half-mast and the President of the Philippines lays a wreath on the shrine dedicated to José Rizal.

 

Is there an international holiday you would like to see featured in an upcoming newsletter? Fill out this form and let us know why it is important to you and how you will be celebrating it this year. We will profile one holiday each month and give primary consideration to international holidays from countries that have not already been highlighted.