NC State celebrates international education and exchange during International Education Week!
International Education Week, sponsored by the U.S. Departments of State and Education, is an opportunity to celebrate international education and exchange worldwide. From November 16-20, 2009, organizations in more than 100 countries across the globe hosted internationally oriented educational and cultural events designed to promote international understanding.
This year, NC State hosted over 20 events, including cultural events, lectures, symposia and information sessions. Students, faculty, staff and community members participated in events ranging from a Fulbright Scholars information session to a Chinese painting and calligraphy workshop hosted by artists from Nanjing Normal University. They attended lectures on “Leadership and Team Building in the Creation of a Nation” presented by LTC Ken Ratashak and “The Berlin Wall and Poland” presented by the Honorary Consul to the Republic of Poland to commemorate the 20th Anniversary of the fall of Communism.
A special thanks to goes out to all those who participated in International Education Week and for making all of the events such a success!
International Students Meet Coach O'Brien and Tour the Murphy Center
On September 16th a group of lucky and enthusiastic international students from different parts of the world (Asia, Europe and Latin America) had the opportunity to take a tour at the Murphy Center house of the Wolfpack team, meet some of the players, trainers and the amazing experience of meeting Coach O’Brien, he spoke about how he got involved with football and how him and his daughters have been living abroad and then answered some questions from the students, who now know more about football.
We want to thank all of the people involved in this event and hope that this is not the last time the international students get to know more about their new home.
Pictures here
Video availablehere Study Abroad Fair
On September 17, the NCSU Study Abroad Office held their annual Study Abroad Fair in the Talley Ballroom. The fair was a tremendous success, with over 1,200 students getting the opportunity to learn about summer, spring break and semester NCSU study abroad programs.
Summer study abroad applications are available online now and the deadline is February 12, 2010.
Click here for photos Confucius Institute at NC State Prepares Raleigh
Chamber Members for China
In October and November 2009, 300 plus members
of the Greater Raleigh Chamber of Commerce
(The Chamber)
will be traveling to China to experience
the “adventure of a lifetime”.
The Chamber is the Triangle’s largest business membership organization, made up of more than 2,500 member firms representing two-thirds of the private sector employment in Wake County. The Chamber has been representing the interests
of the local business community for more than a century.
In order to better prepare Chamber members for their scintillating trip to the Orient, the Confucius Institute (CI) at North Carolina State University (NC State) is providing a two-hour Orientation to equip travelers with pre-trip planning, traveling tips, Chinese customs and etiquette and some basic Chinese skills. The first Orientation session was July 22 and two more Orientation sessions will take place in August and September.
The goal of the CI is to promote Chinese language and culture throughout NC State and the community, which corresponds to The Chamber’s mission to sustain and further develop a thriving economy and to enhance North Carolina’s quality of life. The CI is able to benefit the community to become more globally competent and equip citizens and the community with a better knowledge and interest about China.
For further information about the CI please visit their homepage, http://ncsu.edu/oia/confucius/, and for The Chamber, please visit http://www.raleighchamber.org/
Study Abroad Office welcomes international exchange students
The NC State Study Abroad Office welcomed 97 international exchange students to campus on August 13. These students came from 41 different NC State partner institutions in Asia, Africa, Europe, Australia and North & South America. They will be enrolled directly in university courses in a wide range of disciplines. Upon arrival, students participated in an on-site orientation, covering topics such as housing, academics, culture shock and other services and resources available at the University and in the local area.
A majority of the exchange students live in Alexander Residence Hall during their time at NC State. Alexander has officially been NC STATE's only on-campus international residence hall since 1975. Beginning in fall 2005, Alexander Hall had a new name and a new purpose, joining the University Housing Living and Learning Village family as the Alexander Global Village (AGV). The change resulted in a more intentional effort to acclimate international students to American culture, to expose American students to other cultures and to help the entire community understand and be aware of global issues.
Students who elect to live in the Alexander Global Village are those interested in living and interacting with people from differing backgrounds, experiences, countries and viewpoints. The community's focus is one of the global awareness, understanding and experiences.
The Global Village located in Alexander Hall focuses on introducing international students to American culture, exposing American students to other cultures and making the entire community aware of global issues. The program features the pairing if international students and American students as roommates, providing Student Ambassadors to assist in acclimating international students to American culture, an educational programming series on cultures of the world and discussion programs focusing on global awareness issues. All of these activities both help international students learn about life in the U.S., and help prepare NC State students to be engaged globally.
International Students
Information Fair and Orientation
On August 13th the Office of International Services held the Information Fair where the new international students had the opportunity of meeting with personnel and staff from different NCSU departments such as Legal, Transportation, Immunization, Technology, ESL and Banking services and also meet with some of the students’ groups already established at the University. On August 14th they continued its tradition of welcoming new international students at an orientation approximately 670 students attended the event filled up the Stewart Theater. The morning started with a series of important presentations given by offices such as Legal Services, the Office of Equal Opportunity and the Office of Student Conduct. Each speaker covered information specifically valuable to new international students. A creative and entertaining video coincided with the morning’s presentations to highlight the topics in a fun way. Following a lunch at Fountain Dining Hall, students returned to Talley Student Center to participate in an afternoon of mini sessions aimed at encouraging academic and extracurricular success at NC State. Photos of the Events click here
International Welcome Event Talking Tiger to Hip Hop
The night began with a Lion Dance performed by local high
school students in the Raleigh Triangle Area.
Beating drums and two multi-colored dancing lions opened the International Welcome Event at North Carolina State University (NC State), Talking Tiger to Hip Hop.
This welcome event sponsored by the Confucius Institute and co-hosted by the Chinese Students and Scholars Friendship Association (CSSFA) was a free event held on August 22, 2009 from 7:30 to 9:30 pm to showcase the diversity of Chinese culture from ancient shadow puppetry, the musical instrument Guzheng, traditional singing and dancing to modern hip-hop and street dancing.
The night might have been filled with rain and clouds but in Stewart Theater the air was filled with excitement, laughs from children young and old, and amazement as more than 400 guests enjoyed very diverse performances showcasing different aspects of Chinese culture. The pink flowing silk and beautiful young smiling faces of Ruby Slippers Chinese Dance Club, a local dance troupe, filled the theater as girls danced to Peach Blossom, a song about a poem complied from Confucius’ Book of Songs. Romance continued to fill the air as Tan Bikan, a NC State Physics major, sang a love song about a broken relationship called “I Should”. Jennifer Chang merged ancient and modern Chinese culture as she flawlessly played the Guzheng. Jennifer Chang studied the Guzheng with the Grand Masters of China for ten years and received her graduate degree from the Xi'an Conservatory of Music, in Traditional Chinese Music. She played the 2008 Olympic Games Theme Song, You and Me, as well as the Fighting Typhoon.
In order to showcase how Chinese culture has blossomed in the US and blends modern and ancient Chinese culture Wesley Shang, a local high school student, amazed the audience with his skills of the Chinese yo-yo. His performance brought many shouts of encouragement and “jia you” from the crowd. The audience then realized why the event was titled Talking Tiger to Hip Hop by the hip-hop dance performed by Fusion, an NC State cultural dance group combining today’s strong hip-hop movement with yesterday’s classic cultural art forms. The hip-hop of the event was revealed while the audience was still trying to figure out what a talking tiger entailed.
Returning to more traditional Chinese culture Sunny Dance, a Chinese dance group with NC State students, filled the theater with images of green peacocks and cascading waterfalls as they performed a Chinese folk dance called “Peacock Lake”. Beibei Lu, from Duke University, demonstrated the control and dedication of Taichi through her Wudang Taichi Sword performance. Wesley Shang had his second performance of the night as he demonstrated the martial arts affiliated with the Shaolin Monastery through his Shaolin Fists performance.
The last event of the evening was a special performance especially for most Chinese since even they had never seen such a performance. Chinese Theater Works, based in New York City promoting opera, music, and puppetry through their blending of Eastern and Western techniques, presented “Tiger Tales”, finally exposing the audience to the well-anticipated Talking Tiger. This original production was based on Chinese folk tales and literature in a humorous and witty way that took the audience on a journey through the tales of a wise old rabbit who out-smarts a sly and talkative tiger.
These ten performances brought a new awareness to the diversity not only within Chinese culture but to the talent present at NC State and within the local community. This interesting blend of Chinese culture, hip-hop and a talking tiger presented the Confucius Institute an opportunity to welcome new students and share Chinese culture with the community. Audience members are looking forward to future events as they expressed their interest to have more events like the Talking Tiger to Hip Hop. Some upcoming events include the China Summer Study Abroad Photo Contest in September and on November 18 the Jigu! Thunder Drums of China, world-renowned company of drummers, percussionists and musicians that will astound you with an ultra-sensory entertainment experience.
The Confuscius Institute will also be sponsoring another event at Stewart Theatre with the art department on November 18th called Jigu! Thunder Drums.
To read complete Article published on the Technician click here
Photos of the event click here
2009 Summer Research Experience
On July 1, 2009 NC State welcomed 37 summer research students from mainland China and Taiwan. Ten of the students were from Taiwan, representing National Taiwan University and National Taiwan University of Science and Technology. Seven of the students were from Tsinghua University in Beijing, China and twenty of students were from Zhejiang University in Hangzhou, China. The Office of International Affairs planned an eventful 5 week program comprised of pairing students with NC State faculty to conduct research and lab work, a visit to the North Carolina Fairgrounds to celebrate the 4th of July, a beach trip to Wilmington, a weekend trip to Washington D.C., a visit to the Raleigh Triangle Park, a tour of Duke University and much tax-free shopping at South Point Mall. The students stayed at Wolf Village and then the last week of their stay they moved to University Towers. The students were able to interact with their faculty, lab partners and other NC State students that went to China for summer abroad. The program culminated in final presentations where each student was able to share what they learned during their research and students were able to thank their faculty at the farewell luncheon and share their experience through a meaningful PowerPoint picture presentation. Photos of the events click here
The NC State Study Abroad Office welcomed 97 international exchange students to campus on August 13. These students came from 41 different NC State partner institutions in Asia, Africa, Europe, Australia and North & South America. They will be enrolled directly in university courses in a wide range of disciplines. Upon arrival, students participated in an on-site orientation, covering topics such as housing, academics, culture shock and other services and resources available at the University and in the local area. 
