dialogue issue #1
DESCRIPTION
Davidson International Association PublicationTRANSCRIPT
FALL 2011
Celebra ng 53 Years of Promo ng
Interna onalism at Davidson!
FOOD, MUSIC, PERFORMANCES Tons of photos from our annual festival!
Diversity Recap!
March 2011
100 PAGES OF EXCLUSIVE CONTENT
Global NewsHighlights
INTERNATIONAL PERSPECTIVES:
“DIA Throughout the Years”
Interview with the International Student Advisor
Semester Review
Host Family Program LAKE CAMPUS
HOLIDAYS ACROSS
BORDERS!
Fiestas de Quito!
COOKOUT!
Pulitzer Center on Crisis Reporting
Featured Story: Interna onal Fes val
Interview with Director for Mul ‐Cultural Affairs
DIA Events
Themed General Mee ngs
Holidays Across Boarders
Co‐sponsorships & Interna onal Events from other
groups on campus
A) Dean Rusk SAC
B) OLAS
C) BAD
D) China Club
E) ACAA
F) MENASA
G) DASA
H) French Club
DIA Timeline: Looking Back Throughout the Years
DIA Publicity Overview
Financials
Alumni News
Global News Highlights
Interna onal Perspec ves & Study Abroad
Interna onal Admissions News
Interna onal Office News
Host Family Program Highlights
Miscellaneous
Contents
FLAGS, PEOPLE, FOOD, COLORS, COSTUMES, MUSIC, PERFORMANCES!
The 18th Interna onal Fes val took place on Saturday, October 29th, 2011 from 12 to 3 PM at the Alvarez Student Union, drawing in a whopping six‐hundred people. This figure is DIA’s ul mate record of all me! Countries displayed items from back home, pictures of sites from all around the world and shared their stories from abroad. Emailing depart‐ments, professors, host families and community groups and coordina ng with 36 groups
of country representa ves to setup their tables, were all very important in the organiza on of the event. The online applica on process this year, either for having a table or performing on stage at the fes val, really helped to keep all of the infor‐ma on easily accessible to everyone involved in the planning process.
The event was an unforge able me to bring the campus together to share cultures and ideas in a fun and educa onal environment of music, food and dance!
The Student Ac vi es Office congratulated our or‐ganiza on for hos ng such a successful event, as it was a great way to ins ll DIA’s name on campus as an organiza on with a visible presence, made up by such a diverse group of students.
Evidently so, the video of the event which was uploaded online in the first week of the month of December, already has 270 views on Vimeo and 240 hits on Youtube (figures recorded on 01/20/2012).
DIA Presidents Svamal De Fonseka and Gabriela Baldeon stated “We could not have asked to work with a be er group of people. It’s because of DIA’s commi ed members and all of the people who helped out in any way, shape or form, that the fes val was a success this year!” Associate Professor of the Department of Economics, Fred H. Smith, said “You guys did a fantas c job! It was the best fes val I’ve seen. Congrats for all of your hard work.”
DIA-logue
18th Interna onal Fes val A Huge Success
THE OFFICIAL PUBLICATION OF THE DAVIDSON INTERNATIONAL ASSOCIATION
Interna onal Leadership Conference 2011
Host Family Program in Christmas Parade
INSIDE THIS ISSUE
Interna onal Office Fall Break Trip to Atlanta
Subscribe to “DIAlogue” by clicking the Subscribe bu on on our website at: www.davidsoninterna onal.weebly.com
Monse, Megan and Gaby represen ng Ecuador
DIA would like to thank everyone who helped out with the Interna onal Fes val this year. Special thanks goes to the Interna onal Student Office and Jennifer Glass, the Union staff, especially Tim Stroud, William Brown, Jim Nash, and Jason Shank, faculty who helped out with tables like Michael Toumazou, Rebecca Joubin, Sophia Sarafova and Basma Botros, the College Com‐munica ons Office, in par cular, Stacey Schmeidel, Doug Minor, Gary Bartholomew, Cathryn Westra, stu‐dent videographer Jenny Hall for the awesome video on the fes val, and of course Bill Giduz for the amazing photos! A big thanks goes to the students who devoted their valuable me for making posters, cooking food and talking about the countries they represented. DIA kept all of the posters so as to have them for next year. Students can s ll use them for any events to promote their countries on campus or to talk to students at schools in the Mecklenburg area about their countries.
Dominican Republic
South Korea
Serbia
Brazil
Performances this year really added to the event!
Arabic Dance
Balkan Group Dance
Shamita Punjabi (to the le ) sings Hanuman Chalisa, a religious hymn of 40 verses that illustrates the story of Hanuman, the Hindu Deity with a monkey’s head. The Hymn provides strength and courage to those in the face of adversity as they recount how Lord Hanuman was able to conquer evil with sin‐cerity, wisdom, and generosity.
Hindu Song
تحطيب
Tah b (Egyp an S ck Dance)
Natalia Corredor dances Salsa
Russian Na onal Dance Kalinka‐Malinka
Popping Dance
Michael sings songs from his na ve Hai Belly‐Dancing
Popping! Not exactly cultural in origin, but it does reflect Singaporean youths' slow but steady shi into the hip hop/street dance sub culture!
My Everyday People
Everyday people in everyday hearts In everyday places where everyday starts With everyday struggles they meet every day That they have to survive and overcome in every way From my everyday people found in the middle‐east That scream for everyday freedom and everyday peace That everyday wake up and everyday mourn That everyday life and death of everyday war Where everyday rebels blow up with everyday bombs
Where everyday people are everyday harmed Where everyday broadcasts are shown everyday But everyday people don’t ever have a say My everyday people are everyday oppressed And everyday pray to see the day coming next Everyday people in everyday life who are everyday wronged of their everyday rights ... MY EVERYDAY PEOPLE UNITE!!!
Poem from www.interna onalpoetry.org
Peru
Portugal
South Korea
Arab World
Vietnam
Kenya China
Ghana Colombia
Message from the Socio‐Cultural Chair of DIA
DIA is an exemplary organiza on of cultural exchange. Aware of its mission to reduce the gaps that push cultures apart,
DIA provides a valuable space that a empts to expand the community's cultural horizons and provides opportuni es
for intercultural exchange. The shi of the organiza on to a more educa onal‐based student club this semester, pro‐
vided significant changes in its reason of being and will hopefully assist in the enhancement of making Davidson a truly
interna onal place. It is unques onably an important me for DIA, when more then ever it must play an important role
in the shaping of Davidson's future as it a empts to consolidate as an interna onal ins tu on.
Gustavo Orozco‐Lince
Prep Time: 30 minutes — Cook Time: 1 hour
Ingredients:
1 (4‐pound) whole cabbage head
1 bunch finely chopped green onions
1 medium finely chopped carrot
1/2 cup raw rice
Sunflower oil
1 cup broth or water
1 1/2 pounds ground veal
1/2 pound ground pork
Salt to taste
1/2 teaspoon black pepper
1 tablespoon finely chopped parsley
1 teaspoon finely chopped mint
Tomato juice
1 cup plain Bulgarian yogurt
1 tablespoon hot or sweet paprika
Prepara on
1. Heat oven to 350 degrees. A er remove core from cabbage, place whole
head in a large pot filled with boiling, salted water. Cover and cook 3 minutes. When leaves are cool enough to handle, use a paring knife to cut away the thick center stem from each leaf, without cu ng all the way through. (You will need 24 leaves)
2. Chop the remaining cabbage and place it in the bo om of a large oiled cas‐
serole dish. In a medium skillet, saute chopped onion, carrots and rice in a li le oil un l rice grains are completely coated with oil. Add 1 cup broth or water and s r un l water has been absorbed. Let cool and transfer to a large bowl. Add veal, lamb, salt, pepper, parsley and mint and mix un l well combined.
3. Place about 1/2 cup of meat on each cabbage leaf. Roll away from you to
encase the meat. Flip the right side of the leaf to the middle, then flip the le side. You will have something that looks like an envelope. Once again, roll away from you to create a neat li le roll.
4. Place the cabbage rolls on top of the chopped cabbage in the casserole,
seasoning each layer with salt and pepper. Pour enough tomato juice over rolls so it comes 2/3 up the side of the casserole dish. Bring to a boil. Turn off heat, place a weighted ovenproof dish on the cabbage rolls, cover and place in oven. Bake for 1 hour or un l cabbage is tender and meat is cooked. Make a sauce in a small bowl by combining yogurt, paprika and a li le sunflower oil, mixing un l smooth. Transfer stuffed cabbages to a serving plate and cover with sauce.
Grape‐leave Sarmi from the Bulgarian table
How to make Bulgarian Sarmi (Stuffed Cabbage)
Colombia
Japan Ecuador
Nepal
Want to take photos for DIA? We’d love to add you to our group of talented photographers!
China
Cholita—Peruvian Doll
DIA Cares! Community service is one of DIA’s top priori es!
We are working on hos ng Mul ‐Cultural Kids Day, as well as reaching out to the to the Davidson community to raise aware‐ness on forgo en conflicts and issues around the world. We are always open to any fund‐raising ini a ves and service project ide‐as you may have!
India
Bulgaria Germany
Burma/Myanmar
Japan
1. Cyprus 2. Guyana 3. Egypt 4. Syria 5. South Korea 6. Bulgaria 7. Brazil 8. China 9. Mexico 10. Ghana 11. Myanmar/Burma 12. Peru 13. Ecuador 14. Dominican Republic 15. Nigeria 16. Chile 17. Guatemala 18. France
19. Spain 20. Colombia 21. Germany 22. Portugal 23. Serbia 24. Japan 25. India 26. Russia 27. Jamaica 28. Taiwan 29. New Zealand 30. Nepal 31. Kenya 32. Greece 33. Honduras 34. Pakistan 35. Vietnam 36. United Kingdom
List of all the countries that took part this year
We hit a DIA record this year with 36 countries!!!
Davidson College’s President Quillen Embraces Internationalism
Our powerful mission and the things for which we strive — humane ins ncts, crea vity, disci-pline — a ract gi ed people from everywhere to our faculty, staff, student body, and leader-ship, people whose work here both furthers and exemplifies our core ideals of leadership and service. From them, we have learned why global reach ma ers and how to do it be er; we have learned how to build bridges from the classroom to the world, so that the work of our students can have its greatest impact; and we have learned how we might be er sustain a genuinely re-spec ul and welcoming environment, one where our very real differences are acknowledged and therefore become sources of strength rather than an excuse for divisiveness. As we togeth-er define how best to develop humane ins ncts and crea ve and disciplined minds NOW, in our very interconnected world, we are grateful for the wisdom and advice of these members of our family.
From the Inaugural Address of President Carol E. Quillen, October 18, 2011
Diversity! Interview with Dr. Tae‐Sun Kim Director for Mul ‐Cultural Affairs
Last semester, students were invited to the Mul ‐
cultural House to share their thoughts about, and
experiences of, campus diversity and express their
concerns with President Quillen, Dean Tom
Shandley and Director of Mul cultural Affairs Tae‐
Sun Kim. Thirty‐five people showed up, including
minority students who are part of S.T.R.I.D.E., also
known as the Students Together Reaching for Indi‐
vidual Development and Educa on Program,
S.T.R.I.D.E. alumni, members of Davidson’s LGBT
community, interna onal students, six professors,
and some eager freshmen and students interested
in social jus ce. We had a couple of students who
asked “Why can't minori es just get over it?” One
white student, who wanted to learn about culture
and race, said he was in an African literature class
and there was no African student in the class. A Da‐
vidson alumna said that she always wanted to help
end heart disease and cancer for African Americans,
but she had to go to Graduate school to learn her
abili es. Although there was no uniform reac on,
everyone agreed on one thing: that there is not
enough diversity and more is needed at Davidson.
Someone said “Davidson does not have enough
poor people; how can we go out and serve for pro‐
grams like Teach for America and work for NGOs
when we are not exposed to diverse situa ons?”
What is your defini on of Mul culturalism?
Mul culturalism is more of a philosophy, but to go
back a li le further, its roots are in the Civil Rights
movement. It all started with teachers being cri cal
of the American K‐12 History and Literature educa‐
onal material in public and private schools. The
bulk of American history is told by white American
men, and any men oning of Na ve American and
African American historical events is very much wa‐
tered down. Teachers, mostly from racial minority
backgrounds started calling for a new movement of
mul ‐racial educa on. A lot of white teachers didn't
like that. History is not always flat, there are losers,
those who suffer, and people whose perspec ves
challenge the system, but what we find is that most
American young people and adults today get an ed‐
uca on that oversimplifies what happened. The
mul ‐racial movement was a way to value and rec‐
ognize the different cultures that make up America;
this is the posi ve spin to it. However, to only talk
about the posi ve aspects regarding racial minori‐
es is very insul ng. There is a lot of pain referring
to the genocidal nature of the first se lers, of wip‐
ing out Na ve Americans. Today Na ve Americans
comprise less than 1 percent of the American popu‐
la on. Let’s also not forget that for over 200 years,
blacks were enslaved and oppressed by segrega on
laws. Even teaching African Americans about Africa
was done in a much distorted way.
In higher educa on and in the Arts, most people who
are uncomfortable talking about mul ‐culturalism,
use the 4Fs: Food, Fun, Fiesta and Fes val. These peo‐
ple only want to talk about the good stuff. Then there
are others who know that to really want to under‐
stand a culture, you must talk about the good and the
bad, the pain, and the inequality. This brings me to
cri cal mul culturalism. There is a reason why we
have African Americans in our country, a reason why
there hasn't been a woman president in the na on.
One cannot embrace diversity and claim that they un‐
derstand a culture unless they look at race, because it
was a founding principle of the se lers who came
here. One cannot understand American history, with‐
out understanding racism and capitalism. I subscribe
to this cri cal mul cultural philosophy. If you are un‐
comfortable talking about it today, unless you go to
college and take these classes, there is no compre‐
hensible way of one being taught about mul ‐
culturalism. Think about who molded the educa on
system in America in the past century: predominantly
white American men. It’s shocking how li le the his‐
tory books have changed since then and how behind
our pedagogy of teaching is.
White males rule Davidson’s history. The college
brought interna onal students one at a me, but kept
the numbers small, and these students went back to
their countries immediately a er gradua ng. The
school did not focus on integra ng them with society
here. Before the Brown versus Board of Educa on
decision in the 1950s, there were racially‐separated
schools across the na on. Black schools had no run‐
ning water. Black youth didn't have the same oppor‐
tuni es to succeed as white youth.
During that me, Davidson was s ll private, so it
had the op on of integra ng. Ini ally the trustees
did not want to integrate, and it took 10 years
a er Brown versus Board of Educa on to bring a
student from the Congo a er some white stu‐
dents, teachers and missionaries at Davidson ex‐
pressed their ideas against segrega on. We inte‐
grated for interna onal students before we al‐
lowed African American students.
Before 1974, we had a couple of women who
were the daughters or the wives of professors,
but 1974 was really the year that women could
enroll based on merit.
Within 10 years, Asians and Hispanics then in‐
creased by 43 percent.
As colleges and universi es started changing their
business models, Davidson changed the types of
students it would recruit. In their wisdom, the
leadership decided that becoming diverse was a
priority, and Davidson wanted the best students,
many who came from minority or diverse back‐
grounds. Once the basketball and football teams
were integrated, the best players surfaced: minor‐
ity students! The integrated athle c teams in the
South would always beat the segregated teams.
When you just say “let the best compete”, you're
going to have a diverse pool. Educa on is the
same thing. In the South, if you're African Ameri‐
can, there are other black colleges you can go to,
but we want to foster the needs of the minority
popula ons and bring more minority students.
More focus on recrui ng interna onals removed
the historical barriers for the college and brought
a more diverse student body.
The school needed a center, a place in which mi‐
nori es could express their views when entering
into the majority. In November of 2010, the Mul ‐
cultural House was created. It is a symbol that Da‐
vidson is changing its culture; Davidson is now in‐
clusively a diverse school when historically it was‐
n't. Programs like the La n American studies ma‐
jor, S.T.R.I.D.E. orienta on, interna onal student
orienta on, the expansion of study‐abroad ini a‐
ves, and the Dean Rusk Interna onal Studies
Program are all actors of diversity for the campus.
Other than the mul cultural educa on curriculum
the center provides, it is a safe space that encour‐
ages people of different backgrounds to interact.
The house is open during regular hours and some
students like the couches, student groups such as
OLAS and DIA host events here, we have ping
pong games, poetry readings, Jewish Shabbat din‐
ners, students can use the kitchen to cook food,
and we use the space to host re‐entry orienta on
for students coming back from studying abroad in
order to reacclima ze them back to Davidson.
Tell us about yourself and please elaborate on
Davidson’s mul cultural affair programs.
I was born in Seoul, Korea, and came to America
when I was four. Growing up mostly in Portland
Oregon, I received my Bachelors in Anthropology
from Lawrence College. A er receiving a Fulbright
scholarship, I studied abroad in Harare, Zimba‐
bwe. I was studying the African Independence
War and the various racial groups in Zimbabwe, in
par cular, the coloreds and Asians. The whites
were the minority who owned 95 percent of land,
and the coloreds and Asians (Indians and Asians)
cons tuted the middle class. The Coloreds were
racially mixed, as they had white blood in them,
and the Bri sh gave them some more privileges
than the Africans. The coloreds and Asians were
the management, while the whites were the own‐
ers. I was curious about the systems that the
Bri sh colonizer developed elsewhere than Amer‐
ica.
A er Zimbabwe, I went to Michigan State for my Mas‐
ters and PhD. I got red of teaching and I was not hap‐
py with the direc on that Anthropology was going in.
One year, there was a really interes ng research op‐
portunity for a grad school that involved researching
minority students in Detroit and analyzing the achieve‐
ment gap of Black, Asian and La no students. Michigan
State was a land grant college and they wanted an edu‐
ca onal system for the people. It was evident that
something in the university culture was bringing down
the experiences of the minority students well a er the
students entered school. I was so excited of finding
that solu on of mul ‐cultural student support.
I wrote my disserta on on interracial adop on. When I
had to find a job, colleges were looking for people to
improve programs for minori es. I then went to Syra‐
cuse University, but the weather was too cold. Then I
heard that Davidson was crea ng this brand new posi‐
on as the college was trying to change the culture,
just like Michigan and Syracuse, and I knew I could help
Davidson do this! Davidson is very different from Mich‐
igan and Syracuse because there are no grad students,
and there are rela vely less minority students to assist.
The center assists with the July Experience, summer
exchange programs, Davidson 101, and with teaching
majority/minority groups together. When it comes to
programs related to Fulbright, studying abroad,
a rac ng students, and working with interna onals, I’ll
borrow some of the things I did at Michigan and Syra‐
cuse. Syracuse surely has intensive programing, but
Davidson has the be er space.
Every me the leadership at Davidson is asked to diver‐
sify the school, the focus starts off with race, then gen‐
der, sexual orienta on, and interfaith.
The Davidson Trust really shows the commitment to
diversity. Its main purpose is to bring students who can
get in, but cannot afford the tui on. This trust ensures
that students can get in. We've had the trust for four
years and I’ve met several Davidson trust recipients
and they are excellent students.
The challenge with Davidson is for interna onals to
become friends with Americans, and racial minori es
feel the same way. Students come to Davidson to be‐
come open‐minded. I have seen that the groups with
the most culturally‐diverse groups of friends are jun‐
iors and seniors, who have more or less achieved that
open‐mindedness of learning about other cultures.
This is not a just at Davidson. When a student starts
their freshman year, they subconsciously gravitate
with people whom they’re most comfortable with and
can be afraid to interact with students different from
them. How they were in high school is how they were
in college. In the same way, when students from Asia,
for example, come to a white college in NC, they will
feel more comfortable with each other.
With interna onal students, their roommate is usually
an American and they have to listen to their second
language constantly. Interna onals are physically sepa‐
rate from family, while minori es can go home for
Thanksgiving and holidays. Also, interna onals are in
America for four years; now that is being outside your
comfort zone! I completely understand why interna‐
onals need their own space. Americans have no ex‐
cuse. With minori es, the same thing, Blacks, Asians
and La nos have to interact with Americans. Black stu‐
dents could have gone to a Black college, but they
chose to come here. At Davidson, most professors are
white and America is s ll majority white, so it is essen‐
al for minori es to integrate because they most likely
will have a white boss in the American work force.
When you’re in a minority, if you want to be success‐
ful, you must learn a language. The real disadvantage
of being the majority is that you become so comforta‐
ble with what you know that you don't change. We all
have privileges here at Davidson and therefore we all
can become mul cultural. Some will get excited about
it and others will not. The challenge is really ge ng all
Davidson students to graduate mul ‐cultural!
Pi Kappa Alpha house before becoming the Mul cultural House
Is Davidson on the right path?
The biggest myth in America is meritocracy. We face
an economic reality, and at the same me, the science
of higher educa on administra on, as a community,
requires us to decide if the benefits outweigh the loss‐
es. Admissions always have a fight, and in this fight it is
the women applicants who lose. In the past, it was
hard because of sexism. Today, women graduate in
less me, with higher GPAs than men, and the barriers
for women are falling down. However, Davidson has a
50/50 mandate. One may ask “Should we change the
policy so that the system is fair?” I’ve been to other
colleges that do not have this mandate, but these ins ‐
tu ons experience other drawbacks like the need for
affirma ve ac on for males and the fact that there are
not enough men for women to date. White males at
Davidson have the greatest protec on under the 50/50
mandate, while women are at a disadvantage because
it's much harder for them to get in.
Davidson has four strategic goals. Two of them are to
create global ci zens and to create a diverse and inclu‐
sive campus experience. It is important to get teachers
to be innova ve and provide a wide range of learning
abili es for students. To implement these goals, we
would have to make every Davidson student study or
work in another country for one semester, if not one
year, as part of their mul ‐cultural educa onal re‐
quirement. When it comes to valuing diversity, if the
classes look the same, are we being diverse? If the
teachers are the same? If it is only op onal to take di‐
versity‐related classes? If we really care about diversity
and inclusivity, we should demand it from not only the
students, but also from teachers.
O Gracious Creator, you who are the source of all blessings in this world, you who have fashioned us in our wide and wonderful variety, and you whose reach is broad enough to embrace us all, we gather today asking that you hallow this Mul cultural House as a space set apart for purposes that are gracious and frui ul, for ac ons that affirm the dignity and worth of every person, and for a vision rooted in the truth spoken by Mar n Luther King Jr. when he said that "the arc of the moral universe is long but it bends towards jus ce." Grant that this house may help us to embody what it means to be the beloved community. Grant that those who come here seeking companionship may find themselves surrounded by fellow pilgrims on the journey towards a more inclusive and peaceful world. Grant that those who come seeking insight or inspira on may be illumined and s rred with a crea ve spirit. Grant that those who draw near perhaps feeling lost on their way may find renewed strength, courage, and direc on for their days. And grant that all of us in this Davidson community may learn in this place how to cherish and honor the vast and in mate mystery of one other's lives. Use this Mul cultural House for your sacred and life‐giving purposes in our community, that those who enter its doors may together find the joy of fellowship, the fire of imagina on, the heart of love, the healing balm, the road forward, the way home. Amen. Robert C. Spach Chaplain of Davidson College
for the Mul ‐Cultural House A Blessing
Visit wix.com/davidsoncollege/terryfox for more inform
aon
Messages from the Leadership DIAlogue Issue #1 March 2012
DIA EVENTS
What does DIA mean for Davidson’s campus?
President: Rapid globaliza on has meant that it is increasingly important to have an interna onal perspec ve, and be open to entertaining different ideas and approaches. We at DIA work to ‘bring the world to Davidson’, as a way of provid‐ing Davidson students a cross cultural and interna onal experience without hav‐ing to go abroad. We create spaces for dialogue regarding interna onal affairs, in addi on to celebra ng various cultures. In addi on, DIA represents the inter‐ests of the rapidly increasing interna onal student popula on at Davidson. How‐ever, we are not a club of interna onal students, but rather a club of students interested in anything that happens outside of Davidson.
How did last semester go for DIA?
Vice President: Last semester went really well! We had an amazing me with our hard‐working E‐board and there were a lot of freshmen interna onals who con‐sistently volunteered their me for DIA. A great deal of non‐interna onals par‐cipated in the Interna onal Fes val and it was good to see that mix. We gave a
different feel to “Holidays Across Boarders” by really emphasizing DIA’s educa‐onal aspect on Oktoberfest. Fiestas de Quito was the first me the E‐board
dressed up and got to try something completely new. Lastly, we hosted Trivia Night and a couple of meals at Commons, which were rated excellently by stu‐dents, and it was great working with Chef Craig!
DIA T‐Shirts
We’re considering selling T‐Shirts
towards the end of the semester.
Submit any design ideas to anyone
on the E‐Board!
We held our E‐Board Retreat at the beginning of Fall semester and it was a great bonding ex‐perience for all to learn about each others’ strengths and weaknesses and really get to feel like a team at DIA!
Svamal De Fonseka Gabriela Baldeon President Vice‐President
Themed General Mee ngs
DIA had an Interna onal Hangout & Pizza Mixer on October 21st in the Interna onal Lounge.
Crêpes with Maëlan was held on Tuesday, September 27th at the Mul ‐Cultural House. Students got to learn how to make French crapes and then got to eat them!
On November 15th, DIA hosted a discussion tled Zip Cars at Da‐vidson with Dean Shandley in the Interna onal Lounge.
Masha showed us a Russian Winnie‐the‐Pooh cartoon on Sunday, No‐vember 13th at the Mul ‐Cultural House. The event was co‐sponsored by the Russian Department.
Photo by Blanca Vidal Orga
Schwarzwälder Kirschtorte (German Black Forest Cake)
Oktoberfest was held in the Mul ‐Cultural House.
Oktoberfest had a great turnout at Davidson, with a record 120 people! In Germany, Oktoberfest is an annual 16–18 day beer fes val star ng in late September and going on un l the first weekend of October. It is the largest fair in the world, a rac ng more than 5 million people each year. Ever since 1810, Oktoberfest has been a vital part of Bavari‐an culture. In 2010, the fes val lasted un l the first Mon‐day of October, marking the 200‐year anniversary of the event. The fes val is held in an area called the Theresien‐wiese (field or meadow), in close proximity to Munich's center. Only beer which is brewed within the city limits of Munich is allowed to be served. Upon passing this criterion,
a beer is designated Oktoberfest Beer, which is a registered Trademark by the Club of Munich Brewers. In 2007, almost seven million liters of German beer were served during the first sixteen days of the fes vi es. There is also a wide vari‐ety of tradi onal food like Hendl (chicken), Schweinebraten (roast pork), Schweinshaxe (grilled ham hock), Steckerlfisch (grilled fish on a s ck), Würstl (sausages) along with Brezn (Pretzel), Knödel (potato or bread dumplings), Kaspatzn (cheese noodles), Reiberdatschi (potato pancakes), Sauer‐kraut and Blaukraut (red cabbage), as well as Bavarian deli‐cacies like Obatzda (a spiced cheese‐bu er spread) and Weisswurst (a white sausage).
Tobi explaining Oktoberfest tradi ons Monse and Dancho grilling Bratwürste
“Holidays Acr
Seventy people showed up to Fiestas de Quito on Saturday, December 3rd. DIA tried to recreate the Ecuadorian holiday in the Union’s 900 Room! Here’s how it’s celebrated in Qui‐to. The fes vi es begin at the end of November in the Ec‐uadorian capital and end on December 6th, the day of the Spaniard founda on of the city. There is bull‐figh ng at Pla‐za de Toros as well as the Feria de Quito “Jesus del Gran Poder”, one of the most important bullfigh ng fairs in La n America. Rooted by Andalusian Gypsy origins, Flamenco is prac ced, which includes canto (singing), toque (guitar playing), dancing and palmas (handclaps). Other ac vi es
include parading, people riding the Chivas (open “Party Buses” with live bands), and the choosing of the “Reina de Quito” (Queen of Quito), marking the beginning of the fes‐vi es. The queen of Quito plays a role in social assistance
for the city. Cart‐racing is very popular, theatre shows are performed in the Down Town district, as well as opera shows. Some neighborhoods celebrate their favorite saint with processions and block par es accompanied by live music and bands. The fes vi es end with the “Fes val of Lights and Colors”.
oss Borders” Fiestas de
Quito!
To the right, DIA’s E‐board decides the winners of the pick‐up line contest.
Canelazo — a tradi onal Ec‐uadorian alcoholic beverage made with sugar cane, alco‐hol (aguardiente) and cinna‐mon is a fes val favorite!
Cuarenta — a tradi onal card game played during the fes vi es
Co‐Sponsorship with other Groups on Campus
DIA co‐sponsored with the Career Services Office for “Networking and Star ng the Internship Search for Interna onal Students” in Chambers 2068 on Thursday, November 17th. We had fi een interested students show up to the event and want to thank Nathan Elton for leading the session!
Fall semester’s Trivia Night at the Outpost was themed “Around the World”. With Naa as our host for the night and Svamal as the DJ, the event went very smoothly bringing in more than 50 people. Round one was on Geography, with ques ons like “Between which rivers was Mesopotamia founded?” (Tigris and Euphrates) and “Oceania is composed of which 3 sub‐regions?” (Melanesia, Polynesia and Micronesia). Round two was on World History, with ques ons like “What is the world’s newest country?” (South Sudan) and “What group of islands did Portugal allow Britain to access during World War II?” (The Azores). Round three was on Poli cs with ques ons like “Who is the current secretary of the United Na‐ons and where is he from? (Ban Ki‐moon from South Korea) and “A er the fall of Mubar‐
ak, what was the interim government of Egypt?” (Military Junta). The winning ques on of the night was “The Kingdom of New Granada was un l the early 1800’s made up of which countries?” (Panamá, Colombia, Ecuador and Venezuela). Congratula ons to Faheem Rathore and his group for winning a 15 dollar gi cer ficate to Summit Coffee!
DIA HOSTS OUTPOST TRIVIA NIGHT!
DIA took part in the Student Ac vi es Fair with all of the other student organiza ons on Tuesday, August 23rd from 5‐7 PM at Chambers Lawn to recruit new members!
DIA had a table at the Dean Rusk Welcome Back Party to promote the organiza on.
The Horn of Africa (HOA), which includes Eritrea, Djibou , Ethiopia and Somalia, also known as the Somali Peninsula, faces the Arabi‐an Sea and lies along the southern side of the Gulf of Aden. Today, it is inhabited by roughly 100 million people. In medieval mes, the Horn of Africa was known as Bilad al Barbar, the "Land of the Berbers” (the indigenous people of North Africa west of the Nile Valley). The week was co‐sponsored by the Dean Rusk SAC, Davidson Interna onal Associa on, Amnesty Interna onal, Interfaith, the Bonner Scholars, the Muslim Student Associa on, the Middle Eastern and North African Student Associa on, and the Orthodox Chris‐an Fellowship. Overall, the week raised awareness on issues like drought and famine in the region and together with dona ons from
generous individuals also fund‐raised approximately $1500, which was donated to Mercy Corps, a non‐profit organiza on who’s mis‐sion is “to alleviate suffering, poverty and oppression by helping people build secure, produc ve and just communi es.”
Students got to eat together in Commons for “Ending the Fast, Ending the Famine”, which served to break a day‐long fast and have students draw parallels between the fas ng experience and the famine of the region.
During the week, the SAC displayed photos in the Union contributed by Davidson grad John Enos, UNICEF photojour‐nalist Brendan Bannon, and non‐profit A Glimmer of Hope.
Dr. Menkhaus, an interna onal expert on the region, started the week with the “Horn of Africa Kickoff”, where he talked to stu‐dents about the condi ons of refugee camps in Northeast Africa.
DIA Co-Sponsors with Dean Rusk SAC for Horn of Africa Week from October 21st to 28th
Dean Rusk (1909‐1994), was Secretary of State under US presidents Kennedy and Johnson. He was the school’s sixth Rhodes Scholar. Born on a farm in Chero‐kee County, Georgia, the son of Davidson alumnus Robert Hugh Rusk,
from the class of 1894, entered Davidson College in the fall of 1927. Rusk was Presi‐dent of the Y.M.C.A., Cadet Major of R.O.T.C., four year le erman in varsity basketball, manager of the Students’ Store, a staff mem‐ber of Quips and Cranks, and a member of Kappa Alpha fraternity. He also worked six days a week balancing the books at a local bank and wai ng tables at a college boardinghouse in order to earn money for tui on. As Rusk recalls, “not even my years in government were busier.” Professor Archi‐bald Currie inspired him to learn more about foreign policy and interna onal law. He went to St. John’s College of Oxford University, where he received degrees in History and Poli cal Science and served in Burma during World War II. He then joined the State De‐partment’s division for Far Eastern Affairs, where he was instrumental in media ng the United States’ involvement in the Korean
War. In the 1950s Rusk headed the Rockefel‐ler Founda on, a private philanthropy group, where he stayed un l he was tapped to be the na on’s top diplomat by President John F. Kennedy. Davidson College recognized his achievements by awarding him an honorary Doctorate of Laws degree in 1950. In 1961, Rusk became Secretary of State and held the posi on for eight years, the second longest in U.S. history, in which he was party to some
crucial policy decisions of the early Cold War, including the botched Bay of Pigs invasion, the Cuban missile crisis, and the escala on of the conflict in Vietnam. As a diplomat, Rusk a empted to diffuse the moun ng tensions between Arab na ons and Israel, supported aid to developing na ons, and helped broker some of the earliest arm control agreements between the U. S. and the Soviet Union. In 1969, a er shouldering the American reputa‐
on abroad through some of the most tumul‐tuous years in its history, Rusk re red from poli cs for good. In 1970 he accepted a job teaching interna onal law at the University of Georgia, a posi on which he held un l his re rement in 1984. In October of 1985 Rusk returned to Davidson College to give the key‐note address at the inaugura on of the Dean Rusk Program in Interna onal Studies. The purpose of this $10 million mission was to incorporate discussions of interna onal is‐sues in life at Davidson. Rusk’s remarks at the convoca on, which are available at the Da‐vidson College Archives, centered upon his belief that nuclear war could yet be averted; “I do not believe that we are on this earth to reach out and grasp the power of the sun to burn ourselves off of it,” he told the students and faculty of his alma mater. When Rusk passed away in 1994, the Cold War was over and the threat of nuclear bombs had receded; the once‐maligned diplomat was eulogized by many who could only won‐der at his resolve during a me brimming with interna onal crises. Former Ambassador Jack Perry, director of the Dean Rusk Pro‐gram at Davidson, wrote in the Charlo e Observer: “When Dean Rusk died Tuesday, the Cold War became less accessible to to‐day’s students, more a part of history. He had become a living embodiment of the com‐plexi es of that dangerous period. Now we must look to the books for our answers, and hope that the historians give us the complex‐i es with all their thorns and give us Dean Rusk in all his stature." This ar cle was taken from the Davidson Online Encyclopedia.
We really appreciated the interna onal students that have helped us with our events. I think they round out an important aspect of diversity within our SAC Board as well as the Commi ees. It was especially deligh ul to have Salah as part of the Horn of Africa Commi ee. He was able to develop a rapport with the owners of the Meskerem Ethio‐pian restaurant for the benefit dinner and to keep us honest when there were cultural dynamics at play. Interna onal students encouraged us to make sure we were asking the right ques ons and cri cally thinking about who we are in this process. As the Events Commi ee of the Dean Rusk SAC, we are a group of students who have a con‐cern about an interna onal issue that's affec ng people half way around the world, and we want to be able to help make the situa on be er. We had to do a lot of background research on the aid organiza ons and make sure that we were having the right impact while remotely addressing root causes of the drought and emergency relief through fundraising. Other goals that we had as students were to engage people with issues, and again, having someone in the room during our planning process who is part of the region and the culture we were represen ng was a definite plus. It was helpful to know that we were being culturally sensi ve with the "how" of the events. We’d love to work more with interna onal students in the future! Amelia Lumpkin
Message from the Events Co‐Coordinator of the Dean Rusk SAC
Dean Rusk — A Life‐Long Legacy
Co‐Sponsorship with OLAS (Organiza on of La n American Students) & Dining Services for La n American Day at Commons!
DIA hosted La n American Day at Commons on October 14th. We would like to thank all of the staff at Commons, and OLAS for co‐sponsoring the event by managing the recipes for the Dessert Bar! Some of the foods we had were fried plan‐tains, Arroz encocado (rice with coconut), and lapia ahumada…yum yum!
In celebra on of Día de los muertos (Day of the dead), DIA co‐sponsored with OLAS (Organiza on of La n American Students) and CCM (Catholic Campus Ministries) by help‐ing to set up a table on the Café level of the Union with pictures of famous deceased people of La n American origin. Students were also given the chance to post any comments on OLAS’s Facebook page in memory of any loved ones. Día de los muertos is par cularly celebrated in Mexico, where it is a Na onal Holiday. The celebra on takes place in conjunc on to the Catholic holidays of All Saints’ Day (November 1st) and All Souls’ Day (November 2nd). Tradi ons con‐nected with the holiday include plac‐ing sugar skulls, marigolds, and the favorite foods and beverages of the departed at their graves or at private altars. The holiday originates from an Aztec fes val dedicated to goddess Mictecacihuatl. In addi on to the tra‐di onal visits to grave sites, Brazilians
parade during Dia de Finados, Guate‐malans usually fly giant kites, for Ec‐uadorians it is especially important to the indigenous Kichwa people, who make up an es mated quarter of the popula on, Hai ans play loud drums and music mixing voodoo tradi ons with Roman Catholic observances so as to waken Baron Samedi (the Loa of the dead), and Bolivians celebrate Dia de los ña tas ("Day of the Skulls"). In, European countries with a Roman Catholic heritage, like Spain, Portugal, Italy, Belgium, the Netherlands and Ireland, people celebrate usually by taking the day off work and by going to cemeteries to pray with candles and flowers. In Poland, Slovakia, Hun‐gary, Lithuania, Croa a, Slovenia, Ro‐mania, Austria, Germany, Sweden, Norway and Finland, the tradi ons
are also the same. In Austria, cakes are le for the dead on the table, and the room is kept warm for their com‐fort. In France, people flock to the cemeteries at nigh all to kneel at the graves of their loved ones and to anoint tombstones with holy water or to pour milk on them. Filipinos call it Todos Los Santos, Undas (from Span‐ish andas), or Araw ng mga Patay, and celebrate with tradi ons that were imported during the era of New Spain, when Mexico governed the Philippines. En re families camp in cemeteries to spend the night near their rela ves' tombs. Some tribes of the Amazon believe that the dead return as flowers. Asia has similar holidays like the Buddhist Bon Fes ‐
val in August, the Korean Chuseok
or Hangawi, the Chinese Ching Ming Fes val in April, the Double Ninth Fes val, and the Nepali Gai Jatra ("Cow Pilgrimage") where the cow leads the spirits of the dead into the next land. In several cultures in Afri‐ca, just before hun ng season, peo‐ple conduct visits to the graves of ancestors to leave food and gi s and to ask for protec on. It’s amazing how similar the tradi ons are around the world of se ng a day aside to visit the graves of deceased family members.
To the le is a picture from the table that was setup in the Union
DIA co‐sponsored with the newly‐formed group on campus B.A.D.
(Balkan Associa on of Davidson) and Dining Services for “Lunch in
the Balkan Region” on November 29th at Vail Commons. The
event had posi ve feedback in the DIA surveys and was featured
in the Davidson Daybook, so make sure to check out John Syme’s
ar cle on the event!
Gaby and Dancho making Souvlaki skewers, a Balkan favorite
Baklava!
Village Salad (yes—that’s Feta cheese on top)
Fun facts about the Balkans were projected on the big screen at Commons. Did you know that Serbia is the largest exporter of raspberries in the world?
China Club hosts Mid‐Autumn Fes val China Club is a newly‐formed student organiza on dedicated to promo ng Chinese culture and providing opportuni es for Chi‐nese language prac ce to Davidson students through a variety of cultural events. In addi on, China Club is the Davidson Col‐lege chapter of Global China Connec on, offering networking opportuni es and first‐hand informa on about living and in‐ves ng in China. The club holds bi‐weekly general mee ngs and has 20 members, supervised by Vivian Shen, the Chair of the Chinese Department. Last semester, China Club had a table at the Interna onal Fes val and hosted the Mid‐Autumn Fes val in the 900 Room with the Chinese Department, bringing together Chinese‐American students, interna onal students from China, students taking Chinese at Davidson, as well as community members and children from Davidson Elementary School who were interested in Chinese culture. This semester, China Club co‐sponsored “Lunar New Year” with ACAA on January 28th, with a spectacular fireworks celebra on on Chambers lawn! If you would like to join the China Club, email [email protected]
Did you know that Paul Chih Meng (class
of 1921) was Da‐vidson’s first Chinese
student? The photo on the le was a Senior
Yearbook Entry in Quips and Cranks in
1921.
Meng’s Book Chinese American Understanding is in the Davidsoniana Room
The Asian Culture & Awareness Associa on (ACAA) is commi ed to pro‐mo ng awareness within Davidson of the contribu ons of the Asian/Asian American popula on. ACAA strives to maintain a sense of unity among the Asian American students of Davidson, while invi ng all students, Asian and non‐Asian, to explore and cul vate their interests in Asian and Asian Ameri‐can culture. The first East Asian student at Davidson was Evander Bradley McGivalry from the class of 1884. He lived in Siam, however, his alumni file reveals that he was not Siamese, but the son of American missionaries. Last semester, ACAA hosted Asian Culture & Awareness Week with various events las ng from October 21st to November 3rd, 2011. The tles of the events were “Eliot Chang's Stand‐Up Comedy Tour”, “Asian Hip Hop Show”, “Lecture by Dr. Kim: Asian‐American Success Stories”, “FiRE Benefit Dinner (Filipinas for Rights and Empowerment)”, “Bubble Tea Sale”, and “Spice Up Your Life! (Asian dishes from Vietnam, Japan, Korea, China, and India)”.
To the le is a Davidsonian ar cle published in the 1999‐2000 school year about the then Asia3D, a pre‐cursor organiza on to ACAA.
2011 Asian Hip Hop Show
Dalia Basiouny — A story from Tahrir Square
“People of every age and background were flooding the place all a ernoon and evening when they heard that the president was going to address the na on,” referring to Egypt’s former president...Hussein Mubarak. On Tuesday, September 6th, in the Barber Theatre, Dalia Basiouny performed Solitaire: a one‐woman show that connects the events of September 11th, 2001 in the United States to the recent Egyp an Revolu on. The event was co‐sponsored by the Theatre Department, the Dean Rusk Interna onal Studies Program and MENASA (Middle Eastern and North African Student Associa on). Through the eyes of an Egyp an woman who par cipated in the January revolu on in Tahrir Square, the performance explored Arab and Arab‐American experiences and iden es in a post 9/11 world using a variety of mul ‐media. The performance was a mix of Arabic and English, and was then followed by a Q&A ses‐sion. On Wednesday, September 7th, Dean Rusk and MENASA co‐hosted a Breakfast Series where students got to ask ques‐ons on a more personal level to the speaker.
On Friday, October 14th, MENASA, the Mid‐dle Eastern and North African Student Asso‐cia on had its semester cooking session on "How to Make Baklava" (Egyp an style) at the Mul ‐Cultural House.
Ireni Fahim from Charlo e’s Egyp an community teaching students how to fold the fillo dough
On November 17th in Lily Gallery, MENASA (Middle Eastern and North African Student Associa on) and the Arabic De‐partment hosted a lecture by William Roebuck. In the lecture, Roebuck spoke about the revolu onary wave of demonstra‐ons in the Arab World and about his then recent trip to Lib‐
ya. William Roebuck became Director for the Office of Ma‐ghreb Affairs in the State Department’s Bureau of Near East‐ern Affairs and his office had been on the front lines, helping shape the U.S. government’s diploma c response to the mo‐mentous developments known as the Arab Spring. He has
worked at the U.S. Embassy in Baghdad, served as Deputy Office Director for Arabian Peninsula Affairs, focusing on US rela ons with key Gulf allies such as Saudi Arabia, the United Arab Emirates, and Qatar and counter‐terrorism coopera on with Yemen and worked in Washington at the office of the Assistant Secretary for Near Eastern Affairs. To download and listen to this lecture, go to h p://itunes.davidson.edu/ and click on the "public access" link. Then scroll down in the "campus events" sec on to find the “Arab Spring Lecture”. To join MENASA email [email protected]
FUN FACT! In 1910, Davidson College had 14 faculty including President Henry Louis Smith and 315 students, including two interna onal students from Persia. Tui on was $89.00 per year but there were addi onal expenses. The popula‐on of the town of Davidson was under 1000.
www.wix.com/davidsoncollege/m
enasa
"Arab Spring" Lecture by William Roebuck
Ahahabeg David Yonan came to Da‐vidson from Persia in 1896. Because of the persecu on of the Armenian sect, he le Persia and was in Con‐stan nople for awhile when, and by advice of some missionaries and of Roberts College, he came to America and Davidson. In 1998 he was the class captain of the football team. The summer after graduation in 1899, he went to a picnic on the Catawba River. Yonan drowned in the river while trying to save Fred Hobbs, an‐other student who was drowning. Even though Yonan couldn't swim, he exclaimed "I must save his life." To‐day he is buried in the college ceme‐tery. His epitaph reads "Greater love hath no man than this, that a man lay down his life for a friend." He is Da‐vidson’s first interna onal student.
You’re looking at Davidson’s first Interna onal Student!
For the class gradua ng in 2015, there were a total of 363 interna onal applicants of which 56 were admi ed and 24 enrolled. For the upcoming gradua ng class of 2016, there were 382 overall interna onal applicants. A total of 13 interna onal students were accepted with Early Decision this year, including 6 interna onal students in ED1, as well as 3 Americans living abroad in Qatar and the United Kingdom, and 4 interna onal students with ED2. Dean Chris Gruber, Wookie Payne and Irma Navarro visited a total of 30 countries in Europe, Asia, Africa, La n America and Central America. Together, they represented Davidson to approximately 60 schools and organiza ons as well as at events like college fairs, public venues and interna onal conferences.
Last fall, Irma J. Navarro, Assistant Dean of Admission and Financial Aid and Assistant Director of Mul cultural Admission at Davidson, was able to spend a couple of weeks in Mexico and Panama. She was able to meet with college advisors and stu‐dents at Educa on USA in Mexico City who were interested in studying at colleges and universi es in the United States. Ms. Navarro par cipated in an informa on panel with counselors from Ohio State University, The University of Chicago, Vanderbilt Universi‐ty, and The American Musical and Drama c Academy, aimed to help students be er understand the differences amongst colleges and universi es in the US and the com‐plexi es of the admission and financial aid process. While in Mexico, Ms. Navarro visit‐ed 9 high schools in 6 ci es (Mexico City, Guadalajara, Queretaro, Monterrey, Chihua‐hua, and Puerto Vallarta). Although her stay in Panama was much shorter, she was able to visit Balboa Academy and represent Davidson at the 10th Annual Ins tute for Post‐Secondary Admission and Guidance hosted by The Council of Interna onal Schools. Ms. Navarro enjoyed leading workshops for students, which included topics like "A Liberal Arts Educa on in the USA," "Selec ve Admission," "The College Essay," and "Financial Aid for US Ci zens."
In August of 2011, Christopher Gruber, VP and Dean of Admission and Financial Aid, travelled to China with a group of Deans and Directors from other highly selec ve Liberal Arts Colleges throughout the United States. During the me they were travel‐ling, they did presenta ons to large groups of students about the value of a Liberal Arts educa on as well as provide specifics about each ins tu on. Addi onally, he was able to individually interview many of the students and gain a deeper insight into the stu‐dents as well as impart more informa on about Davidson College. This was the second year that Davidson par cipated with this group which is by invita on only and has no cost to Davidson except the airfare to and from China. Being part of this group has opened Davidson to fine students in China and given many Chinese students the oppor‐tunity to understand and appreciate Davidson and the concept of Liberal Arts.
Most of the fall of 2011 involved travel for Eleanor Payne, Interna onal Admission Officer. Trips included two weeks in Central and South America (10 countries) with 28 other colleges and universi es do‐ing college fairs, workshops for students and families as well as briefings for Educa on USA offices in several countries. Addi onally, Ms. Payne spent two weeks traveling to 10 countries in Africa with a group of 18 other in‐s tu ons visi ng schools, mee ng students, providing informa on about the college process and about Davidson specifically. Between those group travel events, Ms. Payne spent me in Greece, Turkey, Czech Republic and Bulgaria making private visits to high schools in the major ci es of those countries and talking individually to students, par‐ents and counselors. During the Council for Interna onal Students Forum mee ng in Lisbon, Ms. Payne, presented a workshop of financial aid and scholarships to the ad‐mission representa ves and high school guidance counselors from throughout the world. Highlights certainly included visits to the Oprah Winfrey school as well as the African Leadership Academy both in South Africa.
Office of Interna onal Admissions News
The French Club, sponsored by the Davidson’s Department of French, is a student‐run, on‐campus organiza on that promotes awareness of the French and Francophone culture through ac vi es and excursions. Normally, the Club E‐Board conducts an administra ve mee ng once a month to organ‐ize upcoming events. All Club events take place at a once a month rhythm. Last semester, the French Club par cipated in the annual Interna onal Fes val and offered a generous crêpe sale, along with hos ng a cornucopia of French‐related ac vi es (such as study breaks and a fête à l’orange for Hal‐loween). Last semester’s major cultural excursion was to Opera Carolina’s performance of Madama Bu erfly in Charlo e. This semester, we hosted a crêpe/Mardi Gras themed party with king cakes to promote Louisianan Francophone culture, and we will host a French/Francophone film fes val in March. Addi onally, under the auspices of the French Department, we will put together several in‐terdepartmental round table discussions and an ice cream social for students coming back from the Davidson in Tours program. All students who are interested in the French culture are invited and encouraged to par cipate. There is no par cipa on fee. Venez nombreux!
Ben Ireland and Rachel Gulo a, Co‐Presidents of the French Club
The Trustees voted in February 1961 to admit African students – that is, interna onal stu‐dents from the Congo. Ben Nzengu broke Da‐vidson’s color barrier when he entered in the fall of 1962. He was joined by Georges Nzongola in 1963. The trustee decision in 1961 was not welcomed by all. Students in‐volved in local sit‐ins found themselves ostra‐cized by other students and local merchants resisted changing any segrega on prac ces, even for interna onal students of color. The spring before Ben entered Davidson, only 53% of the students supported integra on of the college – but more local merchants were will‐ing to serve students of color.
Ben Nzengu arrives at Davidson
Candy, Pearl, Egyriba, & Amrote ‐ "Be gye woa ye yi" 2004
Today, the Davidson African Students Associa‐on (DASA) is an associa on commi ed to
nourishing cultural, intellectual, poli cal, and economic awareness about the African con ‐nent. The African Students Associa on at Da‐vidson College is working to expose students to the challenges facing the African con nent. It aims to create a network and support system for African students and students of African descent. At the same me, DASA is open to all members of the Davidson community interest‐ed in the advancement of humanity in Africa and around the globe. DASA will help organize an Africana party and will send a representa ve to Charlo e’s “Doing Business in Fast-Growing Africa: A Focus on Regional Markets and Eco-nomic Hubs” Conference on April 27th in con‐junc on with Charlo e Africa Business Week 2012. If you would like to be involved with DA‐SA, email [email protected]
“Ghanaian Na on” of Interna onal Fes val 2004
DIA Timeline “Looking Back at the Decade”
2000
2001
2002
2003
2004
2005
2006
2007
2008
2009
2010
Scan this Barcode to be directed to our vir‐
tual Facebook Photo Storage, where you
can view DIA photo albums from the en‐
re decade!
The HistoThe student body at Davidson was mostly homogeneous – white Southern males. There were students who were children of mis‐sionaries and had lived abroad, like Fron s Howe Johnston (class of 1855) from Smyrna, Turkey or Evander Bradley McGilvary (class of 1884) from Chieng Mai, Siam. The first interna onal stu‐dent was Ahahabeg David Yonan who came to Davidson in 1896 from Persia. He was followed by two other Persian students–Michael Mar Yosip and Joash Yohannan, who both graduated in 1911. In the next decades, there were some other interna onal students, but the college did not experience a change in the stu‐dent body pool. The Davidson Trustees voted on May 17th, 1962 to open Davidson to students from the Congo. Ben Nzengu a ended the college in the fall of 1962 and Georges Nzongola‐Ntalaja a ended in the fall of 1963. The first African‐American students, Leslie Brown and Wayne Crumwell, came in the fall of 1964, while Davidson had s ll been a men’s college. Julia Deck, Denise Fanuiel, Debra Kyle and Marian Perkins joined the first class of women as the college went co‐ed. The first African‐American women students came in the fall of 1973. The Quips & Cranks of 1921 shows that there was then a Foreign‐ers Club on campus. This was a group of white students, whose parents were missionaries who had lived abroad. The first orga‐nized program for international students was the Richardson Scholarship Foundation Foreign Students Scholarship of 1958, which aimed at influencing better understanding between a vari‐ety of cultures for students that would be the future of leader‐ship in their respective countries. The scholarship allowed foreign students to study for one year at Davidson College. Though 7 out of 15 of the first Richardson Scholars in 1958 were international students of color, they were all from only Korea, South America and Central America. Richardson Scholars instituted change as they switched from a mostly upper‐middle class recruitment class to socioeconomically deprived students from places like Eastern Europe, Asia and Latin America. A quest for “internationalization” has been present on campus since the ear‐ly sixties. In the year 1960, Davidson had 15 international stu‐dents. By 1961 there was an organization on campus called DI‐ASA, the Davidson International Alumni and Students Associa‐tion. There are records of a Foreign Study Committee in 1963, which was created to consider and rule on policy governing of the Davidson Junior Year Abroad Program and other study abroad plans. As a general policy, the Committee encouraged wide participation and facilitated obtaining credit for work done abroad. “We are here not so much to learn as to teach. And what we have to teach is great: Some students here know nothing about...the rest of the world”, said an international student in the 60s.
One of the first student commi ees at Davidson cre1984. Racial A tudes Concern Everyone (RACE) wadrew Yon ‘86. At that me, minority organiza ons Guild of Organists, the Catholics, the Na onal OrgaLater on, from the early 1990s un l 2004, the Councto the table together to pass the superficial imagethe issues of race rela ons and minority affairs. It wernment Associa on (SGA) to oversee and give a voIn 1998, COMA served as a outlet solely for the IntOrganiza on of La n American Students (OLAS). Unstatus as a diversity organiza on as opposed to beinclubs on campus to encompass race, religion, gendereplaced by the Diversity Coordina ng Commi ee (organiza on on campus for the Jewish Student Unvidson African Student Associa on (DASA), OLAS(MECCA), the Asian Cultural Awareness Associa onfor New Learning, and Chronically Disabled StudentDiversity Coordina ng Board (DCB).
RACE, DIVER
ry of DIA In 1969, a series titled “Around the World in 80 Cups of Cof‐fee” began as an informal way for International students to share aspects of their culture. Ishida and Norihiko Lio were the first participants to discuss Japanese culture, geography, food, education and social customs. The 1972‐1973 Richard‐son Scholars Roster shows that 10 out of 14 scholars were in‐ternational students of color. However this change was gradu‐al as international students shared difficult experiences.
For example, Antonio Diaz, a student from Panama City who spent all four years at Davidson, was one of the first Richard‐son Scholars at Davidson. He was sponsored by Phi Gamma Delta Fraternity and eventually became the Rush Week Chair. Diaz concluded that his Davidson experience was enjoyable, however he noted that there were not enough Spanish speak‐ers on campus he could relate to.
Over the years, a number of scholars felt that American stu‐dents were uninterested in learning about the international students and that they faced exclusion on campus. In 1974, the Foreign Study Committee changed its name to the Inter‐national Education Committee. The committee focused on study abroad programs and increasing international aware‐ness on campus. In the College Archive, one can find minutes, reports and correspondence with the committee as well as information on the Critical Language Program and the original Foreign Study Plan, such as an evaluation of the plan’s strengths and weaknesses in its first two and half years of ex‐istence. An article printed in the Davidsonian on April 5th, 1974, titled “Selfish Students Shock International Students”, interviews students and their feelings toward Davidson stu‐dents. In 1977, the college established the Dean Rusk Scholars Program for British students to attend Davidson for one year. In 1978, Anthony Boon, a coordinator of the international studies program recognized that students of non‐European descent did not have as good opportunities as students of Eu‐ropean descent in adjusting to Davidson life. Additionally, a better orientation program, involvement in eating houses and encouragement of American students to room with interna‐tional students were put into practice. Davidson also celebrat‐ed international students by hosting cultural weekends in the Alvarez College Union to create a more culturally aware com‐munity on campus. A committee on the International Stu‐dents Scholarship Program, responsible for evaluating the ex‐periences of international students and increasing their partic‐ipation in academic and social life, was developed. Special so‐cial activities were set up to “Make people more aware of in‐ternational students and more sensitive to their needs, said former Assistant Dean of Students Paula Moore.
eated to provide social support for minori es began in as a commi ee chaired by a white student named An‐meant the Black Student Coali on (BSC), the American niza on of Women (NOW) and the Young Libertarians. cil of Minority Affairs (COMA) worked on ge ng people s and talk truthfully about emo on on the campus on was created as an advisory agency to the Student Gov‐oice in the SGA seat for all minority groups on campus. terna onal Students Associa on (ISA), the BSC and the nder Tiffany Hollis ‘04, the club focused primarily on its ng a part of the SGA. It took un l 2004 for the minority er and physical disability. In the same year, COMA was (DCC) and operated un l 2006, serving as the umbrella nion, the Muslim Students Associa on (MSA), the Da‐, DIA, the Middle Eastern Cross‐Cultural Associa on n (ACAA), the BSC, the Gay‐Straight Alliance, Students t Associa on (CDSA). In 2007, DCC changed its name to
SITY, SOLIDARITY
As a result, Davidson students became more aware of
international students and their needs. The Dean Rusk
Program in International Studies began making large
strides to integrate International Students on campus in
the late eighties. The International Student Committee
was formed in 1982 and was responsible for student
events programming. It took over the hosting of the cul‐
tural weekends in the Union. In 1989, Ismat Husain, a
student from Zambia and the Chairman of the Interna‐
tional Committee, noted that the most difficult problem
for international students was meeting American stu‐
dents. He noted a clear division between Patterson
Court life and International student life. As a result, he
created a Big Brother/Little Brother program in which
eating house members adopted international students
and drew them into the social life. Other events such as
the International Ball and the International Fair were
held. The position of Assistant Dean of International Stu‐
dents and Bonner Scholars was established in 1993.
In April of 1993, a forum was convened by the SGA to
discuss international student concerns. At the conclu‐
sion of the forum a large majority of international stu‐
dents present gave their assent to a proposal that would
address a long‐felt need on campus – the creation of an
international student organization. On September 21st,
1993, the International Student Association (ISA) gained
official recognition upon receiving a charter from the
SGA, boosting ISA membership to 82 members. Mem‐
bership was open to international and American stu‐
dents who were interested in international issues. The
initial objectives of ISA were to improve the quality of
the Davidson experience for international students, to
strengthen inter‐action between internationals and the
rest of the Davidson College community and to promote
global awareness on campus. ISA would serve the needs
of international students on matters concerning official
college policy pertaining to international admissions,
financial aid, curriculum, staff, housing, student life etc.
ISA also reported international student concerns to per‐
sons and organizations of authority such as the Dean of
Students, the Residence Life Office, the Union Board,
the Student Government Association, the Council on
Minority Affairs, and the International Committee of the
Union Board. Monthly meetings were held and a "Great
Escape" excursions program was initiated for interna‐
tionals to visit Charlotte for food, music and movies. In
1993, the International Festival was organized by the
Union’s Cultural Events Committee, as was International
Night, International Ball in the spring and the Interna‐
tional Christmas Party with host families. Membership
was open to all full‐time Davidson students. ISA would
offer cultural excursions to Charlotte that were called
“Great Escapes”, outings to foreign restaurants, a “Big
Brother, Big Sister” program, and career support for in‐
ternationals. Efforts were also made to initiate a Model
United Nations program at Davidson. Other than the
standard E‐Board positions, ISA also had an Advocacy
Chair, representatives for freshman, sophomore, junior,
senior and one‐year students, a Social Council, a By‐
Laws Committee and even a Retreat Committee.
In 1994, the Davidson College Union Programming
Board (UPB) Policy Committee voted on merging the
International & Cultural Events Committees of the Un‐
ion, so the functioning of the International Committee
stopped and its financial resources were taken over by
the Cultural Events Committee.
As Davidson's international student population had
been growing over the years, the idea of having a house
for international students was born, similar in aspects to
the Black Student Coalition. In 1995, ISA had made the
first efforts for the foundation of an International House
on campus through petitions to gather signatures, by
asking faculty to write letters supporting an Internation‐
al House and by hosting an event called International
Night that would promote the idea of an International
House. A submission for the house was made in 1996 by
then Director of the Dean Rusk Program Dr. Kenneth
Brown. It would have been located in a Davidson‐owned
residence on Main Street. However, the departments
supporting the proposal did not have the funds to cover
the costs. Also, the Student Union, which was to be built
in the coming years, was to have a designated area sole‐
ly for international student use, and this area would be
very similar to an International House.
In 1998 the areas of International Students and Bonner
Scholars/Community Services were divided and a sepa‐
rate Office of International Students was established.
The office was and still is responsible for overseeing the
affairs of international students, including those with
dual citizenship, Americans Living Abroad, and foreign
nationals. The office coordinates campus and communi‐
ty services to international students, provides assistance
on immigration matters and promotes interaction be‐
tween foreign students and the college and local com‐
munity.
For years, the office had also been the headquarters for
the International Students Association and worked
closely with the Cultural Events Committee of the Col‐
lege Union. Having a full time international student advi‐
sor worked wonders to help students be acquainted
with American culture. The records for the International
Students Program include committee minutes and re‐
ports, internal correspondence and memoranda, copies
of handbooks, student lists, newsletters, news clippings,
and a scrapbook on PRAM (Project of the Americas).
There is also a file that contains circular letters written
by international alumni, from 1960 to 1962 and copies
of letters written by former students to Mr. Richardson.
These letters, accompanied by photographs, reflect on
international students’ experiences and provide some
information on what the students did after their return
to their home countries.
President Emeritus Samuel Spencer described in the
spring 1999 issue of the Davidson Journal that "World
War II broke that provincial southern mold. Davidson
soon became interested in finding ways to provide op‐
portunities for international students to come to cam‐
pus and for American students to go abroad."
After two and a half years of no international
house, in a bid to increase its presence on campus,
the newly‐named Davidson International Associa‐
tion (DIA) tried to gain use of the Outpost Building.
DIA had circulated a petition to present to the
Committee on Campus and Religious Life (CCRL), an
advisory body for the Office of the President. The
outpost would have become DIA's official home.
Then DIA President Shalini Unnikrishnan '01 said
that student response to the petition was incredi‐
ble and there was enormous circulation through
emails on DIA’s mailing list. The Black Student Coa‐
lition (BSC), Asia3D or the precursor to today’s
Asian Cultural Awareness Association (ACAA) and
the Organization of Latin American Students (OLAS)
all extended support as groups for giving the build‐
ing to DIA. The Paterson Court Council (PCC) indi‐
cated it felt a responsibility to support other PCC
organizations if they wanted the Outpost. The big‐
gest hurdle was breaking the stereotype of DIA as
'for international only", which was the reason of
the name change from the International Student
Association to the Davidson International Associa‐
tion. DIA would emphasize that it is a place for any‐
one on campus who had interest in international
awareness. The purpose was to have a permanent
base for DIA operations but also to provide a place
for informal interaction between students, so as to
dispel myths about DIA's role on campus. Also, DIA
would add a distinct flavor to Court life, by increas‐
ing their capacity to organize creative program‐
ming, like Quesadilla Movie Nights showing foreign
films. The name switch from ISA to DIA probably
happened in 1996 by a majority vote amongst in‐
ternational students. In 2001, the Davidson Inter‐
national Association changed its aim to provide a
forum to address international political, economic,
and cultural issues in order to promote greater in‐
ternational consciousness on campus. The DIA rec‐
ords contain a collection of the group's constitu‐
tion, member correspondence, and flyers and pam‐
phlets concerning International Festivals hosted in
the past. There is also a letter, circa October 2000,
addressed to Dean Tom Shandley, pleading for the
old Outpost on Patterson Court to become the In‐
ternational House, and it would be "modeled on
the BSC."
Beginning in fall of 2001, DIA and the International
Council began to function as a conglomerate with
the purpose of developing and promoting interna‐
tionalism at Davidson, inculcating the diverse cul‐
tures of international students in the Davidson
Community and spreading political and non‐
political awareness of issues affecting their daily
lives. DIA had established strong relationships with
CoHo and continued its close ties with the minority
organizations on campus, namely Asia3D, OLAS,
and BSC. International Festival in 2002 included 18
countries and performances like Latin, Korean, Indi‐
an and Bulgarian dancing, a Martial Arts showing, a
Shades of Brown performance and Mexican folk‐
lore telling. 2003 marked the year of DIA's tenth
annual International Festival. In 2004, DIA would
host International Club Night at the Outpost, Multi‐
Cultural Kids Day and many more events. Despite
the various attempts for an International House,
ISA and DIA never successfully managed to get one.
Today, DIA is an organization that spun from ISA
with similar goals. Since the name change, the In‐
ternational Association has centered its goals on
the integration of the international and American
communities at Davidson. Internationalism is a
broad goal, and there are many different ways in
which we are tackling the issue. DIA works closely
with the International Student Office in reaching
out to more than 140 international students on
campus. We organize all kinds of social activities
and fun get‐togethers. Most of all, we are friends
from different cultures and countries! The commu‐
nity is very accepting and easy to get along with as
students are more understanding of international
issues. Davidson thus was able to change its ideolo‐
gy and approach towards not only teaching non‐
European International students, but also learning
from these students. Andrew Ma from the class of
2012, profoundly sums up the experience of an in‐
ternational student at Davidson, “Cultural igno‐
rance is hard to ignore. However, in ways, I enjoy
being able to show students the differences in our
Davidson circle and teach them that not everyone
is white and rich.” Today, the College accepts appli‐
cations from international students to attend for 1
to 4 years. The increasing interest from students in
studying abroad and applying for travel grants, the
growing number of international students, gener‐
ous grants from donors directed to international
applicants, the fairly newly‐erected Multi‐Cultural
House, and of course all of the diversity‐related
student organizations on campus give international
students more opportunities to be representatives
of their home country and their peoples’ culture.
Programs before the school year starts, such as
S.T.R.I.D.E. Orientation, International Student Ori‐
entation and Host Family Program Orientation all
serve to better prepare new students entering the
Davidson community.
During a 1986 Ku Klux Klan march down Main
Street, a movement called Common Ground was
started by students from all ethnic backgrounds
who hosted an event for the Davidson community
to come together in support of equality. Common
Ground con nued by hos ng Solidarity Day and
Solidarity Week at Davidson. In 2011, the Common
Ground movement was brought back to campus
with a commi ee formed by members of the BSC,
OLAS, and ACAA and some college faculty who are
currently working to host a week of events pertain‐
ing to mul cultural awareness this upcoming
March.
A special thanks goes to Jan Blodgett, the College
Archivist and Records Management Coordinator of
the E. H. Little Library, and Sharon Byrd, the Special
Collections Outreach Librarian who helped us trace
our international origins spanning from the first
international student to come to Davidson in 1896
until today. Also, part of this history was taken
from a project by Devin Gorsen, Stephen McNeal,
Teresa Adams, Christi Moore and Yeeva Cheng for
Dr. Nancy Fairley’s Anthropology 205 Ethnic Rela-
tions class in the fall semester of 2011.
1890 1900 1910 1920 1930 1940 1950
THE INTER
1896, Arrival of first Interna‐
onal student at Davidson,
Ahahabeg David Yonan,
from Persia
1958, Richardson Foreign Stu‐
dent Scholarships ini ated
1919, Arrival of first Asian
Interna onal student at
Davidson, Paul Chi Meng,
from China
1961, Arrival of first African In‐
terna onal student at Davidson,
Ben Nzengu, from the Congo
1961, There is an organiza on at Da‐
vidson called DIASA (Davidson Interna‐
onal Alumni & Students Associa on)
1921, There is a group on campus
called the Foreigners Club, for
white students who were children
of missionary families that lived
abroad
1963, Foreign Study Commi ee
formed
1974, The Foreign Study Commi ee
changes name to the Interna onal
Educa on Commi ee
1998, Office of Interna onal Students was established
2001, DIA and Interna onal Council
func on as a conglomerate to pro‐
mote interna onalism
2001, DIA becomes chartered by
the SGA
2001, second wave of efforts by
DIA for an Interna onal House
1960, Davidson has 15 Interna onal
students enrolled
1982, Interna onal Student
Commi ee is formed
1996, First proposal for an Interna onal House is submi ed
1998, Interna onal Students and Bonner Scholars/
Community Services become divided; the Office of
Interna onal Students was established
2004, COMA changes name to
Diversity Coordina ng Commi ee
(DCC)
2007, DCC changes name to Di‐
versity Coordina ng Board (DCB)
0 1960 1970 1980 1990 2000 2010
RNATIONAL TIMELINE
In October of 1985 Rusk returned to Da‐
vidson College to give the keynote address at
the inaugura on of the Dean Rusk Program
in Interna onal Studies.
1993, ISA (Interna onal Student
Associa on) becomes chartered by
SGA
1994, Merging of the Interna onal Commi ee and the
Cultural Events Commi ee of the Union, the Interna‐
onal Commi ee was taken over by the Cultural Events
Commi ee and was thus terminated
2011, DIA hosts the 18th An‐
nual Interna onal Fes val
1996, ISA changes its name
to DIA (Davidson Interna‐
onal Associa on)
2011, Announcement of the Alva‐
rez Scholars Program, providing
financial support for interna onal
students at Davidson.
1993, Posi on of Assistant Dean of Interna onal
Students and Bonner Scholars was established
2010, Mul ‐Cultural House inaugurated
1986, Common Ground Started at Davidson
(Solidarity Day and Mul ‐Cultural Awareness Week)
1984, Racial A tudes Concern
Everyone (RACE) was formed
1990s Council on Minority Affairs (COMA) is
formed
The ISA
Interna onal Student Associa on
The DIA
Davidson Interna onal Associa on
The DIA
Davidson Interna onal Associa on
1994
2004
2011
Logo Transforma on. DIA’s logo changed from the one above to the one below in January,
2011 a er a series of various logo op ons presented by DIA members.
We’re always open to any new logo ideas!
DIAlogue Issue # 1 March, 2012
DIA on the Web
Go to www.m.wix.com/davidsoncollege/dia if you are using a smartphone and you will be directed to DIA’s Mobile site, where you can get event updates, view our photo albums and contact us. We are also in the works of crea ng an app for An‐droid, Blackberry and Iphone users. Un l today, DIA has switched websites four mes and Facebook pages twice. As part of DIA’s effort to digi ze our history, we
have uploaded albums to our Facebook page with photos from the past decade, which were generously given to us by Bill Giduz from the Communica ons Depart‐ment. Our goal is to have an online storage open to all DIA members with material from Ahahabeg David Yonan’s entry in to Davidson in 1896 un l today. Addi onally, more photos can be found on our Events Blog.
Editorial — What is the DIAlogue?
The first a empt of a publica on was the Davidson Foreign Students Circular Le er in 1960. This was basically a le er wri en by the Richardson Scholars, who were foreign students at Davidson, ad‐dressing students in other countries like Panama, Denmark, Sweden, Germany, Iceland, Argen na, the Netherlands, Eng‐land, Austria, Finland, Norway and India. In 1961, an organiza on on campus called DIASA, or the Davidson Interna‐onal Alumni and Students Associa on
had a publica on called DIASL, the Da‐vidson Interna onal Alumni and Students Le er. The next newsle er in Davidson’s interna onal student history was the inaugural edi on of the “World News’ Newsle er, published in May of 1994 and this was a pilot project setup as a joint venture between the Interna onal Student Associa on (ISA) and the Dean Rusk Student Advisory Commi ee (SAC). The issue we have today has an ar cle on the main goals of ISA, an interna onal poem, an ar cle on the Interna onal Ball at Davidson and two interna onal en‐counters from Kenya and Korea. Other than “Worldly News”, students also wrote in the Interna onal Column of the Davidsonian with ar cles like Africa Week of Davidson and A Day in the Life of an Indonesian. In 1996 ISA would pub‐lish a monthly newsle er for the organi‐za on called “Global Fusion”. A similar, but bi‐weekly newsle er was published by the Interna onal Student Office at the me called “Global Graffi ”. From 1997
to 1998, before the Interna onal Student Office went under the Dean Rusk Pro‐gram, interna onal students and Bonner scholars, under the guidance of Ruth
Pi ard would publish a newsle er called “Interna onal Student Office News” and there were 22 issues of this pub‐lished. The ISA E‐Board in February of 2002 published a newsle er tled “The No‐mad”. This newsle er was dubbed “The Nomad” in honor of everyone who had travelled near and far and had come together at Da‐vidson. This newsle er was a sharing of informa on amongst inter‐na onals and Americans, and also pro‐moted coopera on between interna on‐al students and the Dean Rusk SAC. Ar ‐cles were wri en about Vietnamese New Year, the tradi ons of Ramadan and Val‐en ne’s Day, how interna onal students liked the study‐abroad experience in the States, interna onal jokes and horo‐scopes, interna onal sports news, car‐toons, an ar cle on fast food in America and literary pieces wri en by interna‐onals. “The Nomad” was published in
previous years as well, but at the me the issue we have today was published, only one interna onal student had ap‐plied with Early Decision to Davidson that year. A er many students read an ar cle published in this issue of “The No‐mad” about the lack of interna onal awareness on campus, they all got to‐gether to write inspira onal le ers about their great experience at Davidson and they sent them all around the world, so as to bring more interna onal students to campus. Now that’s making a differ‐ence! When I read this, I was amazed at the power of the interna onal students and the responsibility they felt in bring‐
ing more representa ves not only from home but from anywhere foreign! What is the DIAlogue? It is a new, stu‐dent‐run publica on of DIA. The DIA-logue is a conversa on for the Davidson interna onal community so that all of the groups related to DIA can express their thoughts, whether community members, groups on campus, faculty, staff, alumni, and of course the DIA members themselves. The DIAlogue will thus aim to record interna onal events and promote upcoming events hosted by DIA and other interna onally‐oriented groups on campus, as well as events from the Interna onal Student Office and the Host Family Program. Please email ar cle and photo submissions, as well as any feedback and recommenda ons for the publica on to [email protected] Cheers to another great year of interna‐onaliza on at Davidson for 2012! Don’t
forget to tweet us @DavidsonDIA
2002 Issue of “The Nomad”
Davidson Foreign Students Circular
Le er, Geneva 1960
1996 Issue of “Global Fusion”
Inaugural Edi on of “Worldly News” 1994
Volume 2, Issue 2 of “Worldly News” 1995
1996 Issue of “Global Graffi ”
Selec ons from Newsle ers published by
the Interna onal Office
2012 DIAlogue Inaugural Edi on
This cartoon by Davidson student Jon Hutzley, was drawn during the first years of the
crea on of the Interna onal Student Associa on (ISA).
It reads:
“Interna onal Students Mee ng: OPEN TO ALL! 7:00 in the Big Screen Room”
“I didn’t even know we had interna onal students at Davidson!”
“I think we have some guy from Canada or something here..”
“All I know is that I just got my hair cut by Norton.”
Svamal de Fonseka ‘13 — President
Born in Colombo, Sri Lanka, Svamal has also lived in Accra, Ghana. He is an Economics ma‐jor, is involved in the ATC (Ac vi es Tax Coun‐cil) and enjoys hanging out with friends.
Gaby Baldeon ‘13 — Vice President
Gaby was born in Quito, Ecuador. A Biology major, she is involved in Inter‐Varsity Chris an Fellowship, Alterna ve Breaks and Free Clinics of Our Towns, and enjoys dancing and music.
Frizzi Bschorer '14 — Treasurer
From Barnin, Germany, Frizzi is a Pre‐Medical Studies sophomore. She speaks German, French, Spanish and some Chinese and is on the Varsity Tennis team.
Klea Miho ‘14 — Community Service Chair
Klea is a Psychology major, mainly concentrat‐ed in I/O Psychology, from Thessaloniki, Greece. She enjoys photography, event plan‐ning and is interested in issues related to Glob‐aliza on, Development, Sustainability and Ad‐ver sing.
Tafadzwa Maghalese ‘13 — Com. Service Chair
Tafazwa is an Economics major from Harare, Zimbabwe. She enjoys reading, shopping and watching movies and is also involved in the Student Life Commi ee on campus.
Gerry Alvarez‐So l ‘14 — Historian & Outreach
An undecided sophomore from Mexico City, Mexico, Jerry likes playing sports and is on the Club Rugby and Club Soccer teams at Davidson. Apart from DIA, he is also involved in Literacy for Life.
Monse Jacome ‘14 — Publicity Chair
From Quito, Ecuador, Monse is a French and Spanish AT, is in the Swing and Salsa Club, loves dancing and making digital artwork and is an Interna onal Poli cal Economy major.
Lenny Shenje '11 — SGA/DCB Representa ve
A sophomore Physics major from Harare, Zim‐babwe, Lenny is involved in Club Soccer and First Responders and enjoys biking and spend‐ing me with friends.
Gustavo Orozco‐Lince ‘14— Sociocultural Chair
From Cali, Colombia, Gustavo is a sophomore majoring in Poli cal Science. Over the summer, he conducted research on Finland’s educa on‐al system!
Elizabeth Shin — Secretary
From Seoul, South Korea, Elizabeth is a CIS ma‐jor in Ethnic Studies. She enjoys cooking and reading and is involved in Davidson Students Volunteer for Science, Ending Poverty in Char‐lo e, Mul cultural Ambassador Program, and most importantly Kni ng club.
John Papadopoulos ‘14 — Webmaster
John is a Greek‐American from Boston, MA. A sophomore majoring in Poli cal Science or Eco‐nomics, he enjoys traveling and trying out in‐terna onal foods!
Jennifer Glass — Associa on Advisor
Jennifer is from Columbia, Missouri and has studied Agriculture, Asian Studies and Admin‐istra on. She enjoys walking Wilbur, spending me with family and road trips!
MEET THE DIA E‐BOARD
DIA also has a group of commi ed Members At Large: Dancho Penev from Bulgaria, Maria Coloma from Peru, Maria Prokopyeva from Russia, Blanca Vidal‐Orga from Spain, Marianne Daniels from Guatemala, Megan Garzon from Ecuador, Yiwei Zhang from China, and Jaime Wong from Singapore.
The DIA Publicity Commi ee from Fall
semester included Monse Jacome, Mi‐
chael Brun, John Papadopoulos, Eliza‐
beth Shin, Maria Prokopyeva, Megan
Garzon, Blanca Vidal Orga and Tobias
Schumacher. 12 posters were made.
STATS Referring to DIA’s Facebook Page
DIA Mission Statement DIA has grown from an organiza on that represented the interests of foreign na onals at Da‐vidson College to an associa on for all students interested in promo ng cultural awareness and global interdependence. By virtue of the growing need for interna onal awareness, stu‐dents at Davidson College require a forum to address interna onal concerns and foster great‐er cultural harmony. An official organiza on concerned with promo ng interna onal con‐sciousness is necessary. As a social organiza on, the Davidson Interna onal Associa on (DIA) promotes diversity, understanding, and interna onal awareness in the Davidson community through students’ involvement in various DIA ac vi es. Needless to say, DIA membership is open to all Davidson students.
Get involved! Do you want to par cipate in DIA? There are many things you can do, like contribute with ideas and propose events and ac vi es, we’ll try to sponsor them and you can help us organize them! You can volunteer to help us during events as it’s a great way to meet other interna onal students and people from around the world. You can give us your feedback about past events, our website, etc! Most importantly, you can become an Execu ve Board Member.
What we use
Feedback is our priority! Let us know how you hear about our events! We have had a consistent increase in “likes” on
our Facebook page and are hoping to get new members. If you would like to help with publicity, we are searching for
people with graphic design skills and people that are great with social media and online tools who would like to be
involved in the Publicity Commi ee and work on a team. Last semester, we publicized our events on the Union’s digi‐
tal display boards, in the Dean Rusk weekly event emails, the Social Calendar, and in the Crier. This semester, we’ll try
to work on improving our web presence through Facebook, Twi er, Youtube, our website and the Interna onal blog.
Monse Jacome
Publicity Chair
DIA has 140 currently‐enrolled student members and is growing!
Map of DIA Representa on
Message from the DIA Publicity Chair
> DIA’s very own Bulle n Board in Chambers (1)
> Library (2)
> Union 2nd floor (3)
> Union Café Level (4)
> Commons (1)
> Chambers 1st floor (3)
> Chambers 2nd floor (3)
> Chambers 3rd floor (3)
> Chambers staircases (5)
> Duke (3)
> 1st floor Belk and Belk Lab (4)
> Down the hill bulle n board (2)
> Main Entrance of Li le, Cannon, Sentelle, Wa s,
Tomlinson & Rich (6)
Here is the system we use for pu ng up posters on campus
Rosie Kosinski '12
Paris France 2011
Student Photograp
hy
Elizabeth Shin '14
Zhangjiajie China 2011
Student Photograp
hy
DIAlogue Issue #1 March, 2012
Alumni Corner DIA caught up with Davidson alumna and past DIA President Anahi Alvear from Quito, Ecuador! Anahi is always interested in seeing what we’re up to and how things are going on campus!
Saying goodbye to DIA was very tough for me. Not only was I leaving behind an organi‐za on that I had been involved in and loved for four years, I was also leaving behind some of the most amazing people I have ever met. But anyways, a er gradua on I went back home for the summer and prepared to go to China. I am currently in Beijing, working as an RA for a study abroad program. It is an amazing job because I get paid to hang out with students, and to study Chinese, which is something I love. I have no idea what I'm going to do a er my contract ends in the summer, but I'm considering ge ng a Masters, most likely in Europe. I might also stay in China for a while learning Chinese and maybe teaching. I get invita ons to DIA's events and I miss them so much! DIA is an organiza on that increased my love for diversity, which is one of the main reasons why I got the posi on as an RA. I'm absolutely sure that this has been a great year for DIA, since there is an amazing group of individuals leading it, and my hope is that it con nues to be a place where students can celebrate being exo c, or being interested in the world and what every country and culture has to offer. I have now gone from being part of the Ecuadorian "mafia" at Davidson, to being the exo c Ecuadorian who can't find any other Ecuadorians in Beijing. Who would have thought I was going to become even more of a minority? But I must say, it is pre y awesome. If you are ever in China or Ecuador, give me a call, I’m an awesome tour guide.
Anahi Alvear '11
FALL
This ar cle was also featured in the January‐February issue of
the Dean Rusk SAC’s Toilet Paper.
On February 18th, 2008 the southern Serbian province of Koso‐vo and Metohija declared independence from the rest of the country. The event was greeted by many states and it was widely believed that interna onal recogni on of the new country would be swi .
But where is Kosovo today? As of October of 2011, a total of 85 states have formally recognized Kosovo as an independent republic. Among those countries that abstain from recogni on are five European Union member states and two permanent members of the UN Security Council (Russia and China).
Kosovo’s limbo status in the interna onal arena has been es‐pecially troublesome for its northern por on, where the ma‐
jority Serb popula on has been living under parallel Serbian and Kosovo ins tu ons. On July 25th, 2011 tensions in the north of the province rose exponen ally when the govern‐ment of Kosovo sent units of its special police force to the north in an a empt to gain control of two main border cross‐ings with Serbia.
This unilateral and dangerous move prompted great panic among the Serbian popula on, which does not recog‐nize Kosovo’s government as legi mate.They immediately put up barricades on main roads as a form of peaceful protest and have con nued to gather around them in large numbers ever since July. With the government in Serbia unable to help them, Serbians in the north of Kosovo must rely on interna‐onal peacekeeping forces and foreign actors for any sense of
security and normalcy. Tensions, unfortunately, remain high.
Serbians barricade roads north of Kosovo as peacekeepers look on.
Global News Highlights The situa on in Kosovo
by Suncica Dragas
Coleen Jose is a student fellow for the Pulitzer Center on Crisis Repor ng and the Dean Rusk Interna onal Studies Program at Davidson College. In the past year, she has lived in the Philippines, India and the United States.
She was nurtured in a Philippines recovering from more than thirty years of dictatori‐al rule and emerging from the People Power Movement. Years later, Coleen’s family emigrat‐ed to the U.S. where her passion for journalism began in the summer of 2007 at Columbia University’s School of Journalism. Her first repor ng project in Harlem con nues to frame her photography and wri ng.
Coleen con nuously looks east, which has taken her from the southernmost p of India to the Tibetan community’s home in exile at the foot of the Himalayas. Though travel is a constant in Coleen’s studies, service is the most potent part of her personal and profession‐al mission. She felt compelled to join na on‐building efforts in the Philippines and worked poli cal communica ons for Senator Francis “Kiko” Pangilinan in 2009. In 2010, she helped develop communi es with Gawad Kalinga, an interna onal community development founda‐on. As crea ve and communica ons director, Coleen co‐launched an eco‐tourism travel and
apparel company in the summer of 2011, which is dedicated to the protec on and restora‐on of the world’s coral reefs. She is currently inves ga ng the role of resource extrac ons
on the most marginalized communi es in the Philippines with a focus on marine and logging industries. If she could live anywhere in the world, it would be underwater, in Southeast Asia’s Coral Triangle region. To learn more about Coleen's project for the Pulitzer Center on Crisis Repor ng, visit h p://pulitzercenter.org/people/coleen-jose
Interna onal Perspec ves — Coleen Jose
To receive our is‐sues online, click “Subscribe” on DIA’s website!
STUDY ABROAD EXPERIENCE European Travels – A Reflec on From
Abroad
Originally from Fuzhou, China, Yuxi Lin talks to DIA about her study abroad experience in Ger-
many.
I went on the Duke, Davidson & Berlin Program from the first of February to the end of July last year. It was a small enough program that you know all the people in the program, but large enough that you get to meet people from the university in Germany, like students studying under Europe’s Erasmus program. You also meet other people in Berlin, who can show you the city and take you to street fes vals and to hip cafes and bars. Berlin is a city for everyone! The art, the architecture, the monuments, all make it a city that is alive with history and culture! It’s a big city so you always find something to do! Peo‐ple will tell you about the divide. Some s ll op‐pose the united Germany because they thought the communist era was be er for them. A lot of Germans, like the Bavarians and Franks, iden fy more with the region and tribe they descended from rather than the generalized iden ty of “German”. I loved my host family and got to do a lot of travelling with them, on my own and with a friend.
At the historical Royal Castle in Budapest, Hungary overlooking the city
Yuxi with the Harbor of Hamburg in the background
The amazing part is that travel in Europe is so easy, and I got to visit other countries like Poland, Hungary, Austria, Norway, the Czech Republic and Turkey. Poland’s pierogi (stuffed dumplings), bar-szczczystyczerwony (red‐beetsoup) and tripe (cow stomach) are all foods you must try when visi ng! I also visited Poland’s Auschwitz concentra on camp. This was a great learning experience. You just can’t visit places like this in America. For those thinking of studying abroad, I really recom‐mend going to the study abroad office as early as possible to start the applica on process. The staff at Dean Rusk is extremely helpful all throughout the way!
Here’s the Study‐Abroad breakdown: 179 students studied abroad for fall semester 62 students are studying abroad for spring 24 students for the full academic year
with
…
What’s your favorite thing about Davidson in‐terna onals? That even though this group of students so o en gets lumped together due to their shared experi‐ence of being “interna onal,” not one of them is the same! I love that this group is made up of such different, wonderful people, and it’s a privi‐lege to get to know each of them! What is the toughest part of managing the inter‐na onal needs of so many students? Helping students navigate US immigra on regula ons that are constantly changing, o en ambiguous, and almost always frustra ng can be tough. Being an advocate for our students, I want things to be simpler/easier/warmer than they are…
Interna onal Student Adviser
Jennifer Glass
How many interna onals are there on campus and how many countries do they represent? 111 (this number includes those dual ci zens, permanent residents, and US ci zens who live abroad) from 46 countries Where did you study/study abroad)? Truman State University (Agriculture and Asian Studies), spent semester in China, University of Missouri (Higher Educa on Administra on…con nuing) What brought you to Davidson? The chance to be at a small school that values rela onship‐building as part of a quality educa‐onal experience. And the opportunity to be at
that type of school near my family.
Intervie
w
More and more Interna onal students over the years! First‐Year Student Orienta on Group Photos
Interna onal Office News
The International Student Office was created to provide support and advisory services for the inter-national community of Davidson College. Today, the office is dedicated to assisting international students in their adjustment to American culture and education, to being a resource on immigration matters, and to coordinating quality educational and social programming.
Thanksgiving Dinner with Davidson’s new President Carol Quillen!
EVENTS FROM FALL SEMESTER Post‐grad Success Workshop with Nathan Elton Immigra on A orney Visit by Mr. Robert Banta of Banta Immigra on Law in Atlanta OPT, CPT, H‐18 Visa Workshop “Take Davidson Home” with Interna onal Admissions Representa ves Freshman Interna onal Student Series Holiday Christmas Concert at Opera Carolina to see Eyup perform Shopping trips to North Lake Mall, Birkdale Village & Concord Mills
ORIENTATION 2011
Eleven students, along with the Interna onal Student Adviser, Jennifer Glass, took part in a conference on leadership for interna onal students at Elon University in Elon, NC on November 5th and 6th. The conference was made possible by grants from NCAIE, the North Car‐olina Associa on of Interna onal educators. Two Da‐vidson students, Dolapo Olushola and Gustavo Orozco‐Lince presented panels at the conference and were very well received by students coming from eight different schools, including High point University, Duke University, Methodist University, Davidson Community College and more. We got to meet and hang out with students from Israel, Bosnia and Herzegovina, Albania, Uzbekistan, and Mongolia to name a few and learn about strengths and weaknesses of Interna onal Associa ons like DIA on their schools’ campuses. Session topics included “Who
are La nos? How Be er Understanding the La no Cul‐ture Can Help You Be er Cater to La no Students on a College Campus”, “Mind the Gap! The Nature of Self‐Segrega on On Campus”, “Africa is Not a Country: Breaking the Stereotypes and Misconcep ons of the Af‐rican Con nent”, “Techniques to Connect Domes c Stu‐dent Groups With Interna onal Issues”, “Connected 2.0: The Roles of Social Media in a Global Society”, and “Empowering Students With 21st Century Leadership Skills”. The keynote address of the conference was “Art and Poli cs: The Collision of Aesthe cs and Ac vism” by Dr. Juan Obando. Born in Bogotá, Colombia, Juan re‐ceived a BA in Industrial Design with a minor in Architec‐ture and Urbanism from Universidad de los Andes in Bo‐gotá and holds a posi on as Assistant Professor in the Department of Art and Art History at Elon University.
North Carolina Interna onal Leadership Conference
Gustavo’s panel was tled “Bridging the Gap: Modifying a Country’s Image Abroad and the Colombian Case”. Figh ng against the nega ve or unfounded image of a country abroad, like that of Colombia, is a challenging yet fundamen‐tal task for governments, businesses and individuals alike. Too many opportuni‐es are thwarted by this nega ve percep on; investment and tourism are vari‐
ables closely linked to the interna onal percep on of a country. Frequently however, as with Colombia, the nega ve basis of this image lacks founda on in reality. Civil and government organiza ons, like the I Believe In Colombia Foun-da on, have taken on this challenge and ac vely work to bridge the gap be‐tween what the world thinks of Colombia and what it truly is. Through games, stories, facts and images the percep on gap in the Colombian case was used as the framework for reflec on of the construc on of a na onal brand, and vari‐ous strategies for the improvement of a country’s image were presented.
Dolapo’s panel was “Got Leadership? How to Crea vely Lead:UR:ship Interna onal‐ly”. The session showed that as interna onal students, we really have a great re‐sponsibility while we represent our countries on campus and this comes hand in hand with our style of leadership. Ever heard the saying “He/She is a born Leader”? We probably all have. But is leadership only for a select few? The answer is “NO!” We are all born with leadership traits and quali es which manifest in different ways and for different purposes in society. The session focused on crea ve ways by which we can all find out our leadership quali es and purpose. These crea ve ways ranged from music to pictures, to discussion. Dolapo had the par cipants explore a new mode of leadership: Lead:UR:ship! Lead:UR:ship emphasizes self‐discovery and empowerment, and ways in which we can lead uniquely in society. The session concluded with challenges faced by interna onal students as they strive to be lead‐ers and how they can overcome them.
This year’s Interna onal Leadership Conference service project featured a telling story by representa ves from Invisible Children, an organiza on that seeks to catch the interna on‐ally‐known criminal Joseph Kony. He is an African terrorist who is the head of the Lord’s Re‐sistance Army (LRA), a guerilla group that is engaged in a violent campaign to establish theo‐cra c government based on the Ten Commandments in Uganda. The LRA has earned a rep‐uta on for its ac ons against the people of northern Uganda, the Democra c Republic of Congo, and Sudan, by abduc ng and forcing over 66,000 children to fight for them, and has also forced the internal displacement of over 2,000,000 people since its rebellion began in 1986. Invisible Children works to transform apathy into ac vism, by documen ng the lives of those living in regions of conflict and injus ce, educa ng and inspiring individuals in the Western world to use their unique voice for change. Invisible Children creates an opportuni‐ty for people to become part of a grassroots movement that intelligently responds to what’s happening in the world. More informa on may be found at www.invisiblechildren.com
Invisible ChildrenInterna onal Service
Fall Break
Road Trip to
Atlanta
Whether you journeyed back home or stayed in the States experiencing American culture for Winter break, DIA would love to hear your story. Share it with us by emailing [email protected]
Thanksgiving Break Trip to Charlo e for Ice‐Ska ng
Cultural Trips to Charlo e Ethnic Fes vals
Eyup, Elif and Umit
The Charlo e Fes val of India on September 3rd
The Charlo e Yiasou Greek Fes val on September 9th
The Turkish Fes val of Charlo e on October 16th
Cultural Trip to Charlo efor a Bosnian/Serbian Party hosted by the Balkan Associa on of Davidson and the Interna onal Office
Finals Study Break at Jennifer’s From le to right: Meg, Wilbur, Jennifer, Gaby, Brian, Bill,
Tanvi and Pearce
The Terry Fox Team of Davidson, DIA, Rusk Eas ng House and SAE Fraternity are organizing a run/walk on March 17th (registra on starts at 12:30 at Rusk Ea ng House). The Terry Fox Run is an annual non‐compe ve charity event held in numerous regions around the world in com‐memora on of cancer ac vist Terry Fox. In 1980, with one leg having been amputated, Terry embarked on a cross‐Canada run for 143 days, un l the spread of his cancer forced him to end his quest and ul mately cost him his life. The goals for the event are to raise money for cancer research, inspire people with Terry Fox's story, and share our campus with the community. There is no entry fee, but par cipants are encouraged to donate money and get pledges (from parents, grandparents, family friends, friends, professors, etc) to support cancer research. Pledges are typically collected on a flat basis, but can be collected per mile or kilometer. All dona ons are tax deduc ble. The event will include a cookout free to all par cipants, and a live performance from iTunes signed ar st Nick Evans, the lead singer of The Culprits. Contact Ca‐nadian na ve Ben Murray at [email protected] if you would like to take part or volun‐teer in the event! Visit www.wix.com/davidsoncollege/terryfox for more informa no
Skype Chat with One‐Years from last year
TERRY FOX RUN COMING UP AT DAVIDSON!
Host Family Program Calendar of Events for Spring Semester 2012
Jan 27 Charlotte Checkers vs Rockford Ice Hogs Hockey Game Friday 7pm at Time Warner Arena (IH=Milwaukee Blackhawks) * Fee-$7 per person (ages 3 and up); Guests-contact IS office
February 28 Spirit of Uganda Artist Series Performance Tuesday 8pm at Duke Family Performance Hall * Fee-$5 per person; Guests-contact IS office
April 14 Lazy 5 Ranch Saturday 9:45am There will be a Wagon Ride and Petting Zoo * Fee-$5 per person (ages 1 and up); Guests-contact IS office
May 6 Lake Campus Host Family Appreciation Cookout Sunday 5-8pm at Lake Campus. There will be Swimming, volleyball, Frisbee, etc.
Bring a chair or blanket to sit on. Rain location: Duke Residence Hall Atrium
* Fees are for host family members only. All international students are paid for by the
International Student Office. Guests please contact International Student (IS) Office for event fee. Dates and times are subject to change. E-mails will be sent prior to each event.
DIA will be taking part in the 2012 Davidson Me‐dia Conference coming up on March 24th. This year’s conference tle is "Global Exchange and Local Change" and the event is sponsored by Bank of America and the Dean Rusk Interna on‐al Studies Program. The aim of this one day con‐ference is to provide students with an oppor‐tunity to engage with prac oners, policymak‐ers and one another on the key challenges and opportuni es facing global media today and in the next millennium. DIA will par cipate in the Student Poster Fair that will follow the breakout panels from 4‐5PM. Email gabalde‐[email protected] if you would like to help with DIA’s table and poster.
Davidson Media Conference 2012
The Host Family Program went
really well fall semester with a total of
66 registered families. We had three
very exci ng events that brought to‐
gether students, host families and
friends. The Welcome Back Cookout at
Lake Campus had 144 family members
and 59 students, the Hayride and Bon‐
fire at Carrigan Farms had 16 family
members and 13 students and the re‐
cent North Mecklenburg Christmas Pa‐
rade had 31 family members and 13
students.
Jerry Alvarez‐So l ’14 is work‐
ing on an historical compila on of data
and informa on on the host family pro‐
gram. I think it's important for us to
know the historical background of the
Program. It will be interes ng to learn
how and when it got started and how it
has evolved over the years. We are try‐
ing to go back to its incep on but we
are s ll in the process of informa on
gathering.
I began working with the Host
Family Program in 2004 and it was at
this me, that we began holding several
events a year to bring everyone togeth‐
er. In 2005, we implemented an orien‐
ta on program for the host families to
help them understand their role and
what to expect. We also explain to the
students what their role is and what is
expected of them during the Interna‐
onal Student Orienta on. Events like
the cookouts at the Lake Campus, Carri‐
gan Farms hayride and bowling were
some of the ini al events and have
been most popular over the years. Alt‐
hough this year’s Christmas parade may
well become an annual affair! We are
constantly tweaking the program trying
to find the right mix of ac vi es that
keeps everyone’s interest. There’s al‐
ways a trade‐off so we change things
around a bit each year.
Carol Sandke
In the Fall of 2010, we started a book library at the Interna onal Stu‐
dent Office. We prefer books that are currently being used on campus
for Davidson courses. However, if a person doesn't have a way to get
rid of a book, we will donate the book to the Davidson Public Library,
so there is an avenue to donate books through the office. There are
many benefits of this library. Students don't have to spend money to
buy new books. If the books are old, and we donate them, we're help‐
ing the patrons at the Davidson Public Library, and if they're old and
can't be used at the library, then they are sold and the money is being
put back into the library. So, it’s suppor ng a great cause all the way
around!
Also, we have books not used for courses, that can be read for fun,
reference books, language books for many languages, such as French,
Spanish, German etc. There is no charge for people to use the books in
the Interna onal Student Library, as they are all for loan. Book dona‐
ons are always welcome!
Interna onal Student Library
“We're currently looking to go as
far back as we can to put all of the
historical pieces together.”
Message from Host Family Program Coordinator
Host Family Program Highlights
The cookout at lake campus is always a big event. We started having the cookout in the 2004‐2005 school year and we've been doing it ever since. In the fall, some mes we ask families to bring food to share, while in the spring the food is always provided. The one in September was the biggest cookout we've ever had, with 203 people! There are some events we skip, but never the cookout! Students and families always tell us to include it in the year’s events. There are always fun‐packed ac vi es like canoeing, swimming, frisbee, volleyball and soccer!
Lake Campus Welcome Back Cookout
Haunted Hayride & Bonfire at Carrigan Farms
We started hos ng the Hay Ride event at Carrigan Farms in 2004, but we skipped two years because Carrigan changed they're format. They created “Scarrigan Farms” and didn’t have the Hay Ride open to people. Since some people don't like the scary version and it isn't so much of a family event, we hosted another Hay Ride event at a farm in Charlo e. A er two years, Carrigan Farms brought back the Hay Ride, and we’ve been hos ng the Hay Ride at Carrigan Farms every year since 2004! With 29 people a ending this year’s Hay Ride on October 21st, we had an amazing night ligh ng a bonfire, roas ng marshmallows and making S’mores.
North Mecklenburg Christmas Parade
With 44 host family members and interna onal students taking part at this year’s parade, we had signs, flags of all sizes and colors, and ethnic costumes. The good weather, our interna onal pride and our holiday spir‐it from setup to finish, all helped us walk through the parade! The event was well received by the community, and just by hearing people in the crowd cheering for us, we were very glad to have represented the Host Family Program and all the countries of the world at the Christmas Parade. We started on Griffith St. between Watson & Bea y, passed Main Street and walked all the way un l the Mt. Zion Church in Cornelius. At the end, we had cookies and hot chocolate provided by Food Lion. So far, we’ve received a great deal of posi ve feedback from the parade survey, and people have said that they want to do it again next year, but we're s ll wai ng on more feedback for the event! Make sure to check out John Syme’s ar cle on the parade at www.daybook.davidson.edu
L T V for students and faculty wan ng to prac ce their language skills went really well during the semester. The German table at Commons took place on Tuesdays from 11:00 AM to 12:15 PM. There were about 8 people every me, consis ng of students and professors. Tobi, a one‐year student from Germany, said “We were mainly talking about differences between the Ger‐man and the American culture.” The best part about the German table was that the American students were able to par cipate frequently in conversa ons and could therefore improve their spoken language. I would strongly recommend you go to the German table for prac ce. The best way to really learn a language, which should be the goal of taking language classes, is to speak this language, even though it might be challenging in the beginning.” Other than the German table, there are also French, Russian, Spanish, Chinese and Arabic language tables!
The One‐Year students all host their own language tables at Commons. From le to right: Masha, Tobi, Maëlan and Blanca
COME TO THE LANGUAGE TABLES AT COMMONS
On Sunday, November 13th, four Davidson students, along with Arabic profes‐sor Basma Botros from Egypt, visited St. Mark’s Egyp an Church in Charlo e. This trip was part of OCF’s (Orthodox Chris an Fellow‐ship) semester goal of learning about the various churches of Orthodoxy. Charlo e has Armenian, Serbian, Russian, Greek, Egyp an and Ethiopian churches of the Chris an Or‐thodox faith. OCF and the Arabic Department co‐sponsored the trip, as a cultural, linguis c, and spiritual interfaith trip. Students got to hear the Divine Liturgy and then speak with the parish and the priest, as well as eat at a Lebanese restaurant with some church mem‐bers. The service was a mix of Arabic, Cop c and English. The church had detailed Cop c iconography of Angel Gabriel delivering the news of the Evangelism, the Virgin Mary holding Jesus as an infant, St. John the Bap‐st, and the patron saint of the congrega on,
Saint Mark. Especially for an ethnic minority group in such a large city like Charlo e, the church was packed with Egyp an‐Americans and Egyp an immigrants. A prayer in the church read “You were transfigured on the mount, O Christ our God, showing Your Disci‐ples Your glory according to their ability to bear it. Shine Your eternal light upon us sin‐ners, through the intercessions of the The‐
otokos. Glory to You O Giver of Light.” Cop c Orthodoxy is part of the Oriental family of Orthodoxy, along with the Ethiopian, Eritre‐an, Syriac, Malankara (India) and Armenian churches, which follow the Old Calendar and celebrate Christmas on January 7th. On Wednesday, September 28th, MENASA and MSA (Muslim Student Associa‐on) hosted a Dean Rusk Breakfast Series in
Duke Interna onal lounge featuring Hakim Kashani on tradi onal Islamic healing and medicine. Later that evening, Mr. Kashani also gave a lecture to the greater Davidson community. Mr. Kashani studied mining engi‐neering and pre‐medical studies and has mastered many forms of mar al arts. At the lecture, he spoke about herbal food reme‐dies, manual therapies like massage, subtle energy healing, mind and body exercises to build the rela onship between the soul and God through agency of the spirit, aromather‐apy, yoga and acupuncture. He also spoke about the problems associated with hard medicine such as surgery, chemotherapy and radia on, as well as the dangers of thoracic CAT‐scans, PET‐scans and MRIs. “All ele‐ments that exist in nature, exist in us, for example fire is like a headache or heart‐burn.” Islamic healing is one of the families of tradi onal healing. Other families are Chi‐
nese, Greek, Tibetan and Ayurvedic (Indian) medicine and all of these families of healing have many similari es. He spoke about the goal of tradi onal methods, saying that a person should try to become a complete and healthy human being with good rela onships with family, society and self. He explained how cul va on of virtue in the prac oner is vital, as we have the ability to perceive, but also to radiate. Appren ces of tradi onal medicine must receive a blessing from a saint or a prophet, and this tradi on has been passed down since the beginning of Islamic medicine, from the 124,000 prophets. “One must open the heart to access the subtle reali es that their teachers do.” Today there are hospitals, most of them in California and Arizona, that have specialized doctors in tra‐di onal healing and who many mes com‐bine modern and tradi onal healing meth‐ods. A good resource for someone to learn more about tradi onal medicine is “The Tra‐di onal Healer's Handbook”. Also, the Can‐non of Medicine by Evencina (the polymath) which is wri en in languages of India and is in the process of transla on. Mr. Kashani said that reading a book or using one of these sources is not enough and that one must learn the prac ce with a professional or mas‐ter to get a blessing‐educa on.
Religious Ventures
The Greater The Charlotte Foreign‐Trade Zone, which allows goods to be brought in from overseas duty‐free and stored or manufactured into a product, is one of the largest in the state. Interestingly, more than one‐third of the 1,156 manufacturing firms in Mecklenburg County are involved with im‐por ng or expor ng goods. Over 950 foreign‐owned firms, represen ng 49 countries, provide jobs to over 65,000 workers in the Charlo e region. Since 1990, the number of foreign‐owned firms opera ng in metro Char‐lo e has grown by over 129 percent. Site Selec on magazine’s lis ng of the best business climates in North America ranked Charlo e first on its list of top 10 U.S. ci es for foreign investment. The Queen City has such a pro‐business environment that more than 274 of Fortune’s top 500 com‐panies have placed one or more facili es within Mecklenburg County. Charlotte is also known for being the world headquarters of Bank of America. This bank operates in 225 cities in 43 different countries, includ‐ing the financial capitals of Frankfurt, Hong Kong, London, Mexico City, Milan, Paris, Seoul, Singapore, Taipei, Tokyo and Zurich. Also, approxi‐mately 13 percent of Mecklenburg’s population was born outside of the United States. The eastbound Central Avenue area is known for its inter‐na onal popula on, including Eastern Europeans, Middle‐Easterners, and Hispanics. North Tryon and the Sugar Creek area include several Asian‐American communi es. Major populations of foreign nationals are also from Mexico, India, Vietnam, El Salvador, Honduras and China!
Community
Charlo e has many interna onal systems in place, more than one might think! The Char‐lo e Chamber is a private, non‐profit organiza on dedicated to the economic development of Charlo e and Mecklenburg County. One of its main objec ves is to a ract foreign‐owned companies to the city. The World Affairs Council of Charlo e offers ci zens personal contact with key figures and cri cal trends in foreign policy, interna onal business and global culture (www.charlo eworld.org). The Charlotte chapter of the North Carolina World Trade Association, promotes international trade and is one of the largest in the na‐tion. Charlotte‐Mecklenburg is also home to the honorary consuls of Austria, Canada, France, Germany, Great Britain, Guatemala, Mexico, Moldova, Nicaragua and Switzerland, and with consulates of Belize, Lebanon, Albania, Cyprus, Sweden, Netherlands, and Namib‐ia in the greater area. Interna onal schools also help students maintain language skills and cultural iden ty while they are in Charlo e, including a Japanese school, a German school, two Chinese schools, a Korean school, a Greek school, a Swedish school, a Russian school, five Bri sh American schools, and the Carolina Interna onal School. The Charlotte International Cabinet (CIC) promotes Charlotte as an international city and serves as a resource to foster international relationships, highlighting Charlotte's eight sis‐ter city partnerships. The Cabinet will continue to formally guide Charlotte into the 21st Century as an international city (www.charlotteinternational.org). International House is an organization dedicated to bringing Charlotte and the world together. Their mission is to promote international understanding by serving as a center for diversity, advocating for people of diverse national backgrounds and facilitating professional and cultural programs. International House serves as “a meeting place where Internationals and Americans can establish and strengthen relationships, and promote cultural awareness by connecting with people who share an interest in language, culture, or ethnicity.” The International House has many programs to support international newcomers, including access to language tu‐tors. There are several foreign language newspapers in Charlotte: The African Press, The Asian Herald and The Korean Herald and several Spanish papers. For worship there are Hispanic, Vietnamese, Korean and several Eastern and Oriental Orthodox churches, an Islamic Center, a Hindu temple and ethnic related organizations for Israelis, French, Italians, Irish, Jamai‐cans, Ghanaians, Indians, Ecuadorians, Chinese, Cambodians, Japanese, Hmong, Vietnam‐ese, Filipinos, Haitians, Germans, Ethiopians, Serbs, Greeks, Austrians, Bosnians, Armeni‐ans, Africans, Hispanics, Turks, Arabs, Russians and more. Charlotte ranks second in Ameri‐can cities as the largest banking center, controlling over $2.3 trillion in assets, sixth largest in‐migration of people in the States and seventh for most active airport in the world. Char‐lotte’s sister cities include, Arequipa (Peru), Voronezh (Russia), Kumasi (Ghana), Krefeld (Germany), Limoges (France), Hadera (Israel), Baoding (China) and Wroclaw (Poland). For more informa on, visit www.charlottechamber.org
Ch
arlo
tte,
an
Inte
rnat
ion
al C
ity!
Hope you enjoyed
r eadi ng our
fi rs t is sue!
The photos in this publica on were taken by Barbara Fisher, Sarah Hamilton, Klea Miho, Bill King, Monse Jacome, Yuxi Wang, Maria Pro‐kopyeva, Rosie Kosinski, Elizabeth Shin, Yuxi Lin, Jesse Johnson, Svamal De Fonseka, Jordan Luebkemann, Ismene Nicolaou‐Griffin, Dolapo Olushola, Bill Giduz, Kaela Frank, Carol Sandke, Jennifer Glass, Courtney Pooler, Scot Draper, Bernhard Goetsch, Ed Yourdon and Nathan Duckworth.