Skyline College celebrated International Education Week (IEW) from Monday, November 17 to Thursday, November 20, hosting a variety of globally themed events and activities. This year’s IEW started off with an Opening Reception on Monday where Dr. Regina Stanback Stroud gave some brief opening remarks highlighting the importance of international education. The event attracted students, faculty, staff and San Bruno community members and was followed by a series of international documentaries: Discovery, China The New Super Power; Roads of Arabia and The French Revolution Tearing Up History. On the same day, the “Key To World Understanding” event was held in Building 6. At this event, Ms. Maricruz Arteaga-Garavito from the Mexican Consulate, and Ms. Lupe Gallegos-Diaz from the University of California-Berkeley each gave presentations about Latin American culture and cross-cultural understanding.
IEW continued on Tuesday with the celebration of Mexican Cultural Day. Students from the Bécalos program showcased the rich culture of Mexico by making presentations and demonstrations on Mexican clothing, traditional dance forms, Día de los Muertos makeup, and live music and singing. For the Día de los Muertos makeup tutorials, Evelyn Smith, Cosmetology Instructor and professional horror make-up artist, brought two students who took the lead in demonstrating the Día de los Muertos makeup to the audience.
On Wednesday, November 19, the International Affairs Student Club (IASC) celebrated IEW by bringing in ethnic cuisines to the Multicultural Center. These included various types of Chinese pastries, Korean pancakes, Japanese sushi and Mexican churros. Despite the rain, IASC received a number of students, faculty and staff members who enjoyed the cultural foods presented by the IASC members. Following the lunch event, the Global Learning Programs and Services Division (GLPS) presented the African Diaspora Evening which included an introduction to the African Diaspora Program (Clyde Lewis, African Diaspora Coordinator and Adjunct Faculty), an “Africa in Pictures” presentation (Jaye Atkin-Taylor, Former ISP Director and International Scholar), and a panel discussion on African Diaspora (Jaye Atkin-Taylor, Professor Johannes Masare, Political Science and Professor Michael Moynihan, Sociology). At the end of the program, the audience had an opportunity to network with the panelists and learn more about African culture through foods, books and arts and crafts exhibited at the event.
On the last day of IEW, the International Student Program (ISP) hosted a workshop for the international students at Skyline College. The invitation was extended to 110 international students currently on campus. During the workshop, Wissem Bennani, ISP Manager, gave a presentation on job opportunities for international students. Additionally, Andrea Vizenor, Director of the Retail, Hospitality and Tourism Program, joined the workshop as a guest speaker, introducing the new initiatives in her program. The workshop also provided the chance for international students to mingle with ISP staff members and fellow international students.
Article by Chikako Walker
