Humboldt State University invites the community to attend International Education Week (IEW), which this year features over forty hours of panels, presentations, informational sessions, and cultural events.  IEW is scheduled for Sunday, November 16th through Thursday, November 20th.  Most events will take place in HSU’s Goodwin Forum (Nelson Hall East) or Kate Buchanan Room (University Center).  A detailed schedule and directions are available at www.humboldt.edu/iew.

IEW promotes the benefits of international education and exchange worldwide. The annual celebration aims to advance global awareness and build support for international cooperation by encouraging the development of programs that prepare Americans to live and work in a global environment and attract future leaders from abroad to study in the United States. A joint initiative of the U.S. Departments of State and Education, IEW was first held in 2000 and is now observed by communities and universities in more than 100 countries worldwide. 

2008 marks the seventh straight year that HSU has joined in observing IEW.  Sponsored by the Office of International Programs and the International Advisory Committee, the event showcases the involvement of faculty, staff, students, and community members in a wide variety of international initiatives. 

In addition to campus and other local presenters, this year’s IEW features two keynote addresses by visiting speakers with noted careers in international issues.  Opening IEW at 7:00 p.m. on Sunday evening, November 16th in the Goodwin Forum is Ron Schmidt, Fulbright Scholar, Professor of Political Science, and past recipient of the Outstanding Professor award at CSU Long Beach, with a talk entitled “Immigrants and America’s Future: What Are the Stakes? Why Should We Care?” Professor Schmidt’s research focuses on the incorporation of immigrant communities in the U.S. and abroad, with a particular emphasis on language policy, ethnic and racial politics, and Latino issues.  

The following evening, Monday, November 17th, at 7:00 p.m. in the Kate Buchanan Room, San Diego State University Assistant Vice President for International Programs Al Sweedler speaks on “Engaging Students and Faculty in Study Abroad.”  Sweedler, a Professor of Physics, founder of SDSU’s Center for Energy Studies, and Co-Director of its Institute of International Security and Conflict Resolution, has investigated the impact of energy use in the US-Mexico border region and has worked extensively on the relationship between energy, arms control and international security.

Tuesday, November 18th features a talk by HSU Geology Professor and Scholar of the Year Lori Dengler on “Chasing Tsunamis: A Global Perspective.”  Her presentation takes place at 7:00 p.m. in the Kate Buchanan Room.

Included among the many other IEW events are panels led by faculty, staff, and students on Living in the Middle East, Militant Islam and American Foreign Policy, and Cross-Cultural Experiences; scholarly presentations on Nationalism and the Olympics, Cultural Globalization and the Call Center Industry, and International Perspectives on Family Planning; information sessions on International Work, Volunteer, and Study Abroad Opportunities; an International Fashion Show; a multi-ethnic Noodle Tasting; and “Walk on the World,” an interactive experience in which participants literally globetrot with the aid of oversized maps covering the floor of the Kate Buchanan Room.

Students from abroad are among the presenters of the week’s events, and they are particularly “excited to participate and to educate their peers and community members about the countries they come from,” commented Marci Fradkin, International Programs Coordinator.  Fradkin specified that a growing number of international students—approximately 140 this year, a record—are attending HSU from roughly 35 countries.  Meanwhile, 180 HSU students went abroad during 2007-08.