Winter 2010

Mohawk Valley Community College
The Traveler
Winter 2010
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Issue No. 1
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Welcome!
Welcome to the inaugural edition of MVCC’s The Traveler, an occasional e-newsletter intended to update you on
the College’s growing variety of international education activities. Whether it’s news about our international students,
overseas study tours, College-related travel by faculty and staff, or visits from distinguished international scholars, you’ll
find it here.
The Traveler is part of the College’s work on the 2010-11 Strategic Plan objective, “Create and implement an
integrated plan for on– and off-campus international endeavors.”
If you have questions or ideas about international education, contact Sandra Engel, director of international
education, at sengel@mvcc.edu, or Darla Maffei, coordinator of services for international students, at dmaffei@mvcc.edu.
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Study abroad opportunities in Europe with MVCC
For students interested in enriching their education
through international study, Mohawk Valley Community
College is now offering two opportunities this spring
and summer: a guided tour of the culture of Spain and a
guided tour through the arts heritage of England, Ireland,
and Wales.
Click Here to Read More on Page 2
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Professor from Vietnam to visit in May
MVCC will be hosting an English teacher from our
partner school in Vietnam, Kien Giang Community
College, starting after Spring Break through graduation.
Nguyen Thi Phuong Khanh is a member of the KGCC
Foreign Language Department and has 11 years of
teaching experience.
Click Here to Read More on Page 3
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Przybycien takes part in delegation to Dubai
Frank Przybycien, Director of Community Restoration
and a member of the Innovation Team traveled to Dubai
and Abu Dhabi in the United Arab Emirates ( UAE) on
November 18th. Click Here to Read More on Page 4
Nguyen Duy Khang and Nguyen Thi Phuong Khanh from Vietnam’s
Kien Giang Community College
MVCC offers a
culturally rich
environment
for learning as
well as social
interaction for
students from
around the
world.
MVCC’s The Traveler, www.mvcc.edu
Both trips are available to currently enrolled MVCC
students. Students are responsible for paying their regular
MVCC tuition plus fees charged by the partner company,
EF Educational Tours (www.eftours.com). EF fees, which
vary by trip, cover the cost of the program plus food, lodging, travel, sightseeing tours, and the services of an EF tour
director. Students should sign up as soon as possible to avoid
late fees and have the best chance of securing a place on the
trip of their choice. Students participate in related courses at
MVCC, for credit, this spring semester. These courses have
already begun, so students who wish to enroll should begin
the process as soon as possible.
In “Spain, Land of Many Cultures,” (EF Tour #691224)
students will have 10 or 13 days to explore cultures that
have shaped the face of Spain including the Roman,Visigoth,
Islamic, and Christian traditions. The tour will explore the
interactions of these and other cultures and look at how
they influence daily life in modern Spain. The tour is led by
Carolyn West Pace, Ph.D. and Roman Santos. It begins June
4 and features 10 days of travel through Madrid, Toledo,
Granada, Seville, and Cordoba, followed by an optional
a
three-day extension trip to Barcelona.
The related, three-credit course, “SA 300 Spain,” (CRN
25189, Section 901) is co-taught by Pace and Santos and
focuses on art, culture, and the Spanish language. For more
information or to enroll, contact Pace at cpace@mvcc.edu or
Santos at rsantos@mvcc.edu.
For students interested in England, Ireland, and Wales,
the 9-day trip of that name (EF Tour #372453) will explore
museums and historical landmarks in London, North Wales,
Dublin, and County Kerry, with an emphasis on the region’s
artistic heritage and how it informs the artists of today. The
tour is led by Jedediah Kimball. It begins May 25.
Kimball and Paul Cruskie are teaching the related, threecredit course, “SA 300 England, Ireland, and Wales (CRN
25191). Students read related literature and create works of
art connected to English, Irish, and Welsh themes. Students
will meet with instructors before and after the trip and have
studio time and critiques of their artworks. For more information or to enroll, e-mail jkimball2@mvcc.edu.
For more information on study abroad opportunities at
MVCC, students should contact their advisors or Sandy Engel.
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Many of us love Oneida
County, but we live in a
huge and diverse world.
But consider these facts:
New York is 6.33%
of the population of the US
Oneida County is 1.19%
of New York’s population
The US population is 4.53%
of the world’s population
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Continued From Page 1
Oneida County is 0.00341%
of the world’s population
Statistics and calculations provided by Mark Radlowski
MVCC’s The Traveler
www.mvcc.edu
Professor visits from Vietnam
Continued From Page 1
At KGCC she teaches English majors, non-majors, and an English for Children class.
She has also taught high school English, been the Vice Director of the Literature and Arts
Association of Tan Hiep District and has been the Director of L’Espace Francophone on
the KGCC campus. She visited France for three months a few years ago.
Khanh will be working with ESL teachers, giving presentations in classes and visiting businesses,
attending local cultural events and seeing American sites. Anyone interested in having her visit a class
or with any other ideas about an activity for her should contact Sandy Engel, Ph.D., who is starting to
assemble Khanh’s schedule. We want to give her a warm welcome and a wonderful time.
An occasional, irregular and very informal singing group is being assembled - she wants to learn some
American songs - so please let Sandy know if you are interested in helping out. (You will not be required to
sing a solo.)
Whether you sing or not, please plan to attend a reception for her on Monday, March 29 at 2.30 in
IT225.
Kien Giang Community College
in the City of Rach Gia
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MVCC is a founding member of Study NY, a new
organization with the purpose of promoting New York
as a place for international students to study. Although
the organization is very new, it already has 42+ members, the largest of such statewide organizations. Sandra
Engel serves on their Programs and Events Committee
and is the campus contact person.
MVCC is also a member of Community Colleges
for International Development (ccid.kirkwood.cc.ia.
us); Institute for International Education (www.iie.org); Midwest Institute for International and Intercultural
Communication (orgs.kvcc.edu/Midwest/); College
Consortium for International Studies (www.ccisabroad.
org); and NAFSA: Association of International
Educators (www.nafsa.org).
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MVCC a Founding
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MVCC’s The Traveler
www.mvcc.edu
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Dubai - Paradise
in the Middle East
Continued From Page 1
Frank was a representative for the American Society of Civil Engineers (ASCE) to the
Technology Accreditation Commission-Accreditation Board for Engineering and Technology (TAC-ABET) to accredit two two-year and
two four-year Civil Engineering Technology
Programs in the United Arab Emirates, and first
technology programs to request an American accreditation procedure in the Emirates.
Frank noted that the two year programs were
similar to our 2 year Civil Engineering Technology
Program at MVCC; in fact, they use the same Soil
Mechanics and Foundation text, a text written at MVCC
by Professor Emeritus David F. McCarthy who taught at
MVCC for over 30 years. All courses taught at Dubai
and Abu Dhabi are in English.
Although Dubai has been in the news recently for financial issues, the Emirate has built an amazing number
of new buildings on a scale that is not duplicated anywhere else in the world. Projects include the world’s
tall building (189 stories), an indoor ski slope in midtown, the “Palm” subdivision in the gulf and the world’s
largest shopping mall. There are presently over 1,900
projects underway at a cost of over 650 billion dollars. Dubai
has an
international flavor and
an American, European or Asian
would feel comfortable visiting.
Abu Dhabi, however, has a much more subdued culture, reflecting the fact that it is a world financial center
and the government center for the UAE.
The remaining five Emirates that compose the UAE
are much more traditional and have not been changed to
the degree that Dubai has changed.
The United Arab Emirates houses the largest U.S. naval
base in the world outside of the U.S. and the nation has
been an ally of the U.S. in recent Middle East conflicts.
While he was in Dubai, the UAE celebrated the 38th
anniversary of the founding of the country (1971). The
campus celebrated with a student parade and many
cultural events throughout the day including traditional
foods and music.
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MVCC Moms Welcome
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At MVCC’s fall 2009 reception for
international students, MVCC employees
Christine Roberts and Linda Robinson spent
time chatting with an international student and
came up with an idea: The duo would invite
the student to a cultural event. “We’re moms
without kids,” said Robinson. “This is perfect
for us.” Since then, Roberts and Robinson
have invited three more students to pizza and a
production of “Scrooge” at the Stanley.
Thanks to Student Activities for their
support, and kudos to Linda and Chris for
taking the initiative and offering American
hospitality!
MVCC’s The Traveler
www.mvcc.edu
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International students pursue education after MVCC
Mohawk Valley Community College’s international students go on to pursue numerous academic and career goals.
One highlight is graduating Korean student Ji Ho Lee,
who was accepted into the U.S. military’s MAVNI program.
MAVNI provides for the U.S. Armed Forces to recruit international students with skills critical to the national interest;
among these recruits are physicians, nurses, and experts in
certain languages and cultural backgrounds. Ji Ho Lee was
one of fewer than 1,000 recruits for this pilot program.
Some other recent international students on the move
toward their academic and career goals: Nene Akighir to
Northern Virginia Community College; Satoshi Fukuda to El
Camino Community College; Hiroyuki Koyama to SUNY
New Paltz; Tomoyo Miyaushiro to SUNY Oswego; and
Ayumi Wakebe to SUNY Morrisville.
DID YOU KNOW? For Spring 2010,
MVCC proudly hosted 51 foreign students
from 18 countries.
DINNER AT SUNY IT - Area colleges gathered for an Five-Campus International Dinner during the school year on the campus of SUNY Institute of
Technology in Marcy, N.Y. Students from MVCC attending included (from
left) Maya Hibi, Momoe Yamamoto, Naoko Kubomura, Chiaki Akada, and
Masanari Matsumoto.
Student Travels to China
Over semester break, Michael Pavese, a
student in General Studies-Radiology, traveled to China with SUNY 200, a very
competitive shortterm tour organized
by SUNY-Albany
and on a scholarship from the Chinese
government. Two
hundred students and
faculty from across SUNY
went for ten days, visiting
Beijing, Chongqing, and
Chengdu. The 1-credit
travel course was a survey
of Chinese history, politics,
economics and culture.
“It was amazing. I loved it,” Pavese said. He is still keeping in contact via the internet with Chinese
students he met in Chengdu. It was not what he expected—and he can’t explain what he expected—but he
enjoyed it and wants to go back. In the spirit of the trip, he used his Chinese when he could and loved the
food—even the new dishes he tried such as pig brain and chicken heart.
Michael continues his study of Chinese. Dr. Shawn Liang, his instructor, wrote a letter of support for
this competition and the College provided him with gifts for his hosts.
MVCC’s The Traveler
www.mvcc.edu
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