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ISO Wins Organization of the Year and Best Advisor 2018-2019!

May 3, 2019

CONGRATULATIONS ISO!

The International Student Organization on the Armstrong Campus won Student Organization of the Year 2018-2019 at this year’s Nick Mamalakis Emerging Leaders & Awards Reception Banquet.

Their advisor, and OIPS Staff Member, Sara Nobles, also walked away with the Adviser of the Year award for 2018-2019. Sara works as the International Student Coordinator for the Armstrong Campus.

ISO hosted many impactful events this year, including Mardis Gras, Lunar New Year Celebration, Holi, and SO MUCH MORE!

OIPS is so proud of everyone involved and can’t wait to see what is in store for next year!

International Award Ceremony 2018

December 3, 2018

2018 International Award nominees and recipients

International Education Week 2018 concluded with the annual Global Partners Zone International Award Ceremony. The International Award Ceremony recognizes students, faculty and staff that stood out in the international community at Georgia Southern. Whether it was for their community building skills, leadership legacy, or even their passion for advocating for and helping international students, the recipients of the following awards have truly made a lasting impact in Georgia Southern and the international community.

The ceremony took place on November 16 from 12:00-1:00pm in the Ogeechee Theatre on the Armstrong Campus.

Congratulations to our award recipients!

See the list of awards, descriptions, and recipients below:

International Student Leadership Award

Student must be international (F, J, or H visas; granted asylum)
Student is an active member in an extracurricular student/professional on-campus organization(s) and has contributed to the success of the organization’s programs and development
Student is not required to hold an official position, but must make measurable contributions to the organization(s); leadership position preferred
Student demonstrates philosophy of diversity, inclusion, and engaging with people from different backgrounds
Student can be a short-term or degree-seeking student
Student has balanced his/her studies and extracurricular activities well
Criteria: 3.0 GPA; must be in good immigration and academic standing; undergraduate or graduate student

Recipient 2017: Ekanayake Mudiyanselage Nipuna Ambanpola

Recipient 2018: Darnel Howlett

International Student Leadership Award Recipient 2018: Darnel Howlett

Global Community Building Award

Student can be international or domestic
Student exhibits leadership and solidarity by welcoming and helping new international students adjusting on campus
Student acts as a mentor or leader for international students; international students look to this student for assistance and guidance
Student demonstrates philosophy of diversity, inclusion, and engaging with people from different backgrounds
Criteria: 2.5 GPA; must be in good immigration and academic standing; can be a short-term or degree-seeking student

Recipient 2017: Kaushalkumar Rajeshbhai Patel

Recipient 2018: Yearim Yang

International Student Overcoming Obstacles Award

Student must be international (F, J, or H visas; granted asylum)
A) Student was previously doing poorly academically on campus, might have been considered an academically at-risk student (this is determined by the person nominating, e.g. a professor or advisor) who has significantly brought up his/her grades and improved class/semester performance; or
B) Student was having difficulty integrating into campus life, was formerly disengaged and withdrawn, who has become more involved with peers in activities and/or organizations around campus and is having a more enjoyable life on campus
Criteria: 2.5 GPA, must be in good immigration and student standing; can be a short-term or degree-seeking student.

Recipient 2017: Karuna Mary Bollam

Recipient 2018: Nhien Lê

International Student Academic Distinction Award

Student must be international (F, J, or H visas; granted asylum)
Student has been an academically successful student by maintaining consistently high grades, demonstrating knowledge by class participation, assists classmates in understanding class concepts
Student contributes to their field by attending conferences in field of study, assisting a professor in research, presented or working towards presenting research, and/or published/co-published research, etc.
Student is self-motivated and driven to succeed academically and professionally
Criteria: 3.2 GPA, must be in good immigration and student standing; must be a degree-seeking student.

Recipient 2017: Iva Šćepanović

Recipient 2018: Darnel Howlett

International Student Advocate Award

Must be a faculty/staff member at Georgia Southern University
F/S can be international or domestic
F/S exhibits leadership and solidarity by welcoming and helping new international students adjusting on campus
F/S acts as a mentor or leader for international students; international students look to this student for assistance and guidance
F/S demonstrates philosophy of diversity, inclusion, and engaging with people from different backgrounds
F/S makes intentional efforts to engage and include international students
F/S has made a measurable impact on campus for international students through mentorship, programming, advocacy, and/or improving campus environment

Recipient 2017: Kristin R. Kasting Karam

Recipient 2018: Dr. Dorothée Mertz-Weigel

International Student Advocate Award Recipient 2018: Dr. Dorothée Mertz-Weigel

A Week in South Korea

November 7, 2018

Overview

This week-long event was cultivated through weeks of coordinating by the K-Pop Committee within ISO; a new group established and lead this semester by four executive members of ISO: Binh Hoang, Yearim Yang, BreAisha Walker, and Carolina Carter. An interest meeting was announced in late August, and planning began in early September with a new committee dedicated to South Korean culture. A Week in South Korea was entirely student planned. Students given the opportunity and were able to successfully execute meetings, budget lists, event details, and reservations. The week was very successful overall, and brought a lot of attention to ISO as a whole.

Korean Café

2PM-4PM Tuesday, October 16th, 2018 Solms Hall 110

This low-key, daytime event kicked off our Week in South Korea with various Korean snacks, yakult, and hot tea as a member of our K-Pop Committee did a wonderfully detailed presentation on the Hallyu Wave. In the presentation, she explained the origins of K-pop, how it affects the people of Korea socially and economically, as well as its affect on the world today, and what exactly makes K-pop K-pop.

Korean Dance Workshop

(Easy) 3:45PM-4:45PM Wednesday, October 17th, 2018 REC Center

(Moderate) 3:45PM-5:45PM Friday, October 19th, 2018 REC Center

For those wanting to immerse more with K-pop culture in South Korea, we hosted two days of dance workshops to teach the actual moves to popular K-pop music videos. The instructor is also a part of the K-pop committee, and is incredibly talented and passionate about K-pop dance moves, having her own outside K-Pop dance group, as well as social media platforms in which she performs the K-pop dances she’s learned over the years.

Seoul-Style Night

7PM-10PM Thursday, October 18th, 2018 Compass Point Clubhouse

Perhaps our most adored event, Seoul-Style Night was modeled after a South Korean themed sleepover, having multiple entertaining stations such as a Korean Photobooth station; a facial mask station where our resident South Korean, Yearim Yang, discussed beauty standards in Korea, and why health overall is so important in the Korean culture; Korean food station, serving popular dishes such as kimchi, tteokbokki, dumplings (Mandu), and Nong Shim Shin Ramyun; and a Hangul station, where people could practice writing simple phrases in the Korean language, as well as try their hand at Asian calligraphy. (Surprisingly enough though, the most popular piece of this event was people watching and conversing over the K-pop music videos playing on the tv.)

International Festival 2018 Global Village Winners

October 29, 2018

Thank you to all of our participants in this year’s International Festival 2018! We had so much fun playing games, watching performances, and learning about other cultures with you!

We want to especially give a huge shout out to our Global Village participants this year. Students from various local schools took us on a journey around the world as they presented facts, clothing, games, food, and more from different countries around the world. Congratulations to our winners and thank you again to all of our participants!

Brazil: Screven County Middle School
Japan: Swainsboro MIddle School
France: South Effingham High School
Honduras: Southeast Bulloch High School
India: William James MIddle School

See below to see our winners and placements!

Global Village Winners - France: South Effingham High School

1st Place France: South Effingham High School

1st place: France
2nd place: Japan
3rd place: Brazil

Most Knowledgeable: Brazil

Most Creative: Honduras

Most Authentic Appearance: France

Best Presentation: India

Most Engaging: Brazil

Congratulations and thank you all again for your amazing presentations, help and participation. We can’t wait to see you again next year!

Armstrong Study Abroad Fair Rescheduled!