OSUInternational Programs - Division of International Programs

OSU International Programs
Alumni Newsletter
Fall 2009
Iraqi Engineering Delegation Visits OSU
Insights into OSU International Programs
On August 9th, 2009, twenty university presidents
and engineering professors from Iraq visited OSU
to learn about sustainable building, design, and
green energy. The Iraqi delegates came to Oregon
through the efforts of the OSU engineering faculty
and the Michael Scott Mater Foundation. They
signed a memorandum of understanding with OSU
that could lead to more cooperation in the future.
Greetings from the Associate Provost for International Programs
The delegates are interested in setting up partnerships and completing exchange agreements with
their US counterparts to increase scholarly activity between higher education institutions in both
countries.
The relationship between OSU and the Iraqi
campuses started last year when OSU alum, and
Army Captain, Joshua Mater gathered about 200
engineering textbooks for a donation to Dhi Qar
University. The Michael Scott Mater Foundation,
named after his father paid to ship the textbooks.
To read more about Joshua Mater, please view the
Alumni Write In section on page 7.
Courtesy of Charlotte Moats-Gallagher
and Katie Warrener
There are changes aplenty in the department of
International Programs and each is designed to improve services to students and to the campus, but
we have not lost track of our history; did you know
the first international student graduated from OSU
in 1913?
I am currently serving as interim Associate Provost
of International Programs. Previously I served as
the founding Dean of the University Honors College and was invited by Provost Sabah Randhawa to
serve International Programs starting in the summer of 2008. Obviously the learning curve was
steep and shows no signs of abating. Among the
many valuable things I have learned is how hard
working and dedicated is the staff of International
Programs. Not only do they have the best interests
of incoming international students and faculty in
mind, bringing the world to OSU as it were, but
they work tirelessly to bring OSU to the world by
ensuring outbound students receive the best possible experience in their study abroad opportunities.
Our International Students and Faculty Services
unit, known to all international students and faculty who have passed through OSU, has moved the
OSU int’l alumni newsletter 1
Photo by Viktoriya Oliynyk
student services part of our operations to the Kerr
Administration Building in order to better meet
the needs of international students as they deal
with the admissions and registration process. The
office is much more visible and close to other key
administrative services so our students can receive
what they need in a single location.
Our English Language Institute has been absorbed
into the INTO OSU operations after more than
four decades of providing English language training.
The same great people and the same great service
will continue under the new name.
INTO OSU on Target to Meet Goals
Some nine months after Oregon State signed an
agreement to team with INTO University Partnerships on an initiative to recruit international students
to the university, the fruits of many thousands of
hours of labor is beginning to pay off.
This summer, the first INTO students arrived to
participate in a pair of language programs to prepare
them to become full-fledged OSU students. Roughly
200 students, mostly from Asia, have enrolled in Academic English and General English courses.
New INTO students, and twin sisters, Xinran and Xinyan Tan. Photo by Lindy Osborne.
Did you know OSU was the first university in the U.S. to grant an International
Degree? The International Degree and
Education Abroad unit continues to provide a range of first-rate opportunities
for students to go overseas to continue
their education. Some new short-term
study abroad options are in the works and
should be available to future OSU students
before too long.
Finally, International Programs has refined
our worldwide web presence and we invite
you to visit our site at http://oregonstate.
edu/international/. You will learn about
our fundraising priorities to help the OSU
community take advantage of international opportunities and for international students
to benefit from what OSU has to offer. There is
also an invitation there to get in touch and let us
know how you are faring. Please do visit the site. I
believe you will find International Programs is stepping-up and providing new experiences designed to
address emerging interests in the global century.
Jon (Joe) Hendricks
Interim Associate Provost
OSU International Programs
This fall, a series of “pathway” programs brought more
international students to campus. These one-year
programs have options in business, engineering, science and general studies and are designed to ease
international students’ transition to a new country,
improve language skills and introduce them to their
intended major. About 85 students are participating in
the new pathway programs, bringing the total number
of students under the INTO OSU umbrella to about
300 for fall term.
“We’re right on target with our goals,” said Chris Bell,
a former associate dean of engineering and the lead
for OSU on the INTO transition team. “The complexity and level of detail is sometimes staggering, but it is
OSU int’l alumni newsletter 2
coming together, thanks to a lot of hard work from
OSU faculty and staff and the INTO team. It’s really an extraordinary initiative that will benefit the
university for years to come.”
Last July, OSU became the first university in the
United States to partner with INTO, an organization that has worked with institutions in the United
Kingdom to increase their international student
enrollment. The pioneering agreement, reflective of a growing interest in American universities
to globalize, was featured in The New York Times,
Washington Post, Chronicle of Higher Education
and elsewhere.
Oregon State’s goal, says Provost and Executive Vice
President Sabah Randhawa, is to double the university’s international enrollment to make OSU “a truly
international university.” Over the past decade,
OSU’s percentage of international students has
decreased considerably and now stands at about
4.8 percent. The university’s strategic plan calls
for OSU to expand its enrollment of international
students to 9 percent of the student body.
The purpose is multi-dimensional, Randhawa says.
Foremost is a desire to diversify the student body
and bring the vast array of global experiences and
perspectives international students have to campus.
“The diverse international perspectives will enrich
the educational experiences of our students who
will be living and working in an increasingly global
economy and society,” he pointed out.
“The INTO regional managers work in-country
with the agents – or counselors – to navigate the
system and any language barriers that might arise
for the students and their parents,” said Steve Walters, director of the INTO OSU center. “Imagine if
you spoke a few words of Spanish and wanted to
go to the University of Madrid. Try working your
way through the maze of admissions information
and coursework that is online.”
A number of the educational agents/counselors
came to OSU earlier this year for a visit, to familiarize themselves with the university in order to betOSU int’l alumni newsletter 3
ter present its programs to international students.
“Educational agents are providing a service to
students and their parents that is in great demand
in many parts of the world,” said Julie Walkin of
Admissions, who had been OSU’s lone full-time
international recruiter prior to the establishment of
the INTO center. “We are recognizing the important role they play, and we’re beginning to establish
a vast network of professionals, who guide prospective international students from the very beginning
of the search all the way to providing help with
visas.
“The United States is still the No. 1 destination for
the world’s international students,” she added, “but
there’s a tremendous amount of competition. With
INTO OSU, we are now able to have much greater
presence in many countries. We’ve expanded exponentially our connections with students and their
parents.”
“You wouldn’t believe some of the sacrifices some
people make for their children’s education,” Walters
said. “An INTO colleague recently visited a rural
village in China and met a family living in a hut with
a mud floor. The parents had been selling fruit all
day, every day, for 15 years so their child could be
educated in America.”
Article by Mark Floyd
Reprinted with permission from LIFE@OSU
http://oregonstate.edu/dept/ncs/lifeatosu/
New Study Abroad Opportunities for
Oregon Students
Through program mergers, Oregon students will
now have more opportunities to study in Mexico,
Spain and Tunisia. The Department of Foreign
Languages and Literatures at OSU developed programs in Santander, Spain and Tunis, Tunisia that will
transition to the Oregon University System (OUS)
platform in fall 2009 and fall 2010, respectively. This
transition takes advantage of the broad recruiting
base of the seven OUS institutions and offers opportunities to students that will encourage language
and cultural immersion. By concentrating on intensive language acquisition, students will position
themselves for more advanced study and internship
opportunities.
An Expedition without Expectations
Marco Clark’s expedition to the Nu River Valley
in southwestern China was off to a difficult start.
Checkpoints lined the highway, blocking access to
villages near the Nu, where there are plans to construct as many as thirteen dams. Even though Clark
needed to get to the villages to do his research, he
was reluctant to approach the checkpoints.
This challenge came as no surprise to Clark; his
prior experiences in China had taught him to expect the unexpected. Still, he was nervous about
the sensitivity of his research topic: human behavior
in the face of an immediate environmental threat.
But Clark continued to trek — mostly by bus or
foot — approximately 230 miles up the Nu River
Valley in search of an accessible village.
Another intensive language program in Querétaro,
Mexico will transition from the Interamerican University Studies Institute (IUSI) in Eugene, Oregon
to the Oregon University System in fall 2009. This
well-established program at the Autonomous University of Querétaro will offer summer programs, a
fall semester and spring term programs that focus
on Mexican Studies and Spanish language.
Special thanks for development work on the
Santander program goes to Anuncia Escala and Sara
Phillips; for the Tunisia program, Karim Hamdy and
Laura Rice; and Robert Jackson and Jennifer Jewett
for the Querétaro program. Joseph Krause, outgoing chair of OSU’s Foreign Languages and Literatures department has encouraged these programs
to develop and flourish on the OSU campus.
OUS International Programs is based at Oregon
State University and, consistent with the land grant
mission of OSU, serves the entire State of Oregon
with worldwide international programs and internship opportunities.
Paul Primak
Director
Oregon University System (OUS) International Programs
OSU int’l alumni newsletter 4
Clark’s research is associated with a cross-disciplinary project at OSU that unites the departments of
Biological and Ecological Engineering, Anthropology,
and Geosciences in order to examine the social,
economic and ecological effects of dams on the
Nu and Upper Mekong Rivers in China. Currently,
China is the international leader in dam construction, and the project is being developed with the
intent of assisting China in their quest for renewable energy. Clark’s interviews with villagers and
political leaders will provide a better understanding
of the effects of dam construction on people and
the environment.
As an undergraduate studying political science at
OSU, Clark developed an interest in human behav-
ior. “I wanted to study how people feel about
their environment and how they respond when
that environment is threatened,” Clark says. Clark
had visited China three times while pursuing an
International Degree and was inspired to return.
Currently in his second year of graduate study in
anthropology, Clark was able to conduct more
fieldwork in China with the help of a generous
grant from the Institute for Water and Watersheds
(IWW).
“Marco has done a great job of treading lightly
and making good relationships,” says Bryan Tilt,
Clark’s academic adviser and assistant professor of
anthropology. “He was able to create connections
in the area of his fieldwork through his excellent
people skills.”
Clark improvised as he neared the Tibetan border,
hiking two hours from the main road until he happened upon a privately owned dam under the support of the provincial government. The dam, near
the village Dimaluo, was still undergoing construction when Clark came upon it. “The community
was very removed and felt more secure,” Clark
says. “It felt like a suitable place to be.” Dimaluo
was where Clark would conduct his research.
While in Dimaluo, Clark was greeted warmly by
the community. He formed a lasting friendship
with a man named Aluo, who invited Clark into his
home to stay with his family. Aluo assisted Clark
with his interviews in exchange for English instruction and help translating for foreign guests.
“Both of these paths will keep me involved in research
in developing countries,” Clark says. “By completing
assessments on the needs of small communities I hope
to continue to help improve others’ quality of life.”
Reprinted with permission from
News and Communication Services
Oregon State University
http://oregonstate.edu/ua/ncs/
Climate Change Gets Personal
Trip to Antarctica changes
students’ perspective
Forget Cancun or Miami. Last winter break, a group of
Oregon State University students didn’t seek out the
sun and sand. Instead, they enthusiastically set off for
the coldest place on earth. Professor Michael Harte,
director of the OSU Marine Resource Management
Program, led a group of 15 students, 10 of them from
OSU, on an exploratory trip to Antarctica in December to examine how human actions around the world
can alter the fragile ecosystems in the frigid south.
Harte and his students viewed the trip as an opportunity to turn a vacation into a learning lab, as they
reflected on their own carbon footprint while at the
same time witnessing the dramatic effects of climate
change on the landscape and the flora and fauna of the
Antarctic.
Clark hopes that his research will help
other scientists and policymakers better understand the potential impacts of
dam construction, including the displacement and resettlement of villagers.
Clark is still deciding what to do after he receives his degree from OSU
in 2009. He is thinking of pursuing a
Ph.D. in order to teach and continue
researching at a university. He is also
thinking of continuing developmental
work for either a governmental or nongovernmental organization.
OSU int’l alumni newsletter 5
Russian vessel M/V Lyubov Orlova waits as passengers set out in Zodiaks to explore the area.
“What we do here in Oregon does make a difference (in other parts of the world,)” Harte said.
Students who enrolled for the trip first took an
intensive on-line series of lectures to prepare
themselves for the journey. Then, in mid December, the group flew to Argentina, where Ushuaia, at
the tip of South America, became their home base.
The town serves as a launching point for countless
ships taking passengers to Antarctica. Among those
ships was a Russian vessel, the M/V Lyubov Orlova,
whose passengers included Harte’s class as well as a
variety of tourists. The ship took passengers across
Drake Passage, a two day trip that was remarkably
calm, despite the waters being known for their turbulence. Sea sickness wasn’t a problem for Harte’s
students, he said, but the medication they were taking to stave off sickness did alter some students for
the worse, making clear thinking sometimes a little
difficult.
OSU professor Michael Harte and 15 students studying
climate change in the region.
For Harte, providing a balance between learning
and having fun proved the biggest challenge. Although he’s traveled with graduate students before,
he’s never led a study abroad group, so the social
dynamics provided the biggest learning opportunity
for him as professor. “It was like ‘Animal Planet’
meets ‘Big Brother,’” he said. “The unique wildlife
experience and the dynamics of other young people
made it a lot of fun.”
OSU int’l alumni newsletter 6
While there was plenty of opportunity to observe
the wildlife and scenery aboard ship, the most rewarding explorations came during trips ashore in
Zodiaks, small boats that transported passengers to
remote locations along the way. There, the students
and Harte were able to interact with Antarctica’s
wildlife in a profound way. Although humans are told
not to approach the animals, no such restrictions
were placed on the animals themselves. That means
bold penguins felt free to march right up to their visitors. “I had a chummy penguin step up and sit on my
stomach,” Harte said.
Students were able to witness thriving Gentoo penguin groups who had started taking over territory of
Adelie penguins who were being driven further south
by warming temperatures and melting ice. They also
witnessed the influence of invasive species, and were
aware that even though they were careful to clean off
their boots, there was a chance that they were
contributing to the spread of new and potentially unwelcome species.
“One of the scariest things to me about
the human impacts to Antarctica, and really
worldwide, is how many vectors there are for
invasive species,” wrote Brandon Trelstad, a
graduate student and OSU’s Sustainability Coordinator, in a piece he composed after returning from the trip. One of the things students
were asked to consider is whether or not what
they learned outweighs the damage they did
to the environment simply by visiting, including
the carbon emissions by the planes and ships
that transported them. “Does it change people’s world view? Yes, but there is a cost,” Harte said.
Harte is planning another trip for the coming winter
break. He needs students to enroll early in order
to book passage aboard ship. For more information
please visit http://oregonstate.edu/international/
studyabroad/programs/antarctica/auip-antarcticashort-program-fragile-continent.
Article by Theresa Hogue
Reprinted with permission from LIFE@OSU
http://oregonstate.edu/dept/ncs/lifeatosu/
Alumni Write In
Joshua R. Mater
I was a student at Oregon State University from
1998 - 2002 and graduated with degrees in Geosciences and the International Degree. I have recently
completed my Masters in management and leadership through Webster University.
During my sophomore year at OSU, I
was an exchange student to Waseda
University in Tokyo where I lived with
a host family for 12 months. I was
a member of the Army ROTC unit
at OSU and was commissioned as a
second lieutenant on December 13th,
2002. My father, Michael Scott Mater,
passed away shortly thereafter on the
23rd of December from cancer (he
lived just long enough to pin one of the
gold bars on my shoulder).
Shortly thereafter I began receiving inquiries on
whether we could implement partnerships between US universities and those of Iraq and other
nations, thus the Michael Scott Mater Foundation
(MSMF) was created. Over the course of 5 months,
we have refined the mission of the foundation and
expanded our programs throughout Iraq and into
Peru, South America.
As a Purple Heart recipient from
Operation Iraqi Freedom V, I worked in
Special Operations Forces Civil Affairs
Joshua Mater, CEO and Founder of MSMF, along with MSMF President,Tiffany Aveau
as a Team Leader in Iraq for 8 months,
The Foundation’s Mission Statement is:
from November 2007 - June 2008. During my time
The Michael Scott Mater Foundation (MSMF) is a
there, I worked with local, provincial, and national
nonprofit organization dedicated to building relaleaders on the reconstruction and reunification
tionships between the United States and Foreign
efforts throughout southern Iraq and played an
Nations through the promotion of sustainable enintegral part in the US combat mission. One of the
gineering and green technologies in order to create
projects that I worked on was with Dhi Qar Univerjobs, promote cooperative and sustainable educasity (DQU), city of An Nasiriyah, Dhi Qar Province,
tion platforms, and promote economic growth at
Iraq. I had the idea to create a direct link between
the community level. The foundation looks for straOSU and DQU focusing on engineering (as mathtegic partnerships from institutions of education
ematics and engineering are universally understood
at all levels, corporations, government entities, and
concepts versus business and other fields which
other NGOs, to help bring sustainable solutions to
vary depending on the region of the world). OSU’s
impoverished men, women and children throughout
college of Engineering was able to donate over
the world.
$20,000 worth of new engineering and computer
science textbooks of various levels to DQU. In NoOur initiatives are:
vember of 2008, I was able to present these books
1. International Promotion of Sustainable Engineerin a ceremony held at Tallil Air Base with Military
ing (IPOSE)
Commanders, Provincial Reconstruction Team Mem2. World Empowerment initiative (WEI)
bers from the US and Italy, and US Embassy Officials
3. Micro Loan Initiative (MLI)
to Chancellor Ali and the executive staff of DQU.
The event made local and national media.
OSU int’l alumni newsletter 7
You can view more details about each initiative at
www.msmf.org.
The foundation was able to facilitate the visit of
Drs. Ali of DQU and Nabil of Babylon University
(Baghdad) to OSU to meet with President Ray
and the College of Engineering staff to sign official memorandums of understanding, which has
opened the door for immediate student exchanges
to OSU.
The foundation founded and co-developed the IPOSE initiative with Catherine Mater (my mom and
Sustainable Programs Director for the CoE) which
entails a 17 day seminar focused on sustainable engineering and construction management protocol
to be hosted by OSU this August in Oregon. The
seminar will bring 20 Iraqi university engineering
scholars from 14 universities throughout Iraq and
Kurdistan to Oregon.
As a result, the foundation has had the opportunity to work with the Departments of State and
Defense, the Iraqi and Kurdish Ministries of Higher
Education and Scientific Research, Government
officials throughout Oregon and corporate entities. The US Army Corps of Engineers (USACE) is
on board with IPOSE and has asked if MSMF can
expand this program into Afghanistan. We are
also continuing to expand our work in Peru and
have started several medical campaigns which are
bringing much needed supplies and medical expertise to poor communities and slums, in addition to
continuing the sustainability platform by working
with communities on developing bio-gas programs
as sources for renewable energy and economic
growth.
Suzette K. Edwards
I was born on February 6, 1976, in St. Catherine,
Jamaica. I am the second of four children. I grew up
in a small town called Orange Vale in St. Catherine
where I attended an All-Age School. I later went on to
High School in the same parish that I was born. I spent
most of my free time swimming, baking, reading, and
talking to my friends. I also enjoy cultural dancing.
At age 18 I was awarded a scholarship from Cooperative Association of States for Scholarship through
USAID as a Cultural Ambassador from Jamaica to
attend Mt. Hood Community College, in Gresham,
Oregon. I represented my country culturally by volunteering at schools, churches and elderly homes. I
also pursued an Associate of Applied Science in Food
Science Degree with a minor in Computer application
while at Mt. Hood Community College.
After two years in Oregon, I went back home to my
country, where I worked as a Lab Technician for a year,
then as a teacher of Biology, Integrated Science, and
Chemistry for another year. During this time I had a
beautiful baby girl name Orlia.
I later went on to continue my studies at Oregon
State University (OSU) where I was awarded a scholarship through the International Cultural Service
OSU int’l alumni newsletter 8
Program, where I was again going out and sharing my culture with others. This time, at OSU I pursued two
Bachelors of Science degrees, one in Food Science and Technology with a minor in Chemistry, and the other
in Microbiology. I graduated in 2005. During my final year at OSU I had a set of twin boys, Malik and Tyjah.
I worked with the Bureau of Standards Jamaica, a regulatory agency, as an Inspector/Analyst; as an inspector I
worked at the Ports of Entry, Warehouses, Processing Establishment, Distribution Companies, Supermarkets,
Gas Stations and Wholesales stores where compliance checks are done. Weights and Measures, Good Manufacturing Practice, Labeling, and Educating according to the Acts governing the Bureau of Standards are some
of the tasks performed. As an Analyst I worked in the Food Lab and the Microbiology Lab making sure foods
were in compliance with the regulations. I had my last baby girl Jamila while working at the Bureau of Standards Jamaica.
After working at the Bureau of Standards for two and a half years I went to work for Nestle Jamaica Ltd., as
a Hygienist/ Technical Training Officer. I trained most of the Staff about Good Manufacturing Practices, Basic
Microbiology, and Sanitation Procedures. I also organized other training as deemed necessary. I was also
responsible for performing a daily hygiene audit to the establishment.
In October 2008, I started working with Florida Organic Growers as part of the certifying body “Quality Certification Services” as a Certification Coordinator. I perform tasks such as initial and final reviews making sure
Organic System Plans are in Compliance with the National Organic Program. I also communicate with clients
addressing issues as they relate to the National Organic Program.
Karl Fairchild
In December 2008, I had the great privilege
to conduct bird research for my International
Degree thesis at the Arenal Volcano in Costa
Rica, as part of my comparison of bird communities at temperate and tropical volcanoes.
This experience was the capstone of my time
in Costa Rica, even though I had already been
there since August studying abroad with CIEE.
My International Degree research experience
was a wonderful application of the knowledge
of plants, animals, and ecology I’d gained with
the CIEE study abroad experience. In addition to applying identification skills, I enhanced
my logistical planning skills, made effective
and reasonable decisions, and learned how to
conduct ecological research where attitudes
and regulations were culturally different.
Karl Fairchild in Costa Rica
The first challenge I encountered came almost immediately, while I was planning methodology. In planning my International Degree research, I had hoped to closely duplicate in Costa Rica the research protocol that I’d used at Mt. St. Helens for a summer
job, and which was providing me with a portion of the project data. The bird survey
OSU int’l alumni newsletter 9
method I used on Mt. St. Helens used line transects, in which the observer walks along a straight line of a
given length and records the birds seen. However, since the terrain at Arenal was frequently sharp volcanic
boulders, as opposed to a relatively smooth pumice plain like the one I encountered at Mt. St Helens, I was
unable to perform line transect surveys. Instead, I did point counts, in which the observer simply stands in
one location and records birds observed.
A second challenge I encountered was that I had hoped to find a highly comparable, highly uniform pumice
plain habitat at Arenal that was large in size and had space for many transects (or point counts). Instead,
I found a highly varied landscape that was at times challenging to access. To account for this, I opted for a
smaller number of surveys in a wider variety of habitats. The surveys were also hampered by rainy weather.
I knew that the rainy season in Costa Rica spanned May through November or December. I hoped that my
surveys would largely be unaffected by rain. This unfortunately proved not to be the case and I frequently
had to postpone surveys due to rainy conditions. Only later did I find out the rainfall conditions I’d experienced were a near record for that time of year.
The cultural experience in Costa Rica was also a very interesting and informative one. I was frustrated by
the permitting system in the Arenal National Park, where I did a significant portion of my research. I had
hoped to have off-trail access to all parts of the volcano, which were not actively erupting. However, the
permit application proved prohibitively long and complex for the level of research that I was doing, and as a
consequence, I was limited to public access areas and found myself restricted in terms of study areas. Only
later did I learn from local naturalist guides that “Stay on Trail” signs were taken about as seriously as the
Costa Rican stop sign, well-known for its ornamental nature.
My International Degree research experience in Costa Rica gave me a fantastic real world problem-solving
experience in which I was able to apply many of the biological concepts I’d learned over the years. Now, as
I write my thesis, I am seeing even more real world applications to my work. Truly, my International Degree
experience has been a personal highlight and a professional capstone to my undergraduate career.
Melisa Lopez
My experience of studying abroad
in Taiwan will be one that I will
remember for the rest of my life.
I’m a small town girl, so when I
decided to study abroad I really
wanted to take that extra step
to get out of my comfort zone. I
didn’t know what to expect when
I decided to go to Taiwan, which
has a population of over two million people! I had never in my life
been away from my family, I had
never traveled out of the country besides Mexico, I had never
used public transportation, I had
never been on an airplane, and I
had never been in another place
OSU int’l alumni newsletter 10
Melisa Lopez and friends at a cooking class in Taiwan.
where I couldn’t understand the native language.
Before leaving I just knew this experience was
going to be one that I believed would change me
forever, and that it did!
I was living in Taipei County, which is the outskirts
of the country’s capital, Taipei City. I lived in a
hostel on campus with 14 other women from
OSU, 12 students and 2 professors. On our first
day there we were greeted by 30 Taiwanese students and for the next 10 weeks of my stay those
30 Taiwanese students became close friends. A
day didn’t go by that we didn’t spend time with
our new friends. A couple of the OSU girls and
I created a list of all the places we wanted to go
see during our stay and our Taiwanese friends created a list of places of where they wanted to take
us. Every day, if our class schedule allowed us, we
set out for an adventure to check off sites off our
list. We went to Taipei 101 (the tallest building
in the world), night markets, the National Palace
Museum, hot springs, famous temples like Longshan Temple, the Grand Hotel, Taipei zoo and so
many other wonderful
places.
with lasting memories and friendships. I was able to
accomplish my academic goal of studying abroad and
on my way to conquering my other academic goal of
graduating with a 3.5 GPA or above. I received a 4.0
while studying in Taiwan, because my classes were so
engaging and allowed me the opportunity to really
connect with the areas I was studying. Thank you
Nicodemus committee for selecting me as a scholarship recipient. I have you all to thank for being
allowed to embrace and experience these new life
adventures.
Avelino Solomon
On August 5th, 2008, I set off on a journey that
would take me 7,545 miles from my home to Bangkok, Thailand to live and study for 5 months. The
journey was not just a journey in the context of
time and distance; it was a journey of personal
growth and enlightenment. As I write this and
reminisce about my amazing experiences half way
across the world, I can‘t help but think it was all a
The best part of it
all was being able to
do this with my new
friends. Even though
we had a huge language barrier we were
able to overcome
it and find a way to
understand and communicate with each
other. The people we
encountered every day
left an impact on me.
They helped change
my outlook in life and
the way I perceived
things.
I am so thankful to
have received the opportunity to study abroad.
It was a true honor for me to live in Taiwan and
represent Oregon State University. I left Taiwan
OSU int’l alumni newsletter 11
Avelino Solomon
dream. But then I think of the subtle differences
between who I am now and who I was on August
4th, 2008, and reality is confirmed. I can’t begin to
do this amazing experience justice with words, but
I’ll try to share at least a glimpse of my life-changing journey.
fruit, crepes, and all sorts of other culinary delights
could be found on campus for about $1. We’d eat
before, during and after classes every day.
When I landed at Suvarnabhumi airport in Bangkok,
my Chulalongkorn University buddy, Wow, picked
me up and drove me to the Evergreen apartments
in the Ratchathewi neighborhood of Bangkok. My
roommates were Adam Schwarze from Michigan
State University and Sam Yang from San Jose State
University. Sam and Adam are great guys, and
we’ve become great friends.
I had classes three days a week, so I had plenty of
time to experience all things Thai as well as the surrounding countries. Traveling within Thailand was
very inexpensive by bus, train, or plane. Though the
standards were sometimes quite different than Western standards, I utilized all three as often as I could.
Bangkok is an extraordinary city with ultra-modern skyscrapers, a modern subway and sky train,
and extremely posh, world class shopping malls. In
the shadows of the glitz and glamour, is the truer
Bangkok, a city with rich culture, amazing history,
and friendly people. The city also has terrible traffic congestion, noise, air, and water pollution, and
huge number of slum-like neighborhoods scattered
within the sprawling city.
Chulalongkorn University, which is where we
studied, is considered the “Harvard” of Thailand.
In total, Chula’s College of International Business invited 47 international students. There were
students from the United States, Sweden, France,
Holland, Germany, Austria, Switzerland, Latvia, Japan,
Korea, Singapore, Canada, and of course many Thai
students taking business classes at Chulalongkorn.
Most of the international students lived in Evergreen apartments, and I got to know them very
well. Through every interaction we learned so
much from each other.
Being a student at Chulalongkorn was much different than being a student at OSU. We had to
wear school uniforms on campus every day, which
consisted of a white dress shirt, black pants, black
shoes, a Chula belt, and a Chula tie. The classes
were a grueling three hours each. Because it was
so hot outside, classrooms had air-conditioning that made it almost unbearably cold at times.
There were all sorts of eateries on campus serving
a wide variety of delicious Thai and non-Thai food
at very affordable prices. I could buy a plate of
fried rice with two small portioned side dishes for
35 Baht, about $1, and sandwiches, smoothies, fresh
OSU int’l alumni newsletter 12
While abroad, I visited the Philippines, Laos, Burma,
and Cambodia. I’m half-Filipino and have hundreds
of relatives in the Philippines. By chance, I met the
regional manager for Philippine Airlines in an elevator one day, and she gave me a great deal to Manila.
I spent three days in Manila staying at our ancestral
home and visiting literally hundreds of relatives.
In my adventures in the north of Thailand, my friends
and I chose to cross the border into both Laos and
Burma, which were unbelievable experiences. The
most amazing place I’ve seen in my life was Angkor
Wat in Siem Reap, Cambodia. It was a truly magnificent place.
We were near Bangkok University, so we met many
more international students from BU. With our Thai
friends, and international friends from two universities, we had an extensive social network for nights
out. Above all else, I think it’s the relationships I
made during my time abroad that I’ll cherish the most.
As I said at the beginning, nothing can sufficiently
describe my journey. This barely scratches the surface. Even the 30 gigabytes of videos and pictures I
took while abroad cannot accurately describe the immense value this experience has given me. I’ve been
positively affected in such a way that I can’t describe
it. I’ve tried to transfer to others my new perspective and the extremely satisfying sense of being that
accompanies it, but this isn’t the type of feeling that
can be transferred. This feeling can only be earned
through firsthand experience. So instead of trying to
describe my new sense of being to others in words,
I’ll share my stories and pictures and strongly advocate getting out and experiencing our great world and
the fascinating diversity of its citizens.
This journey has made me even more capable of affecting positive change in our world, and I’m forever
grateful.
Contributors:
Joe Hendricks
Mark Floyd
Paul Primak
OSU News and Communications Services
Theresa Hogue
Joshua Mater
Suzette Edwards
Karl Fairchild
Melisa Lopez
Avelino Solomon
Editors:
Alicia Cuenca
Joe Hendricks
Cynthia Cox
Katie Warrener
Graphic Design:
Ashley Fuszek
OSU int’l alumni newsletter 13
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