VARSITY FORD
www.varsityflm.com
Check out our specials on Focus, Mustangs,
& our entire stock of Trucks
(all rate, rebate, and inventory information is updated weekly)
PRE-OWNED SPECIALS ARE CHANGED WEEKLY
College Grad and 1st Time Buyer Program for Internet Users
Questions? - e-mail us at ross@varsityflm.com
Page 4
AGGIELIFE
h i Jay, Fcbruai} I5,20(
THE BATTALION
Friday,
Diversity in Aggieland
International students use campus services, adjust to life atA&k
Class of 2004 Class Council
Seeking Class Secretary!!!
Applications available this week only!
Set them in the Student Programs Office on the Second
Floor of the MSC in the Fish Council Cubicle.
Application Deadline is Friday February 16,2001
Turn applications in where you picked them up.
By Brooke Corso
The Battalion
The world is now a global village, with technol
ogy sophisticated enough to connect people from
even the furthest reaches of the globe. With these
advancements, there is growing demand for inter
national and intercultural skills in today’s workforce.
Students, please join us to
celebrate the opening of our new
Academic & Career
Resource Center.
Date:
Wednesday, February 21, 2001
Time:
5:00p.m. - 7:00p.m.
Location:
Student Counseling Service
Henderson Hall, Room 114
LJ
Texas A&M is working toward meeting
the demands of the global village by diversify
ing its student population and offering educa
tion and support services for both foreign and
U.S. students.
There are 3,205 international students- en
rolled at Texas A&M this spring, Suzanne
Droleskey, executive director of the Interna
tional Program for Students, said the majority
are from Far East countries such as India. Ko
rea. China, Taiwan and Indonesia. A good num
ber are also from Middle East countries, like
Turkey, and Central America.
Droleskey said the International Program
sends students to local schools during Interna
tional Week.
“International students talk to five or six hun
dred schoolchildren and share experiences from
their native countries,” Droleskey said.
Currently, there are more than 40 organiza
tions geared toward international students and
international programs. There are clubs based
on students’ ethnicities, clubs for students who
study abroad and foreign intern clubs.
The International Student Association (ISA)
welcomes foreign and U.S. students and gives
them the opportunity to exchange ideas and expe
riences from their own cultural backgrounds.
Monica Pena, ISA president and a senior industri
al engineering major, said ISA is deeply commit
ted to supporting A&M’s international population.
“ISA provides a hostel in the summer when
most students arrive from overseas, because
many have not found an apartment or housing
yet,” Pena said. “We even have volunteers who
drive vans for students needing to go grocery
shopping or run errands.”
ISA sponsors International Camp, similar to
Fish Camp but geared toward foreign students.
It is a mandatory orientation that teaches stu
dents about Aggie traditions and history and
campus life.
“We have to remember that'these interna
tional students are confronted with two cultures:
the broader American culture and the culture of
Texas A&M,” Pena said.
According to Pena, ISA’s biggest event
is International Week, held Feb. 26
through March 2 this year. Nearly all
the international and cultural organi
zations will have a booth or exhibit
on display, and they each compete
for prizes.
"These students take their
k cultural displays very seri
ously,” Pena said.“They
. even ask for cultural
items and decorations
from the foreign con
sulates in Austin and Hous
ton to improve the authen
ticity of their displays.”
An International Buffet
is held Wednesday and is the most popular
event. Foreign ' movie festivals are held
throughout February.
At the week's end. a talent show and dress
parade is held, displaying students in their na
tive finest. Students start preparing for the tal
ent show as far back as November, and their per
formances demand more work anti effort than
any event held that week.
There are many on-campus programs for in
ternational students. There are also several off-
campus resources for students and their families.
Currently, 95 percent of international stu
dents live in the University-owned apartments.
Maria Clark, program coordinator for Univer
sity Apartments, develops programs for the stu
dents, their spouses and children.
“With the majority of foreign students living
here, and 300 to 350 children of these students
on average, we need programs for the entire
family,” Clark said.
There are professional development semi
nars for students to work on resumes, English
proficiency classes and fitness programs. Uni
versity Apartments offer free baby-sitting, arts
and crafts, and cooking classes specializing in
American and international cuisines.
University Apartments had suffered from a
lack of space to house these .activities. An
KRISTI HINES/Thi Battalion
1,800-square foot community center wasbuij
recently. It has a full kitchen, meeting room
programming offices, a study room with«
puters and laundry facilities. The centers:
also have classes on American cultureandi?;
versational English.
“A&M students have been wonderfulm.c;
tributing to the new center,” Clark said."lb
dence Life sponsored a garage sale in [tied®
which netted over $200 to be spent on toys:
the children at the apartments.”
As foreign students make an effort to b
the ways of the American world, Antericaost
dents are also exposing themselves tote
cultures. A&M teaches classes in French,Spr
ish, German, Italian, Russian and Japaneses
offers study abroad opportunities in thesect
tries. Many A&M students have mastered?:
or more of these languages and strive tot;,
others do the same.
Kristin Kruse, a senior political sciences
German major, has taken German classessl
junior high and is a teacher's assistant forde
man classes at A&M.
“I want to inspire A&M students to 01
learn another language and also exposeth®
other countries,” Kruse said.
Kruse works at the English Language!m
tute in the Center for Language Learning:
Research (CELLAR) of the AcademicB.
ing. The CELLAR contains magazines,k.
papers and movies from countries all ovL
world for students to come in and look at.
“Most students who come in the CELL
are first-year language students and inter
tional students eager to read or watch somec
from their home country,” Kruse said.
The CELLAR also has conversational,
guage sessions in which internationalsttni:'
teach A&M students.
For students hoping to work internatioi.
the International Center at the Bush Librat
fers programs and services in intercultura
richment for faculty. U.S. students and to.,
students.
The Academy for Future Intematic
Leaders offers seminars, mentoring and:
ternships to select students from each colli:
Kruse is working on a project this spri
which students interview internationalstndi:
, concentrating on social, economicand;i
ical topics.
“Social questions involve family straw
religion and gender roles, whereas econe
questions are on class structure and way of .
Kruse said.
Whether offering programs for internat;:’
students to share their cultures with thel:
sity, providing foreign students and their:';
lies with support, establishing centers for
guage studies, or educating future leader
international awareness, Texas A&M
eessfully contributing to today’s globalvil
Sta
Sweet
recent tir
formance
to love ar
release d,
could be 1
year. If yc
well couh
Superf
this film i
false and 1
and powe
Nelsor
ecutive or
bles. Intrij
he met at
cides to n
■ must speii
I him how 1
I journey fo
Superb
I given wor
I bring to I if
I his acting:
I string of e
I perfection
S will probal
Theron
■ years hav<
i with such s
I subtleness.
Directei
1 Friends), tf
I that fits bot
I to tug at th<
■ person wIk
Sweet A
Iment in fill
lor toward r
jingly origii
Imiss this fii
No, this
JAMAICA • ANTIGUA • ST. LUCIA • BAHAMAS
THE CARIBBEAN'S #1 U&.TITA AE.K.-HNICt.lJtSlVK’^ LUXURY RESORTS FOR COUPLES ONLY.
/ ^\.GGie«VORL» V'''-
VdVEMTURES presents
Sandal’s Night
Sat. Feb. 17th 5:30-6:30 pm
Holiday Inn Express, Maroon Room, on University Dr. E.
* Free Pizza & Drinks * Free Slide Show & Brochures
-Honeymoon Discounts up to $ 150 - Available for Attendees.
-Sandals Area Rep will be present to answer questions.
'U
For more information call 696-5000
Remember - No Service Fees, Ags!
o/v/o/ C^/'C'/iewf/'a
HEAR THE VOICE OF RUSSIA
With roots as far back as 1776, Russia's Bolshoi Symphony Orchestra is a tradition that has truly
stood the test of time. Combining the award-winning voice of Irina Rubtsova with a repertoire including
Rachmaninoff, Tchaikovsky and others, the Bolshoi Symphony brings an incomparably powerful
and distinctive sound to American audiences.
FEBRUARY 27, 2001 • 7:30 P.M. • RUDDER AUDITORIUM
CALL 845-1234
or toll-free 888-890-5667
MSC
OPAS
WANT TO LEARN MORE? Join us prior to the performance for a Patricia S. Peters Lagniappe Lecture
in the MSC Forsyth Center Galleries at 6:30 PM. Sponsored by the OPAS Guild.
moviegoer
made a littl
Health Professions
Symposium
Free! Meet over 60 representatives from
Medical, JDental, Physician Assistant,
Physical Therapy, Nursing, and Other
Health Professions Programs from around
the world!
MSC Flagroom
FEBRUARY 20
10:30 A.M. - 2:30 P.IVI
Alpha Epsilon Delta
Biomedical Science Assoc.
Microbiology Society
PreMedical Society
Beta Beta Beta
Genetics Society
PreDental Society
American Medical Studen
DOWN TO EARTH (P
12:35 2:50 5:15 7:50'
RECESS: SCHOOL'S
12:25 2:40 5:00 7:25 i
SWEET NOVEMBER
1:204:10 7:10 9:55 1!
CAST AWAY (PG13)
12:153:20 6:45 9:45 I
CROUCHING TIGER,
DRAGON (PG13)
1:104:25 7:15 10:101
FINDING F0RRESTEI
12:40,3:45 7:05 1 0:00
HANNIBAL (R)
12:05 3:10 6:30 9:30 I
12:50 4:00 7:00 1 0:05
HEAD OVER HEELS
2:30 7:35 12:50
Multicultural Assoc. Of PreHealth Aggies
Texas A&M University
Executive Council of Health Organizations