SiS News - June 2009

Recent News June, 2009

• Video Contest Study in Spain 2009 - 1st edition.

• Comillas Foundation and the University of Miami sign an agreement to promote Spanish in the United States.

• OEA - IE SCHOOL of Arts and Humanities Scholarships

• ALA Scholarships for American students of Asturian ancestry in the University of Oviedo. Course 2009-2010

SiS Student Ambassadors

• Kate Bundy, of Kennesaw State University, awarded “SiS Student Ambassador of the Year” in Boston, MA

SiS on the road

• SiS at NAFSA Keeps Growing Despite Economic Downturn

Amigos del español

• Amigos del español: Michael Douglas

Institution Profile

• University of Cantabria

Video Contest Study in Spain 2009 - 1st edition.

EDUESPAÑA and ICEX (Spanish Institute for Foreign Trade) present the 1st Study in Spain Video Contest, with $ 500 in prizes.

Summary of Conditions:

• Submit a video showing interesting aspects of studying and living in Spain.
• The recording medium is free. The format is set in the Contest Rules.
• The video must be uploaded on www.spainedu.org
• The deadline for submitting videos is August 31 2009 at 12 PM Eastern Standard Time. On September 30 the winner will be announced in www.spainedu.org
• The jury will choose a winner among all the videos received. The decision is final.
• The winner will receive a check for $ 500.
• The organizers reserve the right to declare the prize void.

Read more on:
http://www.spainedu.org/index.php/students.html?start=2

Comillas Foundation and the University of Miami sign an agreement to promote Spanish in the United States.

In order to establish relations and cooperation, the Comillas Foundation has signed an understanding with the University of Miami to strengthen a cooperation agreement between both institutions.

After an initial meeting in Miami in December 2008, the Program Director in the American University, Eduardo Negueruela, traveled to Comillas, Spain, in June to meet personally with Ignacio Rodriguez del Bosque, Director General of the Comillas Foundation.

The purpose of the agreement between the two institutions is to promote the development of training programs related to teaching and learning in the Spanish language in order to apply it in the economic, cultural and social fields.

Consequently, the University of Miami will send students to the Foundation with the aim of completing their training program in the Spanish language.

To foster this relationship, the Foundation will provide favorable conditions for teachers and students of the university to study in their headquarters in Comillas.

The staff of the University of Miami will improve their knowledge of both language and techniques in teaching Spanish through participation in specific courses tailored to this group, as well as a Master in Education of Spanish as a foreign language, organized by the Foundation in collaboration with the University of Cantabria.

Read more on:
http://www.fundacioncomillas.es/

OEA - IE SCHOOL of Arts and Humanities Scholarships:

Master in International Relations

The proposal for the Scholarship and Training Program of the Organization of American States (OAS) is to help Member States in their efforts to achieve their objectives of integral development by supporting the development of human resources in areas under the Organization’s priorities. With this objective, the Organization of American States (OAS) and the IE through IE’s School of Arts and Humanities, Madrid, Spain, have decided, in collaboration with the “Fundación Instituto de Empresa”, to promote the excellence, opportunities and development of the human capital of the Organization’s Member States by granting a Master in International Relations from IE which begins in October 2009 and runs for ten months.

Benefits of the Scholarships OAS - IE

1. A maximum of two (2) scholarships per year will be granted for the Master in International Relations.
2. Each of the 2 scholarships will fund 60% of academic tuition, which is paid for by IE and is equivalent to €28,100.

The scholarships are directed towards candidates who fulfill the following requirements:

1. Nationality and/or permanent residence in any OAS Member State.
2. Have already initiated the admission process to the Master in International Relations at IE.
3. The candidates who benefit from this scholarship must commit to return to one of the Member States or to render service in an International Organization for a minimum period equal to the duration of the scholarship.

Read more on:
http://www.oas.org/OASpage/press_releases/press_release.asp?sCodigo=E-162/09

ALA Scholarships for American students of Asturian ancestry in the University of Oviedo. Course 2009-2010

The University of Oviedo, in northern Spain, will grant 15 scholarships: 10 for travel expenses and 5 for travel and living expenses. The purpose of the call is the concession of financial aid to American students, descendants of immigrants from Asturias, to study a degree at the University of Oviedo, during the academic course 2009-2010 (September 28, 2009 to June 30, 2010).

The stays provide the students with the opportunity to know the culture of their ancestors and to study in a Spanish university system.

There are two kinds of scholarships, with and without grants:

a) Those who obtain the scholarship with grant will receive the corresponding financial aid and will be exempted from paying the regular tuition for the registration in the University of Oviedo.

b) Those who obtain the scholarship without grant will have to pay the regular tuition for registration in the University of Oviedo.

General requirements for participation:

a) Be a descendant of Asturian immigrants pursuing studies at an American institution of higher education

b) Be over the age of 18 and under 30 at the date of notice posting.

c) Not have been a scholarship recipient in previous enrollments.

d) Exceptionally, students may participate without being enrolled in an institution attached to the program.

Read more on:
http://www.uniovi.es/zope/organos_gobierno/unipersonales/vicerrectorados/vicd/estudiantes/visitantes/ALAS/

SiS STUDENT AMBASSADORS

Kate Bundy, of Kennesaw State University, awarded “SiS Student Ambassador of the Year” in Boston, MA

“Please do not stop doing these projects because they are really life-changing". Katherine Bundy, awarded in Boston on May the 6th as SiS Student Ambassador of the Year for the Study in Spain Program, closed with these words her emotional speech after the award.

The young student from Kennesaw State University in Georgia (USA) won the award for her efforts in promoting Spanish culture and language in her campus. Katherine Bundy had made works in poetry in Spanish, tasting contests, and film festivals on Buñuel, among other activities.

With her, 9 best Ambassadors received the honorable mention of the Study in Spain Program. They were:

• Salvador Barajas from Pasadena City College
• Lindsay Clark from Oregon State University
• Soha Salamah from SUNY Brockport
• Meera Yogesh from University of Tennessee
• Katherine Brooks from University of Central Florida
• Jessica Almaguer from University of Arizona
• William Nathan Greene from Auburn University
• Michelle Spreutels from Regis University
• Zilin Cui from Mount Holyoke College

The SiS Student Ambassadors program is an initiative of the Embassy of Spain-Trade Commission in Miami and EDUESPAÑA (association representing universities and educational institutions in Spain), funded by the Spanish Institute of Foreign Trade (ICEX) and part of the Study in Spain program. Study in Spain seeks "to promote American involvement in Spain’s educational system with programs and projects of all kinds”.

The interest in participating in this program is high. About 150 higher education institutions have already requested to participate with their students in the next edition. "Studying outside the country of origin has become crucial for a successful and promising career" said Silvia Iranzo, Spanish Secretary of State for Trade, who gave the awards to the young SiS Student Ambassadors.

Ms. Iranzo emphasized the growing importance of collaboration between the U.S. and Spain in the field of education. One of the "cornerstones" of the new policy of the Obama Administration, which has created a fund worth 80 million dollars annually, is targeted to encourage and support nearly one million American students studying abroad per year.

Spain is the third preferred destination for American student exchange, after the United Kingdom and Italy.

SiS ON THE ROAD

SiS at NAFSA Keeps Growing Despite Economic Downturn

Consolidated as the most important event in the international education sector in the United States, NAFSA’s growth in the last decade has been incredible, as well as the demand of this kind of educational service. In the past ten years, the number of exhibitors at the trade show has doubled and the number of American students studying abroad has seen an increase of 150%.

After the United Kingdom and Italy, no other country receives more American students than Spain. Accordingly, a large number of Spanish institutions decided to come to the United States, at least once a year, to participate at the NAFSA Conference. In this year’s edition, celebrated at the Los Angeles Convention Center, 28 Spanish universities, along with some business and language schools, were recruiting students in the Spanish Pavilion, coordinated by EDUESPAÑA and the Embassy of Spain-Trade Commission in Miami.

Although there were fewer attendants than other years, Spanish institutions were satisfied with the results. They came to Los Angeles with an agenda of meetings with universities from all over the world. Next year’s edition will take place in Kansas City and Study in Spain will be present once more.

Amigos del español

Michael Douglas

Considered Hollywood royalty, the 63-year-old native of New Jersey and son of the legendary Kirk Douglas, has won two Oscars – one as producer for “One Flew Over the Cuckoo’s Nest” and another for best actor in “Wall Street.” Douglas and his family – including his wife, Welsh actress Catherine Zeta-Jones – divide their time between Hollywood, New York, Bermuda and Majorca.

Do you read in Spanish?

Unfortunately I have pub-level Spanish. I can read but it’s slow going. It helps me that I speak French.

Do you have a favorite book?

Don Quixote, but not in Spanish. I read Cervantes at the institute. It was mandatory reading. I like it because it’s a great story. And of course for the musical “Man of La Mancha,” even though it’s not the same.

Why did you learn Spanish?

I’ve been going to Majorca for 25 years and I feel close to its culture, to its life. The food is spectacular. But I have to practice more because I get lost when I’m surrounded by Majorcans.

Do you read in Spanish to your children?

First Catherine and I are going to study Spanish again.

How important is it to read?

It’s very important but I’m not a good example since I have to suffer through reading too many bad scripts and then I only have time to read magazines and articles. I don’t have much time for books. But I do read the news in Spanish.

Institution Profile: University of Cantabria

Santander (220,000 inhabitants), located in northern Spain, offers an extraordinary landscape on the shores of the Bay of Biscay and has been described as Spain’s "most elegant city." While the climate throughout much of the year is rainy, Santander is full of beauty with lush green trees and rolling green hills surrounding the city. With this green backdrop, Santander’s beaches are known to be the best and most appreciated natural spaces, offering both small and large sandy beaches, some sheltered from the wind with calm waters and others open to the bay with more surf. Next to these beaches, beautiful natural areas look out over the coast, like Piquío with its emblematic gardens. Also the Parque de La Magdalena faces the island of Mouro and surrounds the Palacio de la Magdalena, the most famous view in Santander.

The University of Cantabria hosts each year a big amount of international students from different countries. As for specific agreements with American Institutions, the UC holds study abroad programs with Baylor University (TX),Cornell University (NY), OSU (OK), Miami University (FL), UNC Charlotte (NC), University of Rhode Island (RI), University of Texas at Austin, Washburn University (KS), and Wittier College (CA)

More information:
http://www.unican.es/WebUC/Internet/Estudiantes_internacionales/ori.htm