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International Education Week 2008Workshop and Reception
New World, New Minds: Preparing Children with Global Perspectives through Education and Media
Sponsored by the GS Graduate School and the National Capital Area Chapter (NCAC) of the Fulbright Association and funded through the Outreach, Mentoring, and Enrichment Grant of the Bureau of Educational and Cultural Affairs, U.S. Department of State
The event, held November 20, 2008 at the Embassy of Singapore, explored how sensitive global issues can be brought into school curriculum in order to better expose U.S. students to world affairs.
International Education Week is a special opportunity to celebrate the benefits of international education and exchange worldwide. The week represents a joint initiative of the U.S. Department of State and the U.S. Department of Education to promote opportunities that prepare Americans for a global environment and attract future leaders from abroad to study, learn, and exchange experiences in the United States. Throughout International Education Week, educational institutions, embassies and communities are encouraged to hold activities of their own choosing that celebrate international education and diversity.
The Fulbright program staff at the GS Graduate School and the National Capital Area Chapter (NCAC) of the Fulbright Association teamed up for a third year to hold a November workshop event in honor of International Education Week.
One hundred and thirty guests took part in the workshop including representatives of Washington, DC, Baltimore, and Annapolis area schools, Fulbright alumni from the east coast, as well as current international Fulbright grantees on exchange from a variety of countries.
Jennifer Nupp, exchange program administrator at the GS Graduate School and former Fulbright grantee to Germany, and Keisuke Nakagawa, president of the Fulbright Association’s National Capital Area Chapter and former Fulbrighter to Bangladesh, welcomed participants and introduced honored guests. They both emphasized opportunities for teaching abroad through a variety of publicly and privately-sponsored programs. Mr. Alvin Lim, Deputy Chief of Mission, himself a former Fulbright grantee, welcomed workshop participants to the Embassy of Singapore.
Keisuke Nakagawa
Jennifer Nupp
Alvin Lim
The initial thematic speaker of the evening was noted author and journalist Jimmie Briggs, the first African American to be appointed a Goodwill Ambassador and Special Envoy for Children and Armed Conflict by WAFUNIF at the United Nations. The personal mission of Mr. Briggs’ career as a journalist has been to share the voices and stories of the disenfranchised and voiceless, which he has done in his book Innocents Lost: When Child Soldiers go to War. Mr. Briggs described his extensive travels to Africa and the findings of his investigation into why children are used to fight in the area’s conflicts. As part of his presentation, he handed out and discussed a curriculum based on his book and explained how schools could make use of it in the classroom to raise global awareness.
Mr. Briggs was followed by Jim Asendio, news director at WAMU 88.5 radio. He highlighted different ways that public radio works to expose young people to educational programming and creating special programs that can be used by schools. Mr. Asendio has reported during his career on major international events, presidential campaigns, national political conventions, and major natural disasters. He noted during his presentation that some of his proudest career moments also involved mentoring young journalists, many of whom are now working at major newspapers and broadcast news operations.
Following the workshop event, certificates of participation were awarded by the GS Graduate School and Mr. Briggs signed copies of his book for program participants.
For more information about this event:Jennifer Nupp, Exchange Coordinator
International Institute, GS Graduate School Phone: 202.314.3521
Email: [email protected]://www.graduateschool.edu
