WELCOME..from the offices next to the STUDENT UNION

The Office of International Programs welcomes faculty, staff, students and the Charlotte community to the 2009-2010 school year. We particularly welcome all the foot traffic, dining options and proximity to colleagues (hello Student Activities!) that comes with the Student Union! We've been peering out our windows on the 2nd floor of the College of Health and Human Services for the past year as ground has been broken, a beam signed, infrastructure created, bricks laid, traffic backed up and landscaping planned.

In between our observations of Union development we concocted a worthy host of programs, opportunities and services to support student,faculty and staff who are interested in adding an international dimension to their academic calendar. We're going to attempt to post periodic (translated: each Friday)updates to this blog - programming initiatives, interviews, student experiences on study abroad, international perspectives from students or faculty and anything else befitting of the idea. We'd also like for it to be an opportunity for you to provide feedback on programs or post ideas about global UNC Charlotte.

Without further ado, here's a few of the events/programs to participate in this fall - many of them are currently without a location so you'll have to stay tuned for details (or check out our Facebook group - Office of International Programs at UNC Charlotte).

*Thursday, September 3 and 17 - International Coffee Hour - Prospector Cafe - 4-6 PM
This event is held the first and third Thursday of every month in the Prospector Cafeteria. Last year averaged 85 faculty, staff and students each time to chat, enjoy some snacks and enjoy some friendly board game competition.

*Thursday, September 10 at 3:30 PM in a room to be determined, Doc Hendley, President/Founder of "Wine to Water" will give a presentation on-campus about the global water crisis and the creative idea he developed to bring clean water to some of the neediest areas of the world.

*Tuesday, September 15 from 10 AM - 2:30 PM around the Belk Tower will be the Fall Study Abroad Fair. Get information about study abroad options - where you can go, how to fund it, when you can go, what you need to do, etc. Stop by between classes and pick up some information.

*Thursday, September 24 at 3:30 PM in a room to be determined, Dr. Haleh Esfandiari, will be giving a lecture on her incarceration in one of the world's most notorious prisons in Iran - come to hear her personal story of 110 days in solitary confinement in Iran's Evil Prsion in 2007.

*Saturday, September 26 from 10 AM - 6 PM in and around the Barnhardt Student Activity Center, is the 34th annual INTERNATIONAL FESTIVAL. This is UNC Charlotte's longest running tradition and attracts 10,000 visitors to campus each year. The world will be at UNC Charlotte. Admission is free. More to come on this event!

*Somewhere in September will be the start of the OIP International Film Series - co-presented with the Global Film Initiative and funded through the Chancellor's Diversity Grant - we're waiting on room openings to confirm a date and time, but we're excited to have six internationally acclaimed films coming to campus for diverse perspectives on the universal themes of love, friendship, family, tragedy and community. More to come on this also.

That's September.

Join us. Get involved. Study Abroad. Visit a Coffee Hour. Definitely don't miss the International Festival. Post on the blog. Go global at UNC Charlotte.