Category Archives: Student stories

International Gateways celebrates 40 years

The College of International and Extended Studies staff and administrators celebrated the 40th Anniversary of International Gateways in October.

As part of the celebration, former International Gateway students returned to share their personal stories with International Gateways and their successes since completing programs in CIES.

International Gateways started in 1976 as a training program for SJSU students who were pursuing linguistics degrees. Originally called Studies in American Language, the first students were from Japan before it expanded to students from all over the world.

Since then, International Gateways has served thousands of students from 60 different countries with its core programs.

Nearly 400 students are enrolled in its programs this fall, and half of those students are conditionally admitted to an SJSU degree program.

“With International Gateways, these students will gain enhanced communication skills through intensive English-language courses,” said Provost Andy Feinstein, during a welcome at the event. “They will prepare for undergraduate and graduate school admissions tests that will make them more successful in their degree coursework.”

Current programs include Academic and Test Preparation; Semester at SJSU; MBA Preparation; Active Communication in English; and custom programs.

Justice Studies students donate toys to mistreated children

Students in a justice studies class collected small stuffed animals to donate to mistreated students after learning about domestic violence.

Students in a justice studies class collected small stuffed animals to donate to mistreated students after learning about domestic violence.

San Jose State justice studies students enrolled in JS 136, Family and Community Violence, wanted to give back to Santa Clara children after learning about the impact of violence in their class that is designed to promote awareness about child maltreatment, domestic violence and the U.S. justice system. Students in the class gave back to the Santa Clara County Children Activity Center at the YWCA by donating small stuffed animals with a note of encouragement attached to each toy. The stuffed animals were donated to children who have experienced trauma. Two students designed a box where all the stuffed animals were collected in class. The box was presented to Adam Moreno, who works as an assistant for the Children Activity Center.

Moreno also works as a counselor for Piece it Together Domestic Violence Teen Center. He specializes in working with teens who are in abusive relationships. Moreno also works with sexual abusers and offenders. When he presented as a guest speaker to the JS class, he spoke about the different forms of domestic violence and the cycle of violence. The presentation informed students of the dangers of domestic violence, but also raised awareness of what takes place in the community.

Native American panel discusses identity

SJSU’s Native American Student Organization (NASO) hosted a Native American Student Panel Nov. 17 as part of its Native American Heritage month activities.

Joey Montoya,’ 17 Advertising and a graphic design minor, founded NASO as a way for students with indigenous roots to connect. He and three other panelists shared their stories of identity, struggling with stereotypes and how to support future generations.

The other panelists included off-campus representatives Michael Andrews, a youth engagement coordinator at the Indian Health Center of the Santa Clara Valley; Mia Ritter-Whittle, a Stanford student who serves as the programming chair for the Stanford American Indian Organization; and Megan Red-Shirt Shaw, a writer who founded the online literary publication Natives In America and works at Santa Clara University as an assistant director of admissions.

“I grew up in San Francisco and being there, the community is diverse,” Montoya said. “But the one thing you don’t see is Natives.”

Montoya, who is Lipan Apache from Texas, said he struggled with who he was and who he wanted to be. But he sought out more about his family history after his father passed away.

“My experience was unique because I grew up in a biracial household,” Shaw said, noting that her mother spoke the language of the Oglala Sioux and taught her many traditions.

It was in elementary school when she first became aware of her identity when a girl in second grade dressed up in a Native American costume.

In discussing how to support Native American youth from reservations and those who’ve grown up in urban settings, the panelists said they didn’t have any easy answers. But they expressed the need to support education and allow youth an opportunity to be leaders in their tribes as a starting point.

The panelists also expressed a feeling that sometimes others think of Native Americans as a people from the past and the importance of making their existence more visible through art, music or publications.

“There are a lot of native artists and scholars out there,” Ritter-Whittle said, who is from the Caddo and Delaware Nations of Oklahoma. “Sharing that is really important.”

Andrews, who is Ojibwe, Sac and Fox, Kickapoo and Pauite, said it is important for people of color to stand up for themselves. He said even though some Native Americans might allow others to say racial things “it creates self-hate.”

“Speak up for yourself,” he said. “Give yourself a voice.”

Upcoming events:

Native American Student Organization Social

Nov. 18, from 4:30-6:30 p.m.

Mosaic Cross Cultural Center

Film screening: “On the Ice”

Nov. 19, from 6-7:30 p.m.

Mosaic Cross Cultural Center

Muwekma Ohlone Exhibit

Through Nov. 25

Fifth floor of the Martin Luther King Jr. Library

October newsletter: SJSU Salzburg Scholars and Fellows change the campus and the world we live in

Claire Tsai, left, a 2015-16 SJSU Salzburg Scholar is one of 18 students who attended the summer program in Austria. She and the other scholars are actively engaged in promoting global citizenship. Photo courtesy of Salzburg Global Seminars.

Claire Tsai, left, a 2015-16 SJSU Salzburg Scholar is one of 18 students who attended the summer program in Austria. She and the other scholars are actively engaged in promoting global citizenship.
Photo courtesy of Salzburg Global Seminars.

Claire Tsai, ’16 Art History and Visual Culture, is only halfway through her time as an SJSU Salzburg Scholar, but she is already describing the experience as transformative.

“One main point for me is that I saw more clearly how dangerous it is to keep a single framework for understanding the world,” Tsai said.

Each year, the SJSU Salzburg Program coordinators select students to be scholars and faculty or administrators to be fellows for an 18-month period, with the number selected each year varying. In 10 years, 261 Spartans have participated, with many extending their involvement beyond their 18-month commitment, according to Dr. William Reckmeyer, the program director and a co-founder. The goal for students, faculty and administrators is that through the program not only are they transformed on an individual level, but that they have an institutional impact on improving global citizenship when they return to campus.

As a scholar, Tsai participated in a semester-long course on global studies last spring before attending the week-long Global Citizenship Program in Austria, now known as the Global Citizenship Alliance. She will be working with the other scholars and fellows to pursue projects that promote global citizenship, though she said the group is still winnowing down ideas for this year.

Blanca Sanchez-Cruz, the director of the MESA Engineering Program and assistant director of the Engineering Student Success Center, is a Fellow this year.

She said she was encouraging engineering students to apply when they suggested she should apply to be a fellow.

“It was a confirmation or validation of my thought about the need for more intentional and systematic efforts to globalize curriculum and bridge across existing efforts on campus,” she said of the summer session, via email. “In the context of the MESA Engineering Program, I work with educationally disadvantaged students, who because of time, finances or misconceptions, are often the most likely to hesitate to get involved or are at risk of being left out.”

Jessy Goodman, a lecturer in the College of Humanities and the Arts and the College of Social Sciences, has a unique perspective on the program as she has participated as a scholar and a fellow.

“It changed the course of my life,” she said, noting that she made connections through the program that led her to taking a lecturer position upon graduation. “It opened up a lot of ways of thinking.”

Goodman participated as a Scholar when she was an MFA student, taught the global studies course last spring to the latest batch of scholars and is a fellow this year.

“I got a ton of great ideas and tools to use,” she said, of incorporating concepts of global citizenship into her composition classes. “My students are so much more engaged with the material.”

President and provost meet with student journalists

Interim President Susan Martin and Provost Andy Feinstein participated in a Student Media News Conference Oct. 26. During the one-hour news conference, the administrators fielded questions from Journalism and Mass Communications students involved in campus news organizations including Update News, the Spartan Daily and Equal Time.

Held once a semester, the conference allows student journalists to practice their interview skills with high-level administrators. Students took the opportunity to ask questions ranging from what plans are in place to keep the campus safe given recent shooting incidents at other universities to what building plans are next for the campus, specifically in terms of academic spaces. The event was coordinated by Associate Professor Diana Guerrazzi and Pat Harris, the media relations director for the university.

The conference ended on a light-hearted note when one of the final questions posed asked Martin and Feinstein what they think is the most important thing students should do before they graduate.

“Either live or work on campus,” Martin said. “You get to know a lot of people just by being here.”

Martin spent her first weeks as president living in campus housing, where she interacted with students frequently.

“Be actively involved in student leadership and extracurricular activities,” said Feinstein, who attends many events on campus. “There is dance, music and art exhibits. It’s not just about going to class.”