| Volume 12, Edition 8: May 2013 | *20 year Anniversary* |
Honors Ceremony
On Monday, April 15, INTERLINK held an Honors Ceremony to recognize students who had earned A’s in all of their INTERLINK core classes and modules during the Spring 1, 2013 session. A record of thirty students qualified for this award. Students’ families, friends, and teachers were in attendance to congratulate them as they accepted certificates from Dr. Brad Teague, INTERLINK’s director. Congratulations to all for a successful semester!
 |
| INTERLINK students who made all A’s in their core classes and modules were presented with certificates at the Spring 1, 2013 Semester Honors Ceremony |
Greensboro Grasshoppers Baseball Game
On Tuesday, May 23, INTERLINK students and staff enjoyed a traditional American summer pastime: baseball! INTERLINK students and staff saw the Greensboro Grasshoppers come from behind to beat the Hickory Crawdads 10 to 8. Students enjoyed the game as well as fireworks, food, and entertainment, including an opportunity to meet the team mascot, Guilford the Grasshopper. One of our students was even lucky enough to catch a t-shirt shot from the t-shirt cannon.
 |
 |
| INTERLINK staff and students at the Greensboro Grasshoppers stadium. From left to right: Dr. Brad Teague, Abdullah Jastania (Saudi Arabia), Shaohua Wu (China), Thyty Ange Mervy Bininga (Congo), Christian Matabaro (Congo), Arwa Shesha (Saudi Arabia), Waleed Alkhalefah (Saudi Arabia), Vincenzo Calia (Italy), Yaser Alzuwayed (Saudi Arabia), Samuel Mulvey (USA), Christopher Mulvey, Jr. (USA), Christopher Mulvey, Sr. (INTERLINK Instructor) | INTERLINK staff and students meet the mascot for the Greensboro Grasshoppers, Guilford the Grasshopper. From left to right: Lynn Bergschneider (INTERLINK Academic Coordinator), Guilford the Grasshopper, Abdullah Jastania (Saudi Arabia), and Yaser Alzuwayed (Saudi Arabia) |
Barbeque Party
More than 80 INTERLINK students and staff gathered at Barber Park on Tuesday, May 30, for an end-of-the-year barbeque party. This was a great opportunity for everyone to relax and socialize before the end of the term. In addition to enjoying delicious hamburgers and other snacks, students played soccer, frisbee, and volleyball. INTERLINK instructor Christopher Mulvey also taught students the art of grilling burgers American-style.
 |
| INTERLINK students and staff unwind at the end-of-the-year barbeque party. From left to right: Christopher Mulvey (INTERLINK Instructor), Hunhwan Ji (South Korea), Yanan Liu (China), and Senhao Lei (China) |
End of Spring 2 Session
INTERLINK celebrated the end of the Spring 2 session on the morning of Friday, May 10, with a formal ceremony. Twenty-four students received graduation certificates for completion of the highest level of the program. Approximately half of these students will continue their studies in undergraduate or graduate degree programs at UNCG next fall. The other half will either continue their studies at another institution or return home.
The program likewise bids farewell to a few departing staff members. Lamar Gibson, INTERLINK's program assistant, has worked at INTERLINK since August 2012, assisting with administrative duties as well as coordinating extracurricular activities and INTERLINK-sponsored programs. Lamar will now be serving as a consultant for two law schools with projects focused on conflict resolution and restorative justice. He will also work to expand his own consulting practice, which provides training, business-development support, and personal-assistance solutions.
Casey Thomas, INTERLINK’s administrative assistant, is also set to begin a new position in mid-June. Casey has been working at INTERLINK since August 2011. Her favorite thing about being with INTERLINK has been the people, both the staff and the students, she has worked with. This past semester, she especially enjoyed participating in the new Transnational Perspectives Discussion Series. Casey will now be working in UNCG’s African-American Studies department.
Sarah Gulley and Dr. Patricia Talbert, INTERLINK instructors, will also be transitioning into new positions beginning this summer. A graduate of UNCG (’02) and of the School for International Training in Vermont, Sarah has been working at INTERLINK since Fall semester 2010.Sarah participated in a UNCG study abroad program in Argentina and has also taught in South Africa and Lebanon. She will now be working at the American Hebrew Academy.
Patricia joined the INTERLINK teaching staff during the summer of 2011. Having earned Master’s degrees at both UNCG (’11) and the University and Edinburgh in Scotland and a PhD at the University of South Carolina, she has taught English composition at several universities and colleges. While earning her M.Ed. at UNCG, she helped create a successful English-language-tutoring program for parents of ESL students at Asheboro Middle School. Patricia will now be joining another local ESL firm as an assistant director of curriculum development.
We thank everyone for their many contributions to our program. We will miss them all, and we wish them the best in their future endeavors!
New Mind: News and Announcements
 |
| A young girl tests her skills with chopsticks while playing a traditional Chinese children’s game |
On April 13, 2013, New Mind Education had its first opportunity to participate in the Annual International Festival here on UNCG's campus. One of the driving philosophies behind the Global Learning Curriculum of New Mind Education is intercultural competence and understanding, an invaluable skill in our increasingly global community. The theme the students chose for our booth, “East Meets West,” was meant to represent this philosophy.
New Mind students worked hard to prepare food and activities that represented the intersection of American and Chinese culture. One of the most popular activities was a variation on the traditional Chinese children’s game of ‘marbles,’ in which two students would race one another by using chopsticks to move marbles from one bowl to another as quickly as possible. Winners were awarded candy prizes.
Other activities included face painting, a Chinese/English translation game, calligraphy lessons, and eating delicious food. New Mind students Rex Liang and Henry Chen woke up early on the morning of I-Fest to prepare two refreshing dishes to share with festival attendees: summer green bean soup and a pickled cucumber dish.
Both students and staff were excited to have the opportunity to celebrate global culture with the local community. We cannot wait to participate in next year’s I-Fest!
 |
 |
| New Mind student Maggy Bai paints a festival participant’s face | A festival attendee learns to write her name in Chinese calligraphy |
 |
 |
Previous editions: |