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Collegial Conversations - May 2007
Through these conversations NAFSA hopes to target the best practices and experiences of some of international education's preeminent leaders. Every month the Chief International Education Leaders Network will ask one of its subscribers to answer the following three questions. Over the coming year we hope to see many unique and thought-provoking answers.
Jack & D'Ann Burke
Read more about the Burkes.
Arrival services
The student knows in advance that when he arrives at the airport he will be met by someone who will provide help with luggage (especially if there are missing pieces), transportation to the host's home, to the university, and possibly shopping for housing and immediate essentials. The student, having left his home country and family behind, finds comfort in being met and helped through the maze of arriving in a new country with a different language, culture, currency and laws.
Home hospitality
The student can turn to an off-campus refuge in which he will receive the friendship and support of an American family. Families care about each other. As an "adopted" member of the family, the student may be helped through the inevitable episodes of loneliness, and times of emotional and mental distress.
Cross-cultural understanding and conversational English
The student will learn a lot about American culture just by being around his friendship family. He can see how they relate to each other and to him, at first a total stranger. As they get to know each other, and feel comfortable in each other’s presence, they can begin sharing ideas and feelings about each other's culture. This is where cross-culture understanding goes to the next level. The practice of conversational English with the American family is tremendously important and helpful to the student too. Students tend to make friends on campus with those from their own nationality group which does not afford them this opportunity.
Students and families often develop life-long friendships
Having the care and support of an American family during the student's days at the university often develops into lasting friendships. Some friendships go far beyond graduation. The families and students often meet in each others' countries. What better way to develop mutual international understanding than through this people-to-people approach.
Recruiting friendship families is now a greater challenge
Whereas the wife usually was a stay at home Mom 50 years ago, this gradually changed with the American cultural shift which encouraged wives to get jobs away from the home and employers to hire women in the workforce. This cultural change took away much of the cushion which permitted couples to volunteer to administer friendship family programs and to be actively involved themselves in offering home hospitality to international students.
According to a NAFSA COMSEC survey, churches are the best recruiting grounds for friendship families. However, with married couples holding down full-time jobs and at the same time trying to raise a family, even churches have downsized their role in supplying friendship families. Since concern for international students does not fall under the category of denominational foreign missions, the best funded division of denominational agencies, and home missions and student missions continuing to be a lower priority for denominational support, international students do not fit into a church or denominational administrative division for support. Even the Southern Baptists and Presbyterians have dropped their respective Christmas holiday programs for international students. Sadly, Houston's Church Women United had to drop its very successful once a week noon luncheon program for international students because the volunteer work force was diminishing and the number of highly satisfied international students increasing. If it were not for para-church organizations' emphasis on serving the special needs of international students, there would not be nearly the focus on international students today as there is from the American church community. Because we have had more international students apply for friendships with an American family than we have had families, we have extended the opportunity for American single adults to befriend students.
Government funding and community support for friendship family programs diminished when the "Cold War" ended.
The U.S. Government through a division of the State Department gave a great deal of financial support to NAFSA in the mid-l960's largely to encourage people-to-people contacts with international students. These funds helped give birth to the Community Section (COMSEC) of NAFSA. Funds were used to bring the COMSEC regional representatives together for training and planning at least once a year. Funds were used to support COMSEC consultants to help colleges and universities organize and develop host family programs. Literature used to recruit and train host family volunteers was published by NAFSA's COMSEC. Videos were developed also for this purpose. Special workshops were held. Fewer volunteers have been attending the NAFSA conferences in recent years. We believe this is due to lack of funding, high cost of joining NAFSA for volunteers, and the high cost of the NAFSA conferences, which has resulted in few sessions at the conference to interest volunteers to attend.
Hope still lies with the universities themselves supporting friendship family programming.
The university International Student and Scholars Office (ISSSO) holds the key to the development of a volunteer program within the community. There are still many volunteers eager to help others and would be a great resource for developing friendships with international students. If the ISSSO realizes that the importance of having a program to provide for the many needs and cultural enrichment of students goes far beyond the perimeter of the university, then the resources of the ISSSO will be made available to the community volunteer program. An ISSSO community program run by volunteers at the University of Houston from 1970 to the early l990's proved the need for the program. This resulted in hiring a staff member in l992 charged with providing leadership for the continuation of community programming.
Being people too, international students, like the rest of us, need the human touch. Being thousands of miles away from home, international students need the relationship with people who care about them, offering acts of kindness. Although friendship families are not actual blood-line family members, many international students feel they have been adopted into a family that cares for them, much like their real families back home. Then, too, as part of their education, the students learn about the cultural life of America through the American family experience. They also are able to practice their conversational English with Americans.
Importance to the community
Any good American needs to develop a deeper understanding of the rest of the world. One effective way to do this is to develop a personal relationship with international students. Through in-depth discussions family members gain a deeper understanding and appreciation for people who come to America with different cultural norms and values. Students may deal with family issues differently, and their political and religious viewpoints may be quite different from Americans. If we are to understand the way the rest of the world thinks and feels about America, and life in general, we need to take advantage of the opportunity that exists for Americans through friendship family programs. Much has also been written as to how much the hundreds of thousands of international students have added to the economy of the particular communities in which they have sought their higher education. Let's also never overlook the satisfaction and enrichment an international student brings to the American family. Many students become like a son, daughter, brother, or sister.
Importance to the university
International students are wonderful resources for cross-cultural understanding. Through mixing with international students socially, American students come away from the university with more than just a degree. They come away with a better understanding of how the rest of the world thinks about a host of cultural values from political to religious, and educational as well as social systems. International students are able to practice their English, while American university students who take language courses have on-campus partners with whom they can practice their foreign languages. From a practical viewpoint, international students also help universities economically. They help keep classroom doors open for many graduate programs in engineering, the sciences, and business.
Importance to our national interests
Through our country's policy of welcoming international students to American shores from all parts of the world, our country found that many of our national interests are met. During the cold war, for example, Americans were able to befriend and understand people from other countries, such as the Soviet bloc and its sphere of influence. Likewise, international students developed a greater appreciation for the USA, and its people. The same was true when China opened its doors to send students to the U.S. In both instances, U.S. Department of State ambassadors found many former international students who studied in the U.S. and those involved in other exchange programs to be good contacts. Since dangers from terrorist groups exist in today's world, friendship family programs are still vitally important to our national interests. To develop peaceful relationships between our country and other countries of the world, many are convinced that it is best done through people-to-people programs like friendship family programs where international students studying on our nation's campuses are befriended by members of the community.
Jack & D'Ann Burke
Jack D. Burke, Ph.D. & D'Ann Burke
Jack and D'Ann have been exemplary role models; Jack as the former director of the Office of International Student & Scholar Services, and D'Ann as the volunteer director of the Host Family Program, both at the University of Houston. Through their tireless efforts of more than 20 years, they established one of the premier international friendship programs in the United States. Their model for recruiting, training, and recognizing volunteers has been duplicated at numerous institutions, including Purdue University, the University of Arkansas, the University of Pennsylvania, and the University of Akron.Read more about the Burkes.
In today’s highly interconnected society, where students have access to extensive resources and cultural support groups before they arrive in their new communities, what role can friendship families play to make their U.S. stay more meaningful?
Friendship families are a unique resource to the student. Although friendship family programs are not live-in programs, and not the only resource, they are certainly a "hands-on" resource. The American family provides an opportunity for face to face interaction. There are many ways in which families can and do help the student, and also be helped by the student to understand someone from another country and culture. Here are some of the ways students benefit:Arrival services
The student knows in advance that when he arrives at the airport he will be met by someone who will provide help with luggage (especially if there are missing pieces), transportation to the host's home, to the university, and possibly shopping for housing and immediate essentials. The student, having left his home country and family behind, finds comfort in being met and helped through the maze of arriving in a new country with a different language, culture, currency and laws.
Home hospitality
The student can turn to an off-campus refuge in which he will receive the friendship and support of an American family. Families care about each other. As an "adopted" member of the family, the student may be helped through the inevitable episodes of loneliness, and times of emotional and mental distress.
Cross-cultural understanding and conversational English
The student will learn a lot about American culture just by being around his friendship family. He can see how they relate to each other and to him, at first a total stranger. As they get to know each other, and feel comfortable in each other’s presence, they can begin sharing ideas and feelings about each other's culture. This is where cross-culture understanding goes to the next level. The practice of conversational English with the American family is tremendously important and helpful to the student too. Students tend to make friends on campus with those from their own nationality group which does not afford them this opportunity.
Students and families often develop life-long friendships
Having the care and support of an American family during the student's days at the university often develops into lasting friendships. Some friendships go far beyond graduation. The families and students often meet in each others' countries. What better way to develop mutual international understanding than through this people-to-people approach.
What changes have you seen in community programming over the years?
Since we as a couple have been actively involved in community programming for about 50 years, we have seen significant changes. Here are some of the changes:Recruiting friendship families is now a greater challenge
Whereas the wife usually was a stay at home Mom 50 years ago, this gradually changed with the American cultural shift which encouraged wives to get jobs away from the home and employers to hire women in the workforce. This cultural change took away much of the cushion which permitted couples to volunteer to administer friendship family programs and to be actively involved themselves in offering home hospitality to international students.
According to a NAFSA COMSEC survey, churches are the best recruiting grounds for friendship families. However, with married couples holding down full-time jobs and at the same time trying to raise a family, even churches have downsized their role in supplying friendship families. Since concern for international students does not fall under the category of denominational foreign missions, the best funded division of denominational agencies, and home missions and student missions continuing to be a lower priority for denominational support, international students do not fit into a church or denominational administrative division for support. Even the Southern Baptists and Presbyterians have dropped their respective Christmas holiday programs for international students. Sadly, Houston's Church Women United had to drop its very successful once a week noon luncheon program for international students because the volunteer work force was diminishing and the number of highly satisfied international students increasing. If it were not for para-church organizations' emphasis on serving the special needs of international students, there would not be nearly the focus on international students today as there is from the American church community. Because we have had more international students apply for friendships with an American family than we have had families, we have extended the opportunity for American single adults to befriend students.
Government funding and community support for friendship family programs diminished when the "Cold War" ended.
The U.S. Government through a division of the State Department gave a great deal of financial support to NAFSA in the mid-l960's largely to encourage people-to-people contacts with international students. These funds helped give birth to the Community Section (COMSEC) of NAFSA. Funds were used to bring the COMSEC regional representatives together for training and planning at least once a year. Funds were used to support COMSEC consultants to help colleges and universities organize and develop host family programs. Literature used to recruit and train host family volunteers was published by NAFSA's COMSEC. Videos were developed also for this purpose. Special workshops were held. Fewer volunteers have been attending the NAFSA conferences in recent years. We believe this is due to lack of funding, high cost of joining NAFSA for volunteers, and the high cost of the NAFSA conferences, which has resulted in few sessions at the conference to interest volunteers to attend.
Hope still lies with the universities themselves supporting friendship family programming.
The university International Student and Scholars Office (ISSSO) holds the key to the development of a volunteer program within the community. There are still many volunteers eager to help others and would be a great resource for developing friendships with international students. If the ISSSO realizes that the importance of having a program to provide for the many needs and cultural enrichment of students goes far beyond the perimeter of the university, then the resources of the ISSSO will be made available to the community volunteer program. An ISSSO community program run by volunteers at the University of Houston from 1970 to the early l990's proved the need for the program. This resulted in hiring a staff member in l992 charged with providing leadership for the continuation of community programming.
How important is community programming in today's world to international students, the community, the university, and to our national interests?
Importance to international studentsBeing people too, international students, like the rest of us, need the human touch. Being thousands of miles away from home, international students need the relationship with people who care about them, offering acts of kindness. Although friendship families are not actual blood-line family members, many international students feel they have been adopted into a family that cares for them, much like their real families back home. Then, too, as part of their education, the students learn about the cultural life of America through the American family experience. They also are able to practice their conversational English with Americans.
Importance to the community
Any good American needs to develop a deeper understanding of the rest of the world. One effective way to do this is to develop a personal relationship with international students. Through in-depth discussions family members gain a deeper understanding and appreciation for people who come to America with different cultural norms and values. Students may deal with family issues differently, and their political and religious viewpoints may be quite different from Americans. If we are to understand the way the rest of the world thinks and feels about America, and life in general, we need to take advantage of the opportunity that exists for Americans through friendship family programs. Much has also been written as to how much the hundreds of thousands of international students have added to the economy of the particular communities in which they have sought their higher education. Let's also never overlook the satisfaction and enrichment an international student brings to the American family. Many students become like a son, daughter, brother, or sister.
Importance to the university
International students are wonderful resources for cross-cultural understanding. Through mixing with international students socially, American students come away from the university with more than just a degree. They come away with a better understanding of how the rest of the world thinks about a host of cultural values from political to religious, and educational as well as social systems. International students are able to practice their English, while American university students who take language courses have on-campus partners with whom they can practice their foreign languages. From a practical viewpoint, international students also help universities economically. They help keep classroom doors open for many graduate programs in engineering, the sciences, and business.
Importance to our national interests
Through our country's policy of welcoming international students to American shores from all parts of the world, our country found that many of our national interests are met. During the cold war, for example, Americans were able to befriend and understand people from other countries, such as the Soviet bloc and its sphere of influence. Likewise, international students developed a greater appreciation for the USA, and its people. The same was true when China opened its doors to send students to the U.S. In both instances, U.S. Department of State ambassadors found many former international students who studied in the U.S. and those involved in other exchange programs to be good contacts. Since dangers from terrorist groups exist in today's world, friendship family programs are still vitally important to our national interests. To develop peaceful relationships between our country and other countries of the world, many are convinced that it is best done through people-to-people programs like friendship family programs where international students studying on our nation's campuses are befriended by members of the community.
