|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
Tipton student wins essay contest
April 21, 2005 | |||||
KOKOMO, Ind.—Pam Tina of Tipton has won $500 toward next year's educational expenses at IU Kokomo, the prize for writing the best essay in a contest sponsored by the campus' American Democracy Project (ADP).
The ADP is a national, multi-campus initiative that seeks to offer undergraduates an intellectual and experiential understanding of citizen education. Tina's win was announced April 6, before a lecture by former Indiana Congressman Lee Hamilton on the 9/11 commission findings. Hamilton was one of several guest speakers brought to campus in spring semester, as part of ADP programming focused on issues of globalization. A psychology major minoring in labor studies, Tina wrote on the question, “What knowledge, attitudes, and skills do students need to be world citizens and to succeed in today's global society?” Tina's essay focused on the need for expanded knowledge of different cultures around the world. Her “very strong opinion” in favor of multicultural education came from being the daughter of a director of ASA International, a foreign exchange program based in Tipton. The program brings young people to attend high school in the United States while learning about U.S. culture and lifestyles. “Through the program, I have been host sister to 52 exchange students from all over the world. It was my parents' way of educating my brothers and sisters and I about the world,” Tina wrote. “I have learned that each culture has a beauty of its own, and that cultures' beliefs and organizational systems vary, yet are, for the most part, successful.” In her lifetime, Tina wrote, she has seen the effects of education to “at least reduce, if not totally eliminate” racial prejudice in the United States. Colleges and universities can lead similar educational advances toward cross-border understanding, she suggested. She called for higher education to provide more multicultural coursework in languages, literature, history, culture, and ethnic studies, as well as classes examining current events, business, and health care in other nations. Travel abroad and community events celebrating diverse cultures are other venues for learning, she wrote. “What's needed to make people more tolerant and open to other cultures is 'exposure, exposure, exposure,' ” Tina wrote. “If we don't understand people from different cultures and countries, we can't communicate effectively.” Tina entered the contest at the urging of her Spanish II teacher, Kimberlie Colson, who offered students extra points toward their class grade if they submitted an essay for the contest. “Senorita Colson was very enthusiastic,” Tina said. Assistant Professor of Political Science Todd Bradley, Ph.D., co-chairs the ADP Committee at IU Kokomo. Bradley said the essays that students wrote for the contest “provided a springboard of how being civically engaged not only connects one to his or her immediate surroundings but to the national and international spheres of relationship-building and cross-cultural understanding. “Moreover, the students illustrated the importance of a multicultural understanding and recognition of the various ways to make a difference, even with the power of the pen,” Bradley said. ADP activities will take place at IU Kokomo through spring 2006. Visit www.iuk.edu/adp for more information.
|
|
||||