GlobaLinks NewsWire » Stacey

Renowned Chamber Choir from University of Newcastle Showcasing Eclectic Repertoire During U.S. Tour

Stacey — Mon, 21 May 2012 13:00:25 +0000

The United States is in for some auditory delights from Down Under next month when the top-rated University of Newcastle Chamber Choir arrives in country to showcase vocal music ranging from the 15th Century to Coldplay and Radiohead.

Members of the Chamber Choir of the University of Newcastle, an Australian university partner of GlobaLinks Learning Abroad.

Under the baton of internationally renowned director Philip Matthias, the choir will tour the U.S. and Bermuda between June 21 and July 14, marking the first U.S.-focused excursion for the group following successful tours to the United Kingdom, France, South Korea and China.

Comprised of University of Newcastle students, staff and members of the community, the 40-member choir will perform at the ‘Rhythms of One World’ Festival in New York (June 25), with the opening concert at the United Nations headquarters. The choir also will perform in Boston, Washington and Bermuda, and will compete in the World Choir Games July 8-12 in Cincinnati.

Top-rated in Australia, the choir ranked 8th worldwide in the Musica Mundi World Rankings (April 2011) from its excellent results in the 2010 World Choir Games held in Shaoxing, China. The choir also has regularly wowed judges in national competitions across Australia.

Phillippa Miskiewicz, events manager for the choir, talked with the GlobaLinks NewsWire about the upcoming tour:

Q: How many performers will be coming for the U.S./Bermuda performances and World Choir Games competition?

The University of Newcastle Chamber Choir at its Civic Theatre performance in November 2011.

PM:Thirty-seven performers. We also have 3 family members traveling with us – our roadies.

Q: How would you describe the individuals who make up the choir – are they music majors, grad students, a mix of ages and backgrounds?

PM: A very eclectic group. We range in age from 18 to 65. We do have several music majors and music teachers, but about half the choir have no tertiary music background. Because we do have many students we have a fairly large turnover of members.

Q: Will Philip Matthias be directing the choir for the U.S. tour?

PM: Yes. He runs all our rehearsals as well. We are very fortunate to have such a gifted conductor.

Q: What pieces or styles of music will the choir be performing?

PM: Everything! From the 15th century to Coldplay and Radiohead. We will be doing a large selection of music by Australian composers as well.

Q: How would you describe the behind-the-scenes work ethic that gives this choir its special spark?

PM: We all work very hard, sectional practice, as well as rehearsals with the whole choir. We also do quite a lot of performances for the university that pushes us to learn music quickly. We all get on fairly well together. We have a lot of fun as well as hard work. I’m sure that comes across on stage.

Q: What are some of the key ingredients, or “special sauce,” that goes into the choir’s success as a global competitor?

PM: Vocally, the wide range in ages gives our choir a unique sound. The large turnover in choir membership means we never get stale. Also, our very diverse range of musical styles allows us to reach a very wide audience. In one concert it is not unusual for us to sing a Praetorius Motet in three choirs, then sing a rock song with choralography.

Q: What is everyone looking most forward to on the tour? (the
competition, community performances, site-seeing?)

PM: Hearing other choirs, and singing with other choirs. Of course we are looking forward to the sightseeing as well, but when we came back from China two years ago we were asked to relate the most meaningful time on tour. It was the times we sang with other choirs – particularly where we had very little language in common but could sing together, and hearing other choirs from all over the world – that stood out for most people. I am sure it will be the same in the USA.

Q) Anything else you’d like to add that I haven’t asked about?

PM: It takes so much organization and money to take 37 singers half way across the world. We do feel very privileged that so many people both at Newcastle University and the wider community have enough faith in us to give their time and money for us to do an international tour.

James Cook University Study Abroad Student Blog Featured by Australian Trade Commission

Stacey — Thu, 17 May 2012 16:02:06 +0000

Casey Yanos’ “Delusions of a Small World” Chosen for Study in Australia’s Student Blogger Program

With stories of her “unexpectedly experiential education” in marine sciences, comparisons of U.S. and Aussie cultures, and descriptive excursions across Australia’s geographic wonders, Casey Yanos’ blog caught the attention of the Australian Trade Commission and is now featured in its Study in Australia Student Blogger Program.

Casey Yanos

Yanos, a College of Atlantic (Maine) student, is spending a semester abroad in Australia at James Cook University – Townsville.

“I chose to study abroad in Australia because I have wanted to go to Australia for as long as I can remember,” Yanos says in her blogger profile. “Now that I am working toward a marine science degree, it is the perfect time to go. The diversity and richness of marine life in Australia, particularly on the Great Barrier Reef is unmatched by any other place that I have had the opportunity to visit. James Cook University’s location in Townsville is ideal, being close to the water and the reef, making it easier to have more hands-on classes, which are the type of classes that I thrive in.”

Here’s an excerpt from her blog:

“Being on a boat is the best cure for anything, not that I’m ailing from anything in Australia except maybe the heat, but there is nothing like the smell of the sea, the wind in your face and the mainland at your back. The day was spent baiting, setting and hauling in long lines. Anything that was caught, including eels, catfish, travoli and other fish, were accounted for and released. But when we caught a shark we would pull it in, lasso it’s tail and tie it off alongside our little research vessel. We took measurements, tagged and released them. In total we caught 6 Blacktips and 1 Hammerhead, Sphyrna mokarran. Unfortunately the study is mostly focusing on Nervous Sharks, Carcharhinus cautus, and a few other species that we didn’t catch that day, but if we had we would have taken blood samples in addition to the measurements in order to run stable isotope analysis. Either way it was still an awesome experience and it is things like this that make me remember how fortunate I am to be in this awesome country and to be studying something so fascinating.”

Read Casey’s blog in its entirety at Delusions of a Small World.

Go Vote NOW for GlobaLinks Learning Abroad as Winner of a People’s Choice Award from GoAbroad

Stacey — Wed, 02 May 2012 16:40:58 +0000

Every year GoAbroad.com gives awards to universities and international education organizations for their innovation in the field of study abroad. New in 2012, GoAbroad added a category called the “People’s Choice Award” where study abroad advisors nominate their favorite international education organization.

GlobaLinks Learning Abroad was nominated and is now in the top 5 nominees for the award.

How can you help GlobaLinks Learning Abroad win? By casting your vote of course! Go Abroad has utilized a contest app in Facebook to collect votes from now until May 30.

Who can vote? ANYONE! Please tell your friends, your family, your colleagues, etc., to take a minute and place your vote here:

To vote just go to GoAbroad’s People’s Choice Award page on Facebook and vote for GlobaLinks Learning Abroad.

GlobaLinks Learning Abroad will also send voting information to all alumni, current students, inquiries, advisors, etc. over the coming weeks.

Wish us luck!

Supporting Clean Energy: Alumni Evaluations Generate $250 Donation for Colorado Carbon Fund

Stacey — Tue, 01 May 2012 20:58:53 +0000

Colorado Carbon Fund

Students who were willing to take the time to fill out an evaluation on their fall 2011 GlobaLinks Learning Abroad programs have helped generate a $250 donation by GlobaLinks Learning Abroad to the Colorado Carbon Fund. The money was raised from GlobaLinks Learning Abroad’s commitment to donate $1 for each evaluation completed by students who participated in its fall 2011 study abroad programs.

GlobaLinks Learning Abroad has supported the Colorado Carbon Fund since 2006 to encourage students to offset emissions from air travel, as well as build on several existing green initiatives for students studying abroad. The company makes a regular contribution to the Colorado Carbon Fund for each student evaluation form it receives. The company chose to support the Colorado Carbon Fund because it supports clean energy projects developed in Colorado. Portland, Ore.-based Climate Trust, one of the country’s most experienced offset project developers, is a third-party organization helping to select and manage Colorado’s offset projects, which include methane capture at farms or solar water heating for recreation centers.

EuroScholar Presents at National Conference Her Legal Research Conducted While Studying Abroad in Belgium

Stacey — Wed, 04 Apr 2012 14:19:53 +0000

Charlotte Luks conducted research abroad while studying in Belgium at Katholieke Universiteit. She got to work on her own human rights project and had her own office next door to a judge for the European Court of Justice.

By Stacey Hartmann

GlobaLinks NewsWire Editor

Published research wasn’t the ultimate goal when Charlotte Luks decided to study abroad, but her semester in Belgium through the EuroScholars program resulted in just that kind of achievement, as well as her presentation of her findings last week at a national conference.

Majoring in human rights law and sculpture, the 20-year-old Hampshire College student wanted to study at a specific university in Belgium – Katholieke Universiteit Leuven – so she could be near her grandparents who live there.

“I’m a citizen of Belgium, Canada and France,” says Luks, who moved to the United States when she was 5. “I’ve been living in American for the last 15 years, and (Katholieke Universiteit Leuven) is actually where my dad got his Ph.D., so I already had a lot of friends there before I went.”

What she didn’t expect from her January-June 2011 semester abroad was high-impact academic discovery.

“I wanted to do a human rights project, but they didn’t have any listed,” she says, so Mona Miller, director of EuroLearn’s partnerships and development, “worked really hard and found me the perfect project with the perfect mentor.”

How perfect? After arriving at Katholieke Universiteit, Luks was given her own office in the law department of the university next to a judge for the European Court of Justice.

“It was amazing,” she says of working under Prof. Geert Van Calster, head of the department of International and European Law. “I didn’t see my mentor that often, but he emailed me what I should be doing, and I had a lot of independent time to do my research.”

In fact, a research project on corporate social responsibility was created just for her to work on. The project involved analysis of the Alien Tort Statute – part of U.S. law – to see if the statute is a viable forum and legal method to try corporations for human rights and environmental abuses in third-world countries with lax laws and policies.

“It’s usually related more to the environment that affects human life, like indigenous people who are affected when oil companies completely pollute the area,” Luks says.

Charlotte Luks presented her research on the Alien Tort Statute in March 2012 during the National Conference on Undergraduate Research at Weber State University.

Luks’ resulting research is complex but generally shows the Alien Tort Statute to be a viable method, although the law itself needs to be better defined.

“Charlotte was thrown into the deep end, in a research and teaching-intensive department of the faculty,” said Van Calster in reference letter for Luks. “Upon Charlotte’s arrival to the department, I decided to employ the ‘immersion’ method: I outlined a research interest [comparative research in employing private international law/conflict of laws to apply environmental and labour law/human rights law extra-territorially] to Charlotte, and asked her to kick-start the North American/US leg of it. Charlotte had not had any training at all initiating research like this from scratch. I was hoping that pulling her out of her comfort zone would show her true skills. It certainly did.”

After her time abroad, Luks decided to submit her research for presentation at the National Conference on Undergraduate Research at Weber State.

Her research – “The Use of Private International Law in the Corporate Social Responsibility Debate: The case of the U.S. Alien Tort Statute” – was accepted out of several thousand applicants. She presented it last week during the conference.

The work also was deemed of such high quality to be fed by her supervisor directly into a proposal submitted to The Research Foundation – Flanders (FWO), as well as for joint publication with the European law side of the debate.

“For me, it was definitely an experience that very few people get to do in that capacity in undergraduate,” Luks says. “I missed a semester of classes, but I think this has prepared me more than a semester of classes.”

Most importantly, the international law research experience reinforced for Luks that she definitely wants to do law, while confirming that she does not want to spend her career sitting in an office writing all day.

“It was a really good experience for me,” Luks says. “It was an opportunity to see if this is actually what I want to do with my life.”

Giving Back: Challenge New Zealand Leadership Students Clear Path at New Zealand School

Stacey — Thu, 29 Mar 2012 04:06:24 +0000

The Challenge New Zealand: Leadership Development group from January 2012. Jennifer Hackney is in the front row, fifth person from the right.

For the past five years, participants in GlobaLinks Learning Abroad’s twice yearly Challenge New Zealand: Leadership Development program have thrown their youthful energy into a day of volunteering on behalf of the Houghton Valley School on the South Coast of Wellington.

Jennifer Hackney, of Rowan University in New Jersey, was part of the January 2012 Challenge New Zealand group charged with clearing a track along the school.

“Through the entire experience in New Zealand our group was greeted with kind voices and open arms,” Hackney said, “and we found the Houghton Valley School project as the perfect opportunity to show our appreciation.”

Challenge New Zealand: Leadership Development is a two-week short course emphasizing leadership, personal development and team building. The course travels throughout the North Island of New Zealand, which is widely known as one of the most innovative, culturally diverse, and beautiful countries in the world. Activities include group work, service learning, cultural examination, discussions with community and business leaders, and a five-day program of outdoor, physical challenges.

When the January 2012 Challenge New Zealand group first arrived for their service learning project, Hackney says, they were unsure what to expect until Dave McArthur, caretaker for the school and a member of the green movement in New Zealand for more than 40 years, explained the ongoing effort of gradual environmental restoration of the Houghton Valley, once home to a forest of large coastal trees before becoming a rubbish dump from 1949-1962.

McArthur explains to the volunteer students that the Houghton Valley was an ideal geography for the Maori to live off the land and catch food from the nearby sea. The arrival of Europeans, however, changed the valley. The Maori moved away and the rubbish dump was established. The Houghton Valley School was created adjacent to the dump, and as the valley filled with trash, the area was flattened every few years to create a new playing field for the children. These changes left enormous environmental scars on the area.

“Dave decided when we first became involved with the project that it would be best for our students to focus on one area in the school so that future groups would see the legacy left from their GlobaLinks Learning Aboard predecessors,” said Gavin Murdoch, resident director in New Zealand and facilitator of the Challenge New Zealand Leadership Development program.

“For the last five programs I have been lucky enough to attend this project each time,” Murdoch says. “The way the day unfolds is that students know that there is a volunteer project that is a part of the program, and they generally have mixed feelings and different levels of excitement about the project. What this means is that they are not usually expecting this day to be one of the highlights of the program.”

In Hackney’s case, the program most definitely became a highlight of her time in New Zealand.

“Meeting David and envisioning his dream of creating a place where children and their families could enjoy one another while learning of their native land recalled for each of us our own childhood memories,” Hackney said in essay on her experience. “Remembering that we were only guests in New Zealand for a short time, we found ourselves jumping at the opportunity to put our youth into action.”

With hatchets and picks as their main tools for clearing the path, the Challenge New Zealand students worked together throughout the day to leave a bit of progress behind at the school.

“Each of us agreed that there was something special — almost magical — about working in the gardens,” Hackney said. “We knew long after our shovels were stilled and we returned home, a piece of us was sewn into that garden and would forever stay in New Zealand.”

Murdoch concurs.

“What happens at Houghton Valley School to our students may be sometimes more significant than the real work that they do,” he says. “They see a legacy and are a part of contributing to that. They meet an amazing man with a passion for doing something that will outlast him and that he will never receive any financial reward for and spend a few hours in the beauty for the outdoors in New Zealand doing something for someone else.”

Participants in Bridging Cultures Program Deliver 405 Lbs of Books to School in Fiji

Stacey — Fri, 23 Mar 2012 05:09:14 +0000

Group shot at Sote Village.

The shelves at Sote Village School in Suva, Fiji, are now chock-full of imagination following a donation of 405 lbs of gently used library books delivered last month by GlobaLinks Learning Abroad.

Members of the Mother's Club at Sote Village school stand near their new sink, installed by GlobaLinks Learning Abroad students.

The books, given by a primary school in Rockhampton, Queensland, Australia, were delivered during a February visit to Sote Village as part of GlobaLinks Learning Abroad’s Bridging Cultures Program for university students studying abroad in Fiji at the University of the South Pacific (USP). Students participating in past visits have planted gardens to supply lunch food for the children and painted classrooms.

The old sink at Sote Village school.

The most recent group of students not only delivered books that filled up a wall of shelves at the school; they also planted vegetables and shrubs and installed a new sink for use by the Mother’s Club for preparing food for the children.

Planting vegetables with the kids.

“The children don’t bring food to school,” said Kym Treacy, resident director, GlobaLinks Learning Abroad – Pacific Region. “The Mother’s Club cooks the food in a little area next door to where the children eat.”

Before the recent book donation, the school library consisted of books only on the top shelf.

The community service project is one of the unique programs offered by GlobaLinks Learning Abroad.

The visiting group of GlobaLinks Learning Abroad participants and staff presented the books to the headmaster and the teachers. The presentation was held on the group’s last day and the Village Preacher was also at the presentation.

A game of Duck, Duck, Goose with the kids.

Students helping in the classroom.

Photo Showing Personal Discovery of New Zealand Wins Annual Alumni Photo Contest

Stacey — Tue, 20 Mar 2012 16:55:01 +0000

Andrew Finanger's photo of Tasman Lake on the South Island of New Zealand is the winner of the annual GlobaLinks Learning Abroad Alumni Photo Contest.

An exquisite photo demonstrating the personal discovery of New Zealand’s bold mountain scenery is the winner of this year’s GlobaLinks Learning Abroad alumni photo contest.

The winning photo of Tasman Lake on the South Island of New Zealand was taken by Andrew Finanger, an environmental management major at Luther College in Decorah, Iowa. Finanger studied abroad in 2011 at the University of Otago in Dunedin, New Zealand. He receive a $110 Chipotle Mexican Grill gift card for his winning photo.

The GlobaLinks Learning Abroad annual photo contest occurs in February/March of each year and is hosted on the Alumni Facebook Page. All GlobaLinks Learning Abroad participants from the previous year are eligible to submit photos from their abroad experience. All details will be sent to eligible program alumni prior to the start of the contest each year.

To see the other Best of Category photos, visit the Facebook photo contest page.

Scholarship Opportunity: $500 for Students from Canada Enrolling in Medical School and Other Full Degree Programs of Australian Partners

Stacey — Wed, 14 Mar 2012 04:52:09 +0000

GlobaLinks Learning Abroad, a provider of international education programs across the globe promoting academic, cultural, personal, professional and social discovery, is announcing new $500 full-degree Discovery Scholarships, a special study abroad funding opportunity for students from Canada who want to complete an entire degree abroad at any of the company’s 26 Australian partner universities.

“More students from Canada are looking for a world-class degree program coupled with international experience in order to stand out from their peers,” said Chad DuMond, director of Canadian institutional relations and recruitment for GlobaLinks Learning Abroad. “Our new $500 Discovery Scholarships will open doors for more students from Canada to earn medical degrees or attend degree programs in any field of study at any of our high-quality Australian university partners.”

The 26 Australian member universities of GlobaLinks Learning Abroad are:

1.    Australian National University
2.    Bond University
3.    CQUniversity
4.    Edith Cowan University
5.    Griffith University
6.    International College of Management, Sydney
7.    James Cook University
8.    La Trobe University
9.    Macquarie University
10.    Monash University
11.    Murdoch University
12.    Queensland University of Technology
13.    Southern Cross University
14.    Swinburne University of Technology
15.    University of Adelaide
16.    University of Canberra
17.    University of Melbourne
18.    University of Newcastle
19.    Deakin University
20.    University of Queensland
21.    University of South Australia
22.    University of Sydney
23.    University of Tasmania
24.    UTS – Sydney
25.    University of Western Australia
26.    University of Wollongong

For eligibility requirements, visit the Full Degree Discovery Scholarship page.

In addition, prospective full-degree students from Canada can visit with Australian university representatives during special sessions planned between March and May 2012 in Toronto, Vancouver and other locations. Highlighted universities include the University of Sydney, Griffith University, University of Wollongong, and Monash University. Get details and RSVP information here.

The Discovery Scholarship is just one of the many study abroad funding options available to students in the U.S. and Canada participating in GlobaLinks Learning Abroad international education programs in Asia, Europe and the Pacific Region.

Four Globalinks Learning Abroad Students Selected as La Trobe University Study Abroad Ambassadors

Stacey — Wed, 22 Feb 2012 17:21:53 +0000

La Trobe University has selected four GlobaLinks Learning Abroad students as Study Abroad Ambassador Scholarship recipients.

Students receive study abroad scholarships ranging from $1,000 – $2,000 (AUD) per semester for their participati0on in the Study Abroad Ambassador Program, which includes a combination of cultural outings, networking opportunities, and special events at no extra cost. Scholarship recipients also act as future ambassadors of La Trobe University after returning home.

The La Trobe University Study Abroad Ambassador Scholarship recipients for Semester 1 are:

Stacie Rodriguez, University of South Carolina – Columbia
Rizza Soriano, University of Alaska – Southeast
Danielle Utianski, Temple University
Jordan Wells, University of Utah