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Diversity & Inclusion

The Global Awareness Dialogue Project @ Penn State Abington

Supported by the Center for Intercultural Leadership and Communication (CILC), the Global Awareness Dialogue Project (GADP) is a Penn State Abington faculty development program designed to educate faculty about global and cultural issues related to culturally sensitive pedagogy. The seminars assist faculty with examining the impact to the classroom as a result of changing demographics in the campus community, which include both our growing international student population (students on F-1 and J-1 visas) as well as our diverse domestic student population. Since the program began, topics have included non-western educational systems as represented by our students, topical information on Chinese undergraduate student adjustment to campus life,  academic integrity, and multilingual students and faculty. A key aspect of the seminars are a panel of international and/or immigrant undergraduate students discussing with faculty their challenges and adjustments to college life. The program allows for faculty and students to interact outside the traditional academic environment.

The Global Awareness Dialogue and Dinner seminars are designed to:

  1. Provide professional development opportunities to faculty in light of the growing numbers of international and domestic students of diversity on campus
  2. Facilitate interaction and encourage dialogue among faculty to exchange ideas on contemporary global issues impacting our campus, community, nation and world
  3. Encourage more faculty members to become involved in the campus internationalization efforts
  4. Address the needs of faculty who are interested in internationally oriented scholarship and global education

Fall 2016 Event Schedule

Thursday, October 6, 5-8 pm, Lubert Commons

Race/Racism: Engaging in Challenging Conversations
Dinner will be provided


Friday, October 28, 5-8pm, Lubert Commons

Islamophobia
Dinner will be provided

 

 

Contact Us

Seminar Coordinators Bios:

Dolores Rafter Arevalo

Dr. Arevalo is currently the Coordinator of Global Programs at Penn State Abington and a Lecturer in Communication in the Division of Arts & Humanities. Her research includes decision-making processes involving interracial couples concerning their children’s education; the “Sojourn Experience” as it pertains to international education and in particular the study abroad experience with a focus on peacebuilding processes. She is a member of the consulting team to the West Chester University DNA Diversity Discussion project. Her multi-author publications include: Intercultural Communication in the 21st Century: A Peacebuilding Perspective (2015), Remland, M; Foeman, A.; Rafter Arevalo, D. & Jones, T.Waveland Press. The textbook will introduce a peacebuilding model of intercultural communication based on the most current theory and research on cultural identity and cultural differences in worldviews. She lived and taught English as a Second Language in Valencia, Spain, for 3 years and Tokyo, Japan, for 2 years. She has been an invited lecturer at La Universidad Nacional de Costa Rica, Heredia, Costa Rica, the Invited Keynote Speaker at National Japanese High School Teachers Association, in Osaka, Japan and an invited lecturer at The European University of Valencia, Valencia, Spain. Presentations included: Diversity in the United States, Cultural Differences in Nonverbal Communication, the Sojourn Experience, American Values and Intercultural Communication in the US Workplace.

Contact Dolores at dar35@psu.edu

 

Paula Smith

Paula Smith is Associate Librarian at Penn State Abington. Her research interests include the effects of internationalization and globalization on education and information access, international librarianship, diversity, and oral history. She has published in areas of cultural competencies, diversity, academic outreach and collaboration, and general librarianship. Paula’s experience includes international work in South Africa, Bangladesh, Bermuda, and Uganda. Prior to becoming a librarian Ms. Smith was an information technologist for Fortune 500 companies providing services in project management, and systems analysis and design.

Paula received her Ed. M. in Global Studies in Education from University of Illinois, Urbana-Champaign, M.S. in Information Systems from Drexel University, and B.S. in Business Administration from LaSalle University.

Contact Paula at pms20@psu.edu