By Kate Bryant, Director in the Office of International Affairs

Last week, Arcadia welcomed its largest group of incoming international students in recent history as 23 students arrived for International Student Orientation on Monday, Aug. 22. Throughout the week, new students stayed with local host families and were accompanied by returning student volunteers, called IPALs. Office of International Affairs staff and IPALs took the students to Center City, Point Pleasant, N.J., and around Glenside. Even Hurricane Irene was not a problem, as it allowed the students to get to know each other even better as they and all students were confined to the dorms for nearly 24 hours until the storm passed.

The winds stopped and the blue skies returned in time for the Welcome Dinner on Monday, Aug. 29, at the President’s house. Tobey and Kim Oxholm hosted the international students and faculty, department heads, and even the first-year members of the basketball team at a picnic at their home that included music and lawn games—bean bag toss, ring toss, and bocce ball. According to one returning faculty member, “It was the best time ever”—and the only reason the students left was to attend the day-ending Alumni Ice Cream Social at Blankley Hall.

This year’s group consists of students from Belgium, Bolivia, China, Guyana, India, Italy, Jamaica, Japan, Korea, Paraguay, Russia, Rwanda, St. Vincent and Ukraine.

Luhan Tang ’14 comes to Arcadia from Dalian Nationalities University, an affiliated university in northern China. She plans to study psychology. Before coming to Arcadia, Luhan studied Japanese and she plans to be return to China to be a translator after graduation. Another student from an affiliated institution is Gyu Ree Kwon, an exchange student from Ewha Womans University is Seoul, South Korea. Gyu Ree will spend the year studying English Literature at Arcadia and then hopes to teach English as a Second Language in Korea.

Arcadia’s new English Language Institute opened its doors officially Monday, Aug. 29, when orientation for the English language learners began. The English Language Institute is located in the Kuch Annex, Room 110. Questions about the ELI should be sent to the Interim Director Betty Litsinger, at 267-6200-4134.