Indiana State University Newsroom

FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE

TERRE HAUTE, Ind. - The International Affairs Center at Indiana State University recently held its annual awards banquet in recognition of ISU employees and students who have provided a great deal of support to international students at ISU, promoted intercultural awareness, or helped develop ISU's international partnerships and international development initiatives abroad.

Staff Winners:
- Student Activities and Organizations - Al Perone, Freda Luers and Marshall Jones - for their support of a number of intercultural events on campus, including international education week and global nights and other international student activities.
- Office of the Controller - Jeff Jacso and Hope Waldbeiser - for their coordination of the income tax workshops offered to international students each year. This year, more than 100 students took advantage of this free service.
- Public Safety - Bill Mercier, Joe Newport, Jeff Bellinger and Earl Dawson - for their support of international students and the work of the International Affairs Center. In particular, they have been involved in new student orientation and have cooperated on a number of matters related to international students. They are aware of many of the cultural and language issues these students deal with and are especially concerned with their safety.
- Management, Organizational Department - Wei He and Aruna Chandra - for their support of and involvement in the ISU-Liaoning University "China and the World Economy" program, sponsored by the Bureau of Educational and Cultural Affairs and the U.S State Department.

Faculty Winners:
The awards of Exceptional Accomplishment are in recognition of ISU faculty members who contribute to the promotion of international education, the development of ISU's work with partners abroad and the support of ISU's international students.
- Susan Macke, associate professor, educational foundations - for her work as U.S. project director of the collaborative program between ISU and Mzuzu University in Malawi.
- Carmen Montanez, associate professor, Spanish - for her long-time support of the Hispanic Student Association and Hispanic students at the university.
- Dan McLean, professor and chair, department of recreation and sport management - for his involvement in and support of the sport management program in Morocco.
- Mike Chambers, assistant professor, political science - for his promotion of knowledge and understanding of international issues through both his research and his teaching and mentoring of undergraduate and graduate students at ISU.

Student Winners:
- The award for Exceptional Academic Accomplishment is in recognition of current ISU students who have been academically successful and made a significant contribution to their field of study during the 2005-2006 academic year. This year's winner is Lavakumar Karyampudi of Guntar, India, a graduate student in the department of Life Sciences. Working in conjunction with Swapan Ghosh, professor of life sciences, Lavakumar has conducted extensive research in the development of a vaccine model for the treatment of cancer.
- The Community Service Awards are given in recognition of students who made contributions to community engagement. This year's winners are Rajkumari Menon of Pradesh, India, a 2006 master's graduate in human resource development, for her coordination of the Cultural Diversity Fair at Union Hospital on March 1, 2006; and Junya Tamagami of Saitama, Japan, a 2006 master's graduate in languages, literatures and linguistics, for his coordination of the Recycling Campaign in Terre Haute during April 2006.
- International Athlete Awards are given in recognition of those international student athletes who have demonstrated academic excellence. This year's winners are Joanne Schickerling of Pretoria, South Africa, a senior in sport management; and Rishi Bell of Mumbai, India, a 2006 bachelor's graduate in business administration.
- The Global Scholars Award is given in recognition of international students, both graduate and undergraduate, who have demonstrated academic excellence and who have played active roles in promoting international and cultural awareness. This year's graduate winner is Xiaofang Wei of Fujian, China, a 2005 Ph.D. graduate in geography. Undergraduate winners are Malik Khatadia of Mumbai, India, a 2006 bachelor's graduate in accounting; Lily Lam of Yuen Long, Hong Kong, a master's student in languages, literatures and linguistics; and Yasushi Suzuki of Kyoto, Japan, a senior in accounting.

Special Recognition:
The final award was given in special recognition to the late Francois Muyumba, in honor of Muyumba and his contributions to ISU. Accepting the award on behalf of Muyumba's family was his son, Diyo Muyumba.

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Contact: Randy Green, interim associate director, International Student Services, Indiana State University, (812) 237-2439, aafgreen@isugw.indstate.edu

Writer: Rachel Wyly, media relations intern, Indiana State University (812) 237-3773, rwyly@mymail.indstate.edu