Local elementary students given "Passport to the World"

April 25, 2005 —

by Ashley Hart

Jane Lee, 20, of South Korea, shows students how to write their names in Korean at the language table.

by Ashley Hart

Makiko Yamoto, 20, of Japan, helps a local elementary school student with origami during Passport to the World, which took place Thursday, April 7 in the Multipurpose Room.

The English Language Program presented its 6th annual "Passport to the World" Thursday, April 7 from 9 a.m. to 1 p.m. in the Student Center Multipurpose Room.

SVSU students in the English Language Program hosted approximately 350 students from Zilwaukee and other Saginaw Public Schools.

The SVSU students hail from several countries, including Japan, Kenya, Lebanon, Mongolia, Russia, Saudi Arabia, and South Korea. They set up booths representing their native countries to help visitors explore the nations' languages and cultures through audio-visual displays and activities, such as a "language table" where students learned simple words and phrases from various languages.

In addition, the Saginaw Public Schools students were given tours of the SVSU campus and the Marshall M. Fredericks Sculpture Museum.

The "Passport to the World" program was created to promote diversity, cultural understanding, language development, and a positive vision for the future.