Office of International Admissions and Programs conducts and completes summer Global Mapping Project
A global mapping project was conducted and completed by three University of Houston-Clear Lake (UHCL) students in the summer of 2019. The research project was conducted for the Office of International Admissions and Programs (OIAP), to learn about global events held on and around the UHCL campus in the past in order to gain a better understanding of intercultural interactions on campus.
The research for this project was conducted by Muna Onumonu, graduate business administration student; Ihuoma Igwe, graduate environmental science student and teaching assistant at the College of Science and Engineering; Kathan Mehta, graduate healthcare administration student; and supervised by Gigi Do, assistant president for global learning and strategy and senior international officer.
“The purpose of the Global Mapping Project is to collect, identify, categorize and record information on events around campus, then create a global engagement space for the UHCL community using the data collected,” Onumonu said. “A respectful and inclusive space where an individual will not only have a complete list of all past and upcoming global event dates and venue, but will also have access to more information on these events.”
Onumonu said the information would include the name of the event or festival and where they are celebrated, along with the history and the significance of the event. Also, include links and contact information for more sources for information about the events.
“An equally important purpose of the project is to gain insight on the global events on campus or the lack thereof, and to devise exciting new ways to get students and faculty involved in fun yet culturally educative events and activities through collaboration with other offices and departments,” Onumonu said.
Out of the 53 offices and organizations contacted, the report ultimately drew data from 19 offices and organizations recognized on the UHCL campus, and identified 74 global events held within the past year. Sixty of those events are reoccurring and include language programs, workshops and information sessions, festivals and ceremonies, arts, crafts and culture and leadership and networking events.
“Thirty of the total events were categorized as past events, 51 as future events, 60 as recurring events, and 23 as one-time/discontinued events,” states the Global Mapping Project report. “The past events are classified as those that occurred on or before the 14th of July, 2019.”
Tanya Sell, international student advisor, emphasizes the importance for international students to be a part of the student clubs.
“It is extremely important for international students to participate in UHCL’s clubs,” Sell said. “It’s a great way for them to meet new people that have common interests and could lessen the feelings of isolation they may experience due to being far from their home, family and friends.”
Do said UHCL’s safety record is another good endorsement to attract international students.
“Not only does UHCL have a wide ethnically-diverse faculty and staff, we also are ranked as top 15 in the nation for best campus security,” Do said. “This is very important for most international students and their parents. Not only will students feel at home because of our global presence, but they can rest assured that we provide a safe place for our students to come to learn and thrive.”
While conducting this research, Onumonu, Igwe and Mehta found that events were being discontinued at an accelerated rate because of low interest and participation from both the faculty and the students. The exact reason for low interest was unclear.
The report states that in order to create more global events, more research is needed to understand the reasoning behind the low levels of interest. To assure the vitality of this project, and to keep the global engagement platform updated, the report recommends a new inter-office communication should be created where each UHCL office/organization updates to the OIAP to include planned global events on the website at the beginning of each semester.
“The project is continuous, as information on the website needs to be updated constantly to include information on new events and updated information on recurring events, or generally any change in dates and plans,” Onumonu said. “It will be an honor to be nominated to run the project again.”
The College of Human Sciences and Humanities and the Office of Student Diversity, Equity, and Inclusion were recognized in the report for “contributing immensely to the presence of global events on this campus.” But, the report notes there is still a need for more global events throughout the campus.
“Events specifically aimed towards educating and creating awareness on international activities or events intended to celebrate international cultures, while also encouraging a respectful and inclusive environment,” the Global Mapping Project states.
