CELOP Students Accepted to Degree Programs

April 26th, 2016 in Academic, Admissions, Programs 0 comments

Every semester, CELOP celebrates students who have been admitted to universities across the country. This spring semester, 65 CELOP students were accepted to degree programs beginning in the fall, including 51 for undergraduate programs and 14 for graduate programs.

Students were accepted into programs such as business, biomedical engineering, cyber security, law, education, and finance at universities including Boston University, Georgetown, Johns Hopkins, University of Southern California, University of California Irvine, and many more.

Congratulations to all accepted students!

CELOP Associate Director Colin Large congratulated all the students who were accepted to degree programs.

Congratulations to all the students and
we wish you all the best in pursuing your degree!

Larissa Pontes: from CELOP to MET to iGEM

April 11th, 2016 in Academic, Alumni, Programs 0 comments

Larissa Queiroz Pontes is a biotechnology undergraduate from Brazil’s Federal University of Ceará. She studied at CELOP in 2013 in order to improve her English and prepare for academic study at Boston University's Metropolitan College. We caught up with her recently and here's what she said.

Q: How was your CELOP experience?

I had a delightful experience at CELOP studying English for my TOEFL test and I was in contact with so many other cultures and made great friends. I learned a lot and improved my English. I improved my vocabulary and my listening, and obviously my speaking got stronger.

Q: How did your experience at CELOP help you achieve your goals?

I had to take TOEFL to get into BU Metropolitan College to take my academic courses, and I succeeded because of CELOP. When I studied at Metropolitan College, people could understand me and I understood them well.

Q: What would you say to a future CELOP student?

Enjoy your time at CELOP, go to meetings, fit in to conversation groups. Get into the American culture.

Currently Larissa is part of a team of students from her university, including other former CELOP students Daniel Carlos and Marcus Rafael, that will come to Boston this October to compete in iGEM, an annual world wide synthetic biology competition. Their team (pictured below) is planning to genetically modify micro-algae so that they produce a protein that is lethal to Aedes aegypti larvae, the species responsible for transmitting yellow fever and other serious diseases. Larissa explains "The curious thing about this protein is that it is toxic just to the mosquito larvae, not for humans or any other species."

Participation in the iGEM competition requires their own funding. Anybody interested in supporting their team can make a donation to their crowdfunding campaign.

We wish Larissa and her team the very best in the competition, and the best in all of her future endeavors!

Daughter of CELOP Alumnus

March 10th, 2016 in Academic, Admissions, Alumni, Programs, Student Life 0 comments

Eva Haoa is the daughter of Nicolas Haoa, an alumnus of CELOP who studied here 35 years ago. We recently posted an interview of the father-daughter duo on our CELOP YouTube channel.

We caught up with Eva Haoa in week 6 of her 12-week Spring program, right before the spring break and asked her a few questions:

Q: What do you like the most about being at CELOP?
Eva: The teachers. They are very kind.  I learn a lot because of them.

Q: Your father gave you advice to make friends from all over the world. Have you done that?
Eva: Yes! I have made friends from Colombia and Venezuela. And I met one friend from China too. It is good because I speak English with her.

Q: Where are you going for spring break?
Eva: I will stay here in Boston.  There is a lot to do in Boston!

Eva plans to continue studying at CELOP this summer semester.

Right: Eva poses for a photo with her friend Shuning Yin from China.  Eva joined Student Life Coordinator Shelley Bertolino and 14 other CELOP students to volunteer at the local Cradles to Crayons organization.

Below: Eva has a conversation with John Kopec, her father’s teacher at CELOP 35 years ago. She was surprised to learn that her father was placed in the same level as her. John tells Eva about the day Nicolas and his classmates celebrated John’s birthday. As seen in the old photos in the video, they got him a birthday cake, and took a class photo outside the CAS building.

CELOP Launches New Summer Programs

February 18th, 2016 in Academic, Admissions, Programs, Student Life 0 comments

CELOP launched two exciting new programs this week, designed to prepare students for success in their academic and professional careers: the University Readiness Program and the English for Engineering Program.

The 3-week University Readiness program is designed to help students adapt to life in the U.S. and to develop skills for academic and social interactions. There are three start dates in August to choose from so that students can enroll in the program that ends right before their university or college coursework begins.

The English for Engineering program is a 4-week program that develops the English language skills of aspiring engineers, and prepares them to enter the engineering job market. This program starts on July 25th and ends on August 19th.

Alan Broomhead, Managing Director of CELOP, explained the reason for launching these two new programs:

"Many international students are coming to the U.S. to study for degrees in the STEM (science, technology, engineering, math) fields, and need to be able to communicate their ideas clearly in English. And many international students find that even though they have attained a good score on the TOEFL, they are not fully prepared for the demands of degree-level studies here in the U.S. Our new programs address these students' needs."

You can learn more about each program by visiting their webpages:

University Readiness

English for Engineering

Climbing Lesson at FitRec Caps Off Spring 2016 Check-In

January 25th, 2016 in Student Life 0 comments

Last week, hundreds of students from around the world checked in for the CELOP Spring 2016 semester. In addition to learning and improving their English, many come with goals of applying and being admitted to undergraduate and graduate degree programs. Others wish to equip themselves with better confidence and vocabulary for the workplace.  And still others come for the experience of immersion in English language and American culture.

Whatever their goals, BU CELOP has the faculty and staff, and the resources and facilities to help. One fun example of this happened last Friday when Shelley Bertolino, the Student Life Coordinator, brought a group of new students to the Fitness and Recreation Center (FitRec) for a tour and a climbing lesson.

The instructors were Boston University students hired and certified by the FitRec to belay and instruct climbers. They were on hand to explain safe and proper climbing technique, to coach students at every challenging turn, and to encourage and push students to realize their potential. Nancy, a new CELOP student from China, said "When I got to the top, I felt like I'm the best in the world! But it's a challenge. I did it three times. The last time, I almost couldn't finish. I didn't have power anymore.  But my teacher, Gabby, she encouraged me: 'keep working, you can do it!' So after I did it, I was very appreciative!"

Other students agreed. When asked if he was glad we included this activity in our orientation activities, Roland, a student from Hong Kong, responded "Yes, definitely, because I think we had better arrange more out of classroom activities to have more fun with each other, especially with people out there in Boston University."

Roland won't be disappointed.  There are plenty of out of classroom activities at CELOP, and at Boston University.  CELOP activities are published on the CELOP Calendar.  As for Boston University, there are plenty of student groups and clubs to get involved in!

CELOP Welcomes Summer Students

May 29th, 2013 in Academic, Admissions, Programs, Student Life 0 comments

The arrival of new CELOP students was celebrated at a welcome party, after the students participated in a hard but exhilarating scavenger hunt that helped them learn more about Boston University's campus. The party included food items like sushi, cheese, fruit, and sandwiches. Some CELOP faculty and staff were introduced to the students, and students got to know one another by playing a bingo game. "Do you speak more than three languages?" and "Do you have 20 cousins or more?" were some questions students asked of one another as they learned more about each other.

This activity and others like it can build a sense of "home away from home" for students. Jasim Alsaifi, a new CELOP student from Kuwait, talked about this. "It's friendly. I don't feel like I am away from my home. I feel like I am at home. Everyone cooperates with me and helps me - students, teachers, or staff. Everyone is happy with this activity." Judging from the comfortable smiles and laughter shared at the party, Jasim was right.

Students checked in to CELOP began their classes this week to start their 6 week and 12 week summer programs.

Science and Technology Poster Presentations Given at CELOP

April 22nd, 2013 in Academic, Admissions, Programs, Student Life 2 comments

Recently, students of an English for Science and Technology core class presented on their research projects at a poster presentations event. Held in the CELOP lobby, topics included neon lighting, left/right brain, biofuel, the future of energy, and bromidrophobia (the fear of body odors).

CELOP teacher Eileen Kramer, who organized the event, said that she prepared the students by looking at pictures of effective posters and discussing format and organization. Co-teacher Nora Smith took the class on a field trip to BU Scholar Day to see the engineering posters.  Students did research on their topics, and helped one another create their posters and practice talking to an audience.  Finally, Eileen made sure that the event was well attended by CELOP students, faculty, and staff.  "I wanted to throw in the unexpected," she said, "for them to see what it's like to have academic conversations they can't anticipate, unlike a canned PowerPoint presentation."  The students appeared to handle this well. Attendees engaged the student presenters in conversation about their topics, and they responded with confidence and authority. "They're really good," reacted CELOP teacher Gregg Singer.  John Kopec, also a CELOP teacher, echoed Gregg's sentiment, saying that "they really understand their topics."

Some students took their posters home to show family and friends. Others donated their posters to Eileen for use in future science and technology projects. Following the poster presentation, the students reflected on the assignment and agreed unanimously that it was a valuable experience. As one student commented, "I know I'll do this again in classes and when I'm an engineer so it will help me when that day comes. I won't be afraid to show my work."

CELOP Celebrates Nauryz – the Kazakh New Year

April 11th, 2013 in Student Life 0 comments

The Kazakh New Year, called Nauryz, is celebrated on the day of the Spring equinox.  It marks reconciling the old, and celebrating new life promised by the oncoming spring season.  As the weather warms in Boston, and trees begin to bud, Kazakh students at CELOP and their classmates had their own Nauryz celebration in the CELOP lobby one recent afternoon.  We asked some members of the CELOP community to share their impressions with us.

"I liked the tug of war," commented CELOP Senior Program Coordinator Spencer Hitchner.  "I did participate and win, but I was glad that they were including audience members in the festival."  Spencer said that the audience participation made the event particularly memorable.

"I liked the dances.  It was very well executed," remarked CELOP Front Desk staff Mia Ballan.  "The deejays were also very good."

"I liked seeing the Kazakh families that came to the event with their young children," said Melanie Greitzer, CELOP Academic Programs Manager.  "They brought a nice sense of community and family to the event."

"Before I came here, I didn't know about Kazakhstan.  I just know the name," commented Sonoka Ishikawa, a CELOP student from Ryukoku University in Japan.  "It's a good opportunity to learn about Kazakhstan."

CELOP Student Life Coordinator Shelley Bertolino played a small advisory role to the Kazakh students who organized the event.  "It was a really successful short cultural capsule.  In that short amount of time, we got a very good taste of Kazakhstan.  We got to learn about their traditions, we got to see a wedding ceremony, singing, dancing, and the tug of war."  Shelley was very impressed with the students' preparations for the event, and commented that the execution was "organized", and "polished".

Nauryz is celebrated annually on March 22nd.  According to the Kazakh embassy website, Nauryz celebrations today include a mixture of old and new, ranging from traditional events to rock concerts.  "Anything goes in marking Nauryz...the more festive, the better"¹.

1 http://www.kazakhembus.com/page/nauryz

BU Japanese Professor Presents on the Benefits of Language Exchange

April 3rd, 2013 in Programs 0 comments

"If a friend accidentally spilled coffee on your computer, how do you react?" Dr. Mariko Henstock asked her third year Japanese II class on a Friday afternoon to act out the scenario in a role play. The majority of the American students in the class demanded that their friend pay for the damage. The Japanese students, who were visiting the class that day, were in shock by this. In contrast to their American counterparts, they had no expectation that the other person should pay for it, and responded "it's okay" when it was their turn to role play. "They experienced the huge difference in culture," Henstock explained about the activity after class. "Both sides learned a lot, and both sides were so excited."

Dr. Henstock, as the Director of Outreach and Co-Curricular Activities for Japanese at the Department of Modern Languages and Comparative Literature, regularly organizes language exchange activities with CELOP, and recently presented on this topic at the Boston University (BU) Center for Excellence and Innovation in Teaching (CEIT) 2013 Instructional Innovation Conference. Titled "Examining the Bi-Directional Benefits of Language Exchanges", the presentation discussed the benefits of Lunch Exchanges and Exchange Classes. According to a survey of CELOP students who took part in Fall 2012, 97% of CELOP students agreed that the exchanges have motivated them to study more English, increased their confidence to speak English, and that now they want to come back to BU even more because of the exchanges. Henstock highlighted some CELOP students' comments in her presentation: "it is a lot easier to talk during class visits," "not just learning Japanese and English language, but also learning partners' thinking and character, etc. will help me in my life," and "what is surprising is that my common sense isn't common sense in the US."

You can get the sense from talking to Professor Henstock that the benefits go deeper than practice with listening and speaking. "Ever since I came to [the US], I always was thinking I want to help the friendships between the two countries," she explains. For Henstock, friendships can translate to real world change. She cites an example about a BU student giving a speech at MIT about challenging stereotypes. "What he is saying is he had this stereotype of Japanese people just wanting to be alone and isolated. He didn't really have any contact with Japanese people, and so through lunch exchanges and class visits he met Japanese students and then thought, oh they are so fun, and nice. So the theme of his paper is about challenging stereotypes."  If friendship has the power to break down stereotypes, and promote understanding between groups of people, then the exchanges are doing a very good job of that - 97% of CELOP students that took part agreed that they made BU student friends through the exchanges.  "We can potentially change people's lives, and I think we have succeeded in that regard for a number of students. There are so many problems internationally; if we can make a difference, one person at a time, and help form friendships, then that's just a wonderful gift."

Dr. Henstock's presentation abstract and slides can be found and downloaded on the CEIT Fifth Annual Instructional Innovation Conference website.

Renowned Chinese Symphonist Yazhi Guo Performs at CELOP

March 11th, 2013 in Student Life 0 comments

Photo courtesy of Melanie Temin Mendez

"Some of you know him as a CELOP student, but being a CELOP student is just one of his roles," said CELOP staff Shelley Bertolino introducing renowned Chinese instrumentalist Yazhi Guo. Guo gave a performance recently in the CELOP lobby to an audience of CELOP students, faculty and staff.

Guo was charismatic and engaging during his performance of traditional Chinese instruments. "He made me laugh," said staff member Sarah Okubo, "he was very charming." Guo began his performance by playing the suona instrument over a jazz recording. He then proceeded to demonstrate a variety of Chinese instruments, and exclaimed "I can play everything!" To prove the point, a leaf was brought to him, on which he played an elaborate song.  Guo finished his performance by saying "my English teacher, she's a nice teacher.  I think CELOP, all the teachers are nice.  I love you!"  He finished by playing the guanzi instrument to the James Bond song "Skyfall".  "That was the most interesting part," said CELOP student, Carlos Bravo.  "He brings what he knows, and plays it with something we all know, that's what I liked."

Yazhi Guo has been a member of the Hong Kong Chinese Orchestra since 1999. He graduated with distinction from the Central Conservatory of Music in Beijing, and has won many awards and national recognitions including the grand prize at New York's International Pro Musicis in 1998. He's performed with many orchestras around the world including Orhcestre de la Suisse Switzerland, South Korea Daejeon Philharmonic Orchestra, Belgium’s Flanders Symphony Orchestra, Malaysia Chinese Orchestra, Singapore Chinese Orchestra, and National Chinese Orchestra Taiwan.  Recently Yazhi has begun studying Jazz at the Berkeley School of Music.   He has also lectured at Harvard University.

"This is my dream!"  Guo said to the audience about playing in international settings.  "My dream is coming true!"