This Week in LANG 11/17/2025
In this Edition: **International Education Week, Information on Commencement**
Dear colleagues,
Welcome to International Education Week. I hope you will enjoy the many opportunities to experience this week full of events and activities from all around the world. Thank you to those of you who contribute by offering programs to our students.
Dates and Events this Week
November 17-21
- International Education Week
Monday, November 17
Tuesday, November 18
- 4:00-5:30, Witness in Residence, Oscar Chacon (of Alianza Americas) talks on Immigration, Fretwell 100
- 5:00-7:15, Crossing Borders, Crossing Plates: Mostly Martha, an Italian Cuisine Cultural Experience featuring the screening of 2001 film Mostly Martha, Fretwell 141
Wednesday, November 19
- 6:00-8:00, Traditional Chinese Painting workshop, Friday 141
Friday, November 21
- 3:00-5:00, JBusiness Forum
Looking Ahead Dates and Events Fall 2025
November 17-21
- International Education Week
November 17
November 18
- 4:00-5:30, Witness in Residence, Oscar Chacon (of Alianza Americas) talks on Immigration, Fretwell 100
November 21
- 3:00-5:00, JBusiness Forum
November 26-29
- Thanksgiving Break
December 2
- Last Day of Classes
December 3
- Reading Day
December 4-10
- Exam Period
December 12
- Commencement, 3pm, CHESS
December 15
- Final Grades due
December 18
- FRG proposals due
Congratulations
Congratulations to the Japanese Program for hosting a successful 19th UNC Charlotte Japanese Speech Contest.
A message from the Japanese Studies Coordinator, Professor Yukiko Yokono:
“On Friday, November 14, the 19th UNC Charlotte Japanese Speech Contest was held in Fretwell 113, featuring fifteen contestants who showcased their Japanese speaking skills to an audience of classmates, friends, and teachers.
We thank our judges – Mika Kurita-Luciano, Chie Drake, and Shoko Tokoro – and department chair Anabel Aliaga-Buchenau for their thoughtful remarks. Appreciation also goes to MCs John Sulzen and Ian Lawton, Taha Al Wakil for technical support, and faculty members – Enika Banerjee, Jordan Bledsoe, Philip Kaffen, Chikako Mori, Seirin Nagano, and Kazue Shamburg – for dedicating their time to guide students in preparation and support during the event.
Each participant received a certificate, and winners earned Japanese goodies thanks to support from the Office of International Programs and the Department of Languages, Cultures and Translation.
Winners
Level 1: Gwen Perry (1st), Ann Aricatt (2nd), Nitish Navaneethakrishnan (3rd)
Level 3: John Sulzen (1st), Nydasia Gray (2nd)
We also celebrated Jerell Bell, Gabriel Cabezas, and Matthew Ziobro for honors including the NC Japan Center’s Order of the Dogwood and induction into the AATJ’s Japanese National Honor Society College Chapter.”
Congratulations to Dr. Noha Ghali who received a mini grant of $1000 from the Free Expression & Constructive Dialogue Task Force for the 2025-26 academic year. Dr. Ghali will use this money to pay a guest speaker to talk about Islam in America with a special focus on Mamdani and the recent developments in Islamic communities in the U.S. during President Trump’s second term.
Congratulations also to Dr. Ghali led a synthesis session for the 2025 Engaging Youth in Our Communities International Visitor Leadership Program (IVLP) project. The initiative was hosted by International House Charlotte and supported by the Office of International Visitors under the U.S. Department of State. The session brought together delegates from across the Middle East and North Africa, who had visited five U.S. states to explore strategies for youth engagement in local communities. During the synthesis session, participants reflected on their key takeaways from the program and identified concrete action steps to implement in their home countries.
Information for Faculty
Traditional Chinese Painting Workshop
The Chinese Undergraduate Students Association (CUSA, the Chinese Club) will host a Traditional Chinese Painting workshop on Wednesday, November 19, from 6:00pm to 8:00pm at Friday Building141. Everyone is welcome to participate.
Workshop description:
“Come join us to explore the beauty of Traditional Chinese Painting (国画 Guóhuà). A guest instructor will introduce the history and techniques of this art form before guiding you through your own painting session. No experience is needed—just bring your curiosity and creativity, and leave with your very own masterpiece!”
Interested in developing or leading a faculty-led education abroad program?
As part of International Education Week, the Office of Education Abroad invites faculty to participate in an interactive workshop focused on the development and leadership of faculty-led education abroad programs.
Workshop Details:
Date: Thursday, November 20
Time: 3:00 – 5:00 PM
Location: CHHS 285
The workshop will cover:
- Key program considerations like term, location, and length
- Different program models to suit your academic goals
- Building a realistic budget
- Effective recruitment strategies
- Navigating the proposal process
- Essential health and safety measures
While RSVP is not required, we kindly ask that you indicate your interest in attending to help us plan accordingly.
Witness in Residence on Immigration
The next Witness in Residence program is scheduled for Tuesday, November 18 from 4 to 5:30 p.m. in Fretwell 100. The speaker will be Oscar Chacón, Executive Director, Alianza Americas, who will be speaking about his experience advocating for immigrants. More details to come soon in the Events section, but please begin thinking about how this lecture might relate to your curriculum and asking students to mark the date on the calendars (particularly those in the themed courses).
Crossing Borders, Crossing Plates: Mostly Martha, an Italian Cuisine Cultural Experience featuring the screening of 2001 film Mostly Martha.
Commencement Updates
Please review commencement.charlotte.edu for full details about Winter Commencement.
Coming up in 2026
2026 Heritage Language Learning Symposium
The 2026 Heritage Language Learning Symposium will occur on Thursday, February 19, and Friday, February 20, 2026 (10:00 am – 6:00 pm US EST each day). For 2026, the symposium will feature five prominent scholars engaged in Heritage Language Education. The presenters will share their research and practical experience with UNC Charlotte faculty, graduate and undergraduate students, as well as K-12 educators and attendees from other institutions.
The Symposium will promote a broad understanding of literacy practices and training for heritage speakers by bringing together experts in bilingual education in Arabic, Chinese, Italian, Japanese, and Spanish.
Please visit the website to find the program, abstracts for the research presentations, and workshops, as well as the registration form
Thank you for all you do.
All the best,
Anabel