Sep. 6, 2011

Five new international students have arrived at Shawnee State University as part of the U.S. Department of State's Global Undergraduate Exchange Program in Eurasia and Central Asia (Global UGRAD).

Joining the Shawnee State University family are Alina Dashkevich from Russia, Anna Shchetinina from Russia, Inna Tarzhinskaya from Turkmenistan, Lusine Tovmasyan from Armenia, and Oleksandr Vovk from Ukraine.

The Global UGRAD Program aims to advance youth leadership and promote mutual understanding by providing one year of non-degree U.S. study to undergraduates from 12 countries of the former Soviet Union. In addition to their academic studies, Global UGRAD fellows perform community service, explore American traditions through the unique Cultural Passport to America program, and hold one-semester internships.

The Global UGRAD program is highly competitive, averaging over 3,000 applications per year with a 5 percent rate of acceptance.

The Global Undergraduate Exchange Program in Eurasia and Central Asia is a program of the Bureau of Educational and Cultural Affairs of the Department of State and is administered by the International Research & Exchanges Board (IREX). Since 1992, nearly 4,000 participants have completed the program, increasing diversity on more than 140 campuses throughout the continental United States, Alaska and Hawaii.

The Bureau of Educational and Cultural Affairs (ECA) of the U.S. Department of State fosters mutual understanding between the people of the United States and the people of other countries to promote friendly, sympathetic, and peaceful relations, as mandated by the Mutual Educational and Cultural Exchanges Act of 1961.

ECA accomplishes its mission through a range of programs based on the benefits of mutual understanding, international educational and cultural exchange, and leadership development. For more information about ECA exchanges, visit http://exchanges.state.gov.

IREX is an international nonprofit organization providing leadership and innovative programs to improve the quality of education, strengthen independent media, and foster pluralistic civil society development.

Founded in 1968, IREX has an annual portfolio of $60 million and a staff of more than 500 professionals worldwide. IREX and its partner IREX Europe deliver cross-cutting programs and consulting expertise in more than 100 countries. For more information about IREX, visit www.irex.org.