Wanted: friends for foreigners
By Marianne Chin
Of the Emerald
Susan Lee and Jerome Sayre are playing mat
chmakers this tall.
But they don't run a computer dating service.
They're volunteer coordinators tor the International
Friendship Program, where they work to facilitate
meetings between foreign and American students.
"It's always a problem for foreign students to
meet Americans," says Jackie Uhler, faculty adviser
for the American English Institute, the program's
sponsor.
The AEI is an intensive English program for
foreign students who enter the University or other
academic institutions. In the program, American
students from the University and AEI students fill out
questionnaires and are paired up according to
similar interests.
American students also indicate which country
they are interested in learning about. The majority of
AEI students come from Asia, Latin America and the
Middle East.
After the match-up, the students usually meet
once or twice a week for activities such as touring the
campus and city or just having coffee and talking,
says Lee, a University sophomore. Students also par
ticipate in AEl-sponsored activities, such as dances,
trips and sports.
"We want to help foreign students meet
Americans and promote international friendships,”
Uhler says.
Lee and Sayre have spent the last tew weeks
distributing flyers, holding informational meetings
and visiting foreign language and AEI classes. About
25 Americans and 30 foreign students have signed up
for the program.
"We can always use more students," Uhler says.
Both Lee and Sayre participated in the program
last year before becoming coordinators this fall.
Lee, an international marketing major interested
in Japanese culture, paired up with a student from
Japan last year. "She really helped me with my
Japanese homework," Lee says.
"It's a way to introduce America to other
Photo t ourtesy of Aiwrii an English Institute
The Friendship program sponsors activities, such
as dances, trips and sports.
cultures,” Sayre says. "We re just trying to get peo
ple together," he says.
Both say playing matchmaker has taken a lot of
their time these last few weeks, but both emphasize
the many benefits of involvement in the program.
"I'm having a good time helping other people
and it's fun," Lee says.
Students interested in joining the program can
contact tee at 485-9506 or Sayre at 345-9165.
Task force works on minority relations
By Jim Moore
Oi the Emerald
Minority students need to open
communication within the various
ethnic groups on campus as well
as the rest of the University, says
Tess Brasser, director of the newly
formed Minority Task Force at the
University.
Brasser, a third-year law student
who also works for the district at
torney's office, already has
brought together five minority
groups to one general meeting,
and she has another planned for
Wednesday.
Ideally, the task force will attract
at least two members from each
University minority group, Brasser
says. From those volunteers she
will form subcommittees to
research issues.
Brasser, chair of Lane County's
Citizen Involvement Committee
and commissioner of both the
Committee for the Rights of
Minorities and the Committee for
the Rights of Youth, says she
wants the task force to tackle
"workable issues."
And the "workable issues" she
has in mind, the University place
ment office, University recruit
ment procedures and the recently
adopted cluster system, are ready
for research as soon as subcom
mittees are formed, she says.
Brasser wants to examine the
procedures used by the place
ment office, which finds jobs for
University students, to ensure
minorities have the same employ
ment opportunities as other
students.
She also wants a committee to
determine whether the University
actively recruits minority
students.
But it's the third issue, the
cluster program, that Brasser says
she expects to change first.
The University's cluster system
requires students to fulfill gradua
tion requirements by taking their
choice of three classes in three
different "cluster” areas.
However, none of those cluster
groups contains ethnic studies,
and Brasser intends to change
that.
"If nothing else, at the end of
my tenure (as Minority Task Force
Director), I want to say ethnic
studies are part of the clusters,"
Brasser says.
Her tenure probably will last
through May when she graduates
from law school, she says. And
she wants results by then.
"I want to get things done,”
Brasser says.
In fact, she is so committed to
getting things done she is
donating her time to get the task
force off the ground.
"She wanted to be director so
bad she put aside salary," says
ASUO Pres. Mary Hotchkiss.
The formation of the task force
stems from Hotchkiss' campaign
last spring, when she said the
University needed a Minority Task
Force.
"1 think it's good this new ad
ministration thinks the task force
is important," Brasser says.
And Hotchkiss is happy Brasser
wants to be part of the task force.
"Considering that this issue —
the problems and advantages of
minority students — has not been
addressed, we needed someone
of Tess' intelligence, energy and
ability," Hotchkiss says.
Another person who's happy
about Brasser is Art Broncheau,
co-director of the Slative American
Student Union. The minority
groups have all the elements
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necessary to make their
grievances known and accomplish
positive things, Broncheau says.
And Brasser is the catalyst, he
says.
"It's up to us (the minority
groups) to make it work," Bron
cheau says.
Brasser echoes that thought.
"We're going to get done as
much as we're willing to get
done," she says.
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