Skip to content

UW León Center honored for community contributions

León, Spain

Before an audience of 700, the UW León Center was honored for its years of close collaboration with local and provincial partners. The award was presented by Juan Martínez Majo, president of the local Provincial Council, and leonoticias.com, a digital news outlet. UW Professor Emeritus of Communication Randal Beam accepted the award and expressed appreciation for the UW’s collaborations with León and provincial partners.

Housed in León’s Palacio del Conde Luna, a 16th century Renaissance tower, the UW León Center fosters interdisciplinary, faculty-led study abroad programs for UW students. The space is also used for academic research, conferences, exhibits and cultural events. The center aims to cultivate students who are tolerant and respectful of cultural diversity, and who see themselves as responsible members of a global community.

###

CONTACT: Lani Phillips, UW León Center; 206-616-9579, lanip@uw.edu

Leon Center award groupThe awards ceremonyRandal Beam accepting the awardRandal Beam, left, professor emeritus of communication, with Santos Rodríguez, the coordinator of the UW León Center.Accepting the awardThe UW Leon Center at Palacio Conde Luna

From refugee to MEDEX student

Along with his family, Frantz Alphonse came to the U.S. at age 7 as a refugee from Haiti. This experience has given him a strong sense of empathy underserved communities. Along with eight years as a U.S. Navy hospital corpsman, this experience makes him a great fit for MEDEX.

Read more from MEDEX magazine…

The fate of Salonica’s Jews in the city’s transition from Ottoman Empire to Greece

Devin Naar is the Isaac Alhadeff Professor of Sephardic Studies in the Stroum Center for Jewish Studies — part of the Jackson School of International Studies — and an associate professor in the Department of History. He is the author of “Jewish Salonica: Between the Ottoman Empire and Modern Greece,” published in September by Stanford University Press. His recently-published work will be celebrated tonight with a book launch. Registration and more information here.

Helping refugees abroad with a Fulbright scholarship

Hamda Yusuf ’16 was awarded a Fulbright Scholarship in a first-ever cohort for a “Community-Based Combined Grant,” which requires both community work and teaching in a foreign country. In fall 2016, she’ll be heading to Austria for 9 months to support Refugees Welcome, a non-profit that is dealing with the Middle East refugee crisis there, and will be an English teaching assistant in secondary schools.

Read more from the Jackson School of International Studies…

As 1 Million Strong implementation partner, the UW is creating a pipeline of China-savvy leaders

On the anniversary of its 1 Million Strong initiative, the US-China Strong Foundation, a global nonprofit committed to strengthening US-China relations, announced its new 1 Million Strong implementation partners – including the University of Washington – who will help guide the initiative’s growth.

Announced in September 2015 by Presidents Barack Obama and Xi Jinping during the Chinese leader’s official state visit to the US, 1 Million Strong looks to create a pipeline of China-savvy leaders and employees in the US. The initiative calls for a five-fold increase from current numbers: today, approximately 200,000 US K-12 students are learning Mandarin, while there are more than 300 million English language learners in China.

Read the entire press release from the US-China Strong Foundation…