New Trojan Global Intergenerational Programs
A mentoring initiative linking retired faculty and staff with USC international students is being planned in cooperation with theInternational Students’ Assembly.
The first intergenerational program was on Feb. 12 with an evening reception sponsored by the USC Emeriti Center for interested students and retired staff and faculty. The event began Global Culture Month sponsored by the ISA involving roughly 20 USC student nationality clubs which plan and carry out separate and joint cultural and informational programs during the month. The annual campus-wide International Food Fair will also take place during February.
The retiree community effort is being called: Trojan Global Intergenerational Friends (TGIF, how’s that for an acronym!), is being planned by a steering committee of Jack Wills, Cynthia Berne and Phoebe Liebig of the RFA, and David Tool and Dixon Johnson of the SRA. This activity takes advantage of USC’s prominence as the top American university enrolling the most international students. Also it fits nicely with the USC Strategic Vision concept of “Connecting the Individual to the World.”
It is envisioned that future activities will match up interested retirees with international students for activities such as tutoring, English conversation, American cultural information-sharing, serving as companions for outings to nearby southern California attractions, and home hospitality visits.
More specific information will be provided as the dates and scope of events are determined.