"Passport to America" Helps Fellows Explore American Culture

Global UGRAD fellows gain a firsthand understanding of American life and values through the Cultural Ambassadors Passport to America component of the program. Through the Passport, fellows present how they have explored various aspects of U.S. culture and the linkages they’ve forged with Americans over the program year. The Passport also guides students in reflecting on how they’ve served as cultural ambassadors for their home countries while in the U.S., and on their plans for sharing U.S. culture with their communities when returning home.

At the start of the fellowship, each participant receives a “Cultural Passport to America”, which is modeled to look loosely like a U.S. passport. For participation in cultural events and activities, Global UGRAD fellows receive stamps in their Passports from their university and college advisors, allowing staff to track the activities of their students in a fun but structured way. The Cultural Passport also serves as a unique memento of the diverse activities the individual student has participated in during the Global UGRAD fellowship.

By maintaining required individual “Talk-Back Blogs” on the program Facebook group, Global UGRAD fellows also share their cultural experiences and reflections on Passport activities with their peers online.

To recognize the fellows' hard work in maintaining their Passports and blogs, three winners of the Cultural Passport competition were awarded during the 2009-2010 Global UGRAD closing workshop. The students were selected based on the following criteria: 1) diligence in collecting stamps and reporting on passport experiences on their blogs; 2) creativity; 3) diversity of experiences; and 4) dedication to the goals of the Global UGRAD Program.

Below, the competition winners comment on the impact the Passport program has had on their Global UGRAD experience:

 “The Cultural Passport program has been a great way to register and organize my cultural experiences in the US and to describe and remember them. I wanted to fill my Cultural Passport with diverse activities which I will remember for the rest of my life. When I return to Moldova, I know I will become inspired by my thoughts written in the Cultural Passport Talk Back blog. I will also look at the hundred and some events I participated in that are presented in my Cultural Passport and say to myself there is a need for action!”

– 2009-2010 Global UGRAD Fellow Victoria Vlad from Moldova

“The Passport provides useful suggestions for experiencing different aspects of US culture.  I don’t think I would have realized on my own that playing American board games with my American friends can be so much fun and really qualify as a cultural experience. [The Talk-Back] blogs make one think over the event one has experienced. As a person is writing a talk-back, he or she asks himself or herself what exactly has happened, why this or that turned out in this particular way and how that is different from what one is used to. I shared my thoughts with others and got their comments; I also read what others were experiencing and got some ideas regarding what I could try out, too. It will be really interesting to re-read my blogs in some time myself in order to see how I grew and why I developed in this way.”

– 2009-2010 Global UGRAD Fellow Liudmila Timofeeva from Russia

"When I first learned about the Cultural Passport, I was very excited...about the idea of pushing us, exchange students, to explore and live within the true American life. The Passport gave me the opportunity to explore my host community. It stretched me the most I could. One thing we should all keep in mind is that whatever you do is about people. They are the true messengers of all the places and events. Every single event in my Cultural Passport has a great story about it!"

– 2009-2010 Global UGRAD Fellow Edmond Ghulyan from Armenia

International advising staff also find the Cultural Passport to be a useful tool for engaging international students in the community. Below, a Global UGRAD host advisor comments on the impact the Cultural Passport has had on his institution's work with international students:

“The cultural passport program has been very beneficial here at NWU. Not only has it helped us ensure that our students are taking part in many different cultural activities throughout the year, but it’s actually given us ideas and shown us where maybe we have missed something and haven’t been planning the types of events that are very beneficial to international students. The Cultural Passport program is both a great component for students who are studying at NWU and also for us in our programming for international students, as it enables them to interact with Wesleyan students and take in more of the local and regional culture that we have to offer here in Nebraska.”

– Jake Hoy-Elswick, Host Advisor, Nebraska Wesleyan University