ASU Institute Fulfilling its Mission
The first group of graduates from Angelo State University’s English Language Learners’ Institute (ELLI) entered the regular student body this fall, marking the first tangible evidence of the effect the institute is having on the ASU campus.
As important as that effect is, however, perhaps just as impressive are the intangibles that foreign students bring to ASU. Through ELLI courses alone, 67 foreign students came to the ASU campus during the 2009-10 academic year, 59 of them from South Korea. Their presence not only gave them a life-changing experience, but also gave the campus community the chance to experience another culture.
And, it starts as soon as they get off the plane, often greeted by ASU President Joseph Rallo and his wife, Barbara, who oversees the Host Family Program for foreign students.
“It is really exciting to meet these students at the airport,” said Carole Simpson, ELLI director. “It’s a big deal for them to leave their homes, and it’s going to change their lives. It’s very satisfying to see our ideas put into practice and have such a great effect. I think it is affecting the campus positively as well, having these students around.”
Of those 67 students, 47 of them attended custom programs outside the regular ELLI curriculum, including a group of 39 South Korean students who came for a month in January and a smaller group that came for a 16-week English/nursing program later in the year. Of the 20 students who went through the regular ELLI curriculum, some have returned to their home universities, some have pursued other options in the U.S., like law school, and eight have chosen to stay at ASU and are now enrolled in regular classes.
“It’s a great feeling,” Simpson said. “It may seem like a small number, but it is significant for us because these are students who would not be able to go to ASU without our program.”
“They came here to the ELLI for six to 11 weeks, so it was a short time to boost their skills and confidence,” she added. “But, they got familiar with the campus, with San Angelo and with the U.S. The big difference is in their confidence with speaking and listening. It has really helped them.”
Other international students whose English language proficiency is good enough for them to enroll directly at ASU have also seen the value of the ELLI after arriving on campus. Some of them have even asked to sit in on ELLI classes to become more comfortable with their new surroundings.
Of the students who have come through the ELLI, the vast majority are from South Korea. When she started the ELLI program last year, Simpson soon learned that having a contact with a foreign university is a great help.
“We have a very active Korean professor, Dr. Won-Jae Lee, and he has helped us forge these relationships with several universities,” Simpson said. “Ulsan, Dongguk and Kyungnam universities, it is through Dr. Lee’s impetus that we have gotten their students to come here.”
In addition to Lee’s efforts, the ELLI and its parent office, ASU’s Center for International Studies, have also recruited students from Korea and other countries through their website, recruiting trips and recommendations made by previous foreign students.
Another factor in the influx of Korean students is that they often find it easier to obtain visas than students from other Asian countries.
“For our one-month program in January, there was only two months notice,” Simpson said. “But, the Korean students could get all their documents done in that time, there was no problem. In the summer, I had six applicants from China, but they didn’t come because they couldn’t get their visas in time.”
“I’ve had quite a few applicants in the past from different countries, like Uzbekistan and all kinds of places, but it was too difficult for them to get their visas,” she added. “So, that is a major reason why there are so many Korean students around.”
The CIS also helps many international applicants to process their travel documents.
In addition to the eight ELLI graduates, there are currently 22 other foreign students the ELLI and CIS have brought to ASU this fall from South Korea, Peru, Mexico, India, Vietnam and Russia. Ten of them are enrolled in regular classes and 12 are enrolled in the ELLI curriculum. Six of the current ELLI students are scheduled to complete the advanced course and be eligible to enroll in ASU classes in the spring.
In total, there are 74 international students from 22 countries enrolled at ASU this fall. That is up from 62 international students in 2009 and 56 in 2008.
For more information on the ELLI, call (325) 942-2083 or go online to www.angelo.edu/dept/cis/elli/.
