Alex Bondar will be a junior at Western Michigan University in the fall of 2015. She earned her associate’s degree from NMC in general studies and hopes to receive a degree from Western in education with a focus in English.
Throughout the years, Northwestern Michigan College has gained popularity for being a ground-breaking community college. Offering four-year degrees, having maritime, aviation, and culinary programs, and even being the number one community college in the state for amount of study abroad trips. NMC has a lot to offer a student! But, it doesn’t stop there; now, the Office of International Services and Service Learning has created an opportunity for students to become more globally competent – the Global Endorsement. And I had the pleasure of receiving my GE during my last year at NMC.
So, what exactly is the Global Endorsement? It is, essentially, an official transcript stamp that says the corresponding student worked to become globally aware during their time here at NMC. Run by a point system, the GE is achieved after at least 100 points have been earned and a Capstone Presentation is given. To earn points, students must do three things: attend events, complete a global experience, and take globally intensive classes. The events are worth five points each and students need a minimum of four events attended. Some of these include International Affairs Forums, Window on the World Week, the Global Literature Reading Group, and more. The global experience can either be a study abroad experience, a domestic opportunity, or an international research project. Study abroad trips for 2016 include Ecuador, Brazil, South Africa, Russia, and more! If study abroad isn’t possible for the student, then one can choose a domestic opportunity, which can be anything from an internship at an international business to hosting an exchange student. If neither of these, the research project is decided when the student discusses it with the Office of International Services and Service Learning. Students can also gain points if they have lived abroad or participated in exchange hosting in the past. And finally, students must take a minimum of 3 globally intensive classes and pass them with a grand point of 2.5 or higher. The long list of courses changes annually, but includes classes such as HUM 116 World Cultures, ENG 241 Mythology, ANT 113 Intro to Cultural Anthropology, and more. There is no time limit on the Endorsement, as long as the student fulfills the requirements before their time ends at NMC.
For me, the Endorsement is much more than a stamp on my transcript. Through the process of receiving it, I was able to gain skills for life. The three pieces of the Global Endorsement helped me become a more well-rounded person. Attending the international activities was so fun! They educated me on issues I didn’t know about beforehand and introduced me to new concepts. In particular, the International Affairs Forums were the most beneficial to me. By listening to different internationally-focused speakers talk about global issues every month, I was able to hone my attention to important global issues, like the 969 Movement in Myanmar. Another event that really hit home with me was the touring play called Master Harold and the Boys, which is a play that shows how Apartheid turned a white South African boy against his lifelong black friends. The artistry in which the actors on stage mastered the characters’ actions and dialogue helped bring the audience (and myself) into the time period when Apartheid was rampant in South Africa. During the time I was completing my Global Endorsement, I attended 10+ events that all shaped me into a more globally aware student. In addition to the events, the globally intensive courses I took also changed my perception of the world completely.
Within the two semesters it took for me to complete the GE, I took four globally intensive courses: GEO 109 World Regional Geography, HUM 116 World Cultures, PLS 233 US Foreign Policy, and SPN 101 Elementary Spanish. Each of these played a part in expanding my global awareness. World Regional Geography was an eye-opening class; Professor Gary Howe taught us geography in a number of ways and made sure we left the class more prepared for the world. World Cultures showed me things I never knew about people in other countries and enlightened me to new ideas. US Foreign Policy gave me resources on how to effectively speak politically on global issues and introduced me to how foreign policy is shaped. Elementary Spanish not only taught me basic Spanish skills, but Professor Joel Gaff gave us the skills to continue on in our language learning. Collectively, these four classes opened my eyes more than any of the other courses I took at NMC and stick out the most for my experience here.
Of course, my favorite part of the Global Endorsement was the global experience I chose, which was study abroad. I was lucky enough to be chosen by US-Brazil Connect to teach English for a month in Brazil. With fellow students from NMC, we flew to Salvador and taught for a whole month. The time I had there is irreplaceable, and the lessons I learned will last me for the rest of my life. The trip itself was so impactful, that when I returned, I got two jobs and returned to Salvador six months later. The experience even gave me half of the points I needed for my Endorsement! By participating in this global experience, I was able to immediately get hired into the next three jobs I applied to the following year with no trouble.
With only two semesters left, I wasn’t sure if I could start this Global Endorsement. But, by Spring of 2015, I had the stamp on my transcript and an associate’s in my hand. By taking globally intensive courses, attending international activities, and completing a global experience, my view has expanded far past the US borders. The Global Endorsement was the perfect step for me to become a global citizen. And I believe that this is an opportunity that students don’t want to miss.