In celebration of Asian American Pacific Islander Heritage Month and Asian Pacific Islander Desi American Heritage Month, The University of Alabama’s Division of Diversity, Equity and Inclusion is hosting a cooking demonstration that discusses the history, cultural and familial connection of food to the Bangladeshi people.
Khadiza Tul Jannat, communications doctoral student
Khadiza Tul Jannat, a native of Bangladesh who attends the University as a doctoral student and a graduate research and teaching assistant in the College of Communication and Information Sciences, will cook one of her favorite Bengali dishes on May 17 at 6 p.m.
To receive a link to the free cooking demonstration, registration is required.
This is Jannat’s first time celebrating Asian Pacific Islander Desi American Heritage Month. She came to the U.S. in 2016 to continue her education and hadn’t heard of the heritage month, but she said she’s excited to celebrate it so she can share her culture with others through food and her passion, dance.
“I definitely want to represent my culture and help us to learn more about each other,” she said. “I think that’s how we become comfortable with each other by celebrating each other’s culture.
“Where I’m from, we all cook. We don’t eat frozen food. My mom cooked and I observed her. I like cooking for sure, but I do other stuff. I love dancing, that’s the main thing. When I dance, I feel like a bird. But cooking is a part of my life.”
Jannat said Bangladesh is known as the land of rivers, and people eat a lot of fresh fish and rice. So, she’s going to make one of the most popular dishes in her country, fish curry.
“It’s hard to find the same fish types here that are in my country, but I’ll be using one of the most popular fish I can find here, which is tilapia. I’ll be using my own recipe cooked in my traditional way. It’s going to be extra spicy, but I’ll be showing everyone how to make it with less or more chilis based on their tolerance for spice.
“When your tummy is happy, everything is happy. So sharing food means sharing happiness. In Asian cultures, we are very much hospitable, and food is one of the best ways to show care. When we care, we show it by doing things more than telling.”
This action rescindsprior executive orders 9983 issued on Friday, January 31, 2020 and 9645 issued on September 24, 2017 which impacted citizens of Eritrea, Kyrgyzstan, Myanmar (also known as Burma), Nigeria, Sudan, Tanzania,Iran, Libya, North Korea, Somalia, Syria, Venezuela, and Yemen.
Effective October 19, 2020 the premium processing fee will be $2,500 for premium processing requests on H-1B Petitions, I-140 cases and other types of employment petitions, as authorized by the Emergency Stopgap USCIS Stabilization Act signed into law on October 1, 2020.
UA International Student & Scholar Services has updated its H-1B Packet and pages with the updated Premium Processing fee. Please use the most recent H-1B Packet when processing filing fee requests for H-1Bs going forward.
UPDATE:
On December 1, 2020, the U.S. District Court for the Northern District of California granted the plaintiffs’ motion for partial summary judgement, and set aside both the Department of Labor and Department of Homeland Security interim final rules. This blocks both rules from being enforced or implemented. Read the court’s order and judgement, which found that the agencies did not have just cause to promulgate the rules without notice and comment. The case is Chamber of Commerce et al. v. DHS et al., Case No. 4:20-CV-7331 (N.D. Ca., October 19, 2020).
The rule changes how DOL computes Level I through Level IV wage rates when it uses Occupational Employment Statistics (OES) wage data to make a National Prevailing Wage Center (NPWC) prevailing wage determination or to certify an LCA that relies on OES wage data.
The interim final rule went into effect on the date of publication, October 8, 2020.
In short, the rule meant that official prevailing wages which we use for H-1B petitions and which are required for labor-based Permanent Residency/Green Card filings was higher for many positions.
With the court decision on December 1 striking the rule down, it means that going forward, UA can rely on previous prevailing wages that were in effect prior to October 8, and can rest assured knowing that H-1B regulations won’t prohibit our sponsorship of staff or faculty positions.
UPDATE:
On December 1, 2020, the U.S. District Court for the Northern District of California granted the plaintiffs’ motion for partial summary judgement, and set aside both the Department of Labor and Department of Homeland Security interim final rules. This blocks both rules from being enforced or implemented. Read the court’s order and judgement, which found that the agencies did not have just cause to promulgate the rules without notice and comment. The case is Chamber of Commerce et al. v. DHS et al., Case No. 4:20-CV-7331 (N.D. Ca., October 19, 2020).
The new rule would have gone into effect on December 7, 2020.
Changes include revised definitions of and standards for a “specialty occupation” that make use of the H-1B category for staff positions more challenging.
This rule amends the definition of a “specialty occupation” at 8 CFR 214.2(h)(4)(ii) to clarify that there must be a direct relationship between the required degree field(s) and the duties of the position.
Additionally, the rule changes the qualification as a “specialty occupation” to require a minimum of a bachelor’s degree for all positions.
The changes would have impacted future filings, extensions, and amendments of H-1Bs. The primary impact would have been to our ability to sponsor non-teaching staff positions in the future.
With the court decision on December 1 striking the rule down, it means that going forward, UA can rely on previous prevailing wages that were in effect prior to October 8, and can rest assured knowing that H-1B regulations won’t prohibit our sponsorship of staff or faculty positions.
Fifteen days completely out of their comfort zone with strangers from around the world, students from The University of Alabama consistently overcome a diverse set of challenges at the European Innovation Academy, or EIA.
The European Innovation Academy challenges young professionals to think outside the box, testing their entrepreneurial mindsets. During their stay abroad, students have the ability to network with peers, international faculty and industry-leading professionals from all over the globe, including 90 speakers and mentors from Fortune 50 companies like Amazon and Alphabet, the parent company of Google.
University of Alabama students from the 2019 European Innovation Academy with faculty advisor Harold Wright sitting.
Students from the University of Alabama who attend the program have the ability to receive study abroad course credit for their studies. Applications to attend EIA next summer open up in late 2019.
This past summer, nearly 500 students from 75 countries met in Cascais, Portugal, for the three-week intensive acceleration program centered around entrepreneurship and innovation. At the 2019 convention, EIA challenged 11 Culverhouse College of Business students, including some on the STEM Path to MBA, to build an entire business from concept to company in under three weeks.
“EIA is a global entity that brings together students for start-up businesses in a global environment,” explained Harold Wright, professor in the STEM and CREATE program and faculty advisor for the EIA trip. “It is a great exercise that teaches students to be comfortable with ambiguity.”
This is The University of Alabama’s third trip to EIA –– and each time, students from the Capstone pile on the previous year’s successes. This year’s EIA team traveled to Cascais, Portugal and stayed from July 14 to August 2, 2019.
Every EIA participant begins their trip speed-dating style, meeting with potential team members from all over who have great ideas for the next big startup, like Uber, DoorDash, or Airbnb. Each team includes a chief executive officer, chief business officer, chief marketing officer, chief technical officer and chief development officer. Diversity and international representation are important factors in how teams are composed. For example, Jack Zimmerman a chemical engineering student on the STEM Path to MBA, which is offered through Culverhouse’s Manderson Graduate School of Business, led a team at EIA in 2018 with members from Italy, Russia, Canada and Texas.
The first step from concept to company is creating a solid team with a solid idea. Pivoting, as it’s referred to, is a fundamental change to a business, and, in this case, students often found themselves pivoting on their ideas constantly, fine-tuning them to create a better, more marketable idea.
“Both your team and your idea need to be approved simultaneously within the first 48 hours,” Macey Shirah, a participant from this year’s cohort, explained. “… and even when you think you’ve found your team, where everyone’s committed and you have all five people on board, you go to get approved, there’s a possibility that your idea can be denied. Which also happened to me even after dating almost 12 teams.”
Shirah and her team had several ideas, ranging from pots and pans to wine to, finally, utilizing a NASA patent for maritime transportation.
Students began their trip speed-dating style, meeting with other participants from around the world.
“It took until the last 20 minutes before the final deadline for my company to finally be approved,” Shirah said.Shirah and her team had several ideas, ranging from pots and pans to wine to, finally, utilizing a NASA patent for maritime transportation.
Once an idea is established and a team is found. Students are faced with the next challenge: validation. Any product or service must have a coinciding market with interested consumers. This led to a few days where teams conducted research on validating the market, testing consumer and product market fit, and making sure their ideas meet consumer needs. To accomplish this, many students conducted deep market research, reached out to top executives at Fortune 50 companies, and met with subject matter experts relevant to their product.
“When my team settled on the maritime transportation idea, I reached out to the director of communications for the European International Shipowners Association of Portugal,” explained Macey. “Through email, we set up a lunch meeting at Apeadeiro in Cascais, Portugal with their technical director and director of communications…. My team and I had just arrived at EIA, but there a couple of us were a few days later, eating lunch with these two directors about our new business idea.”
For Macey and her team, that lunch meeting helped establish their market entry. She received a letter of intent from the shipowners association, allowing her to begin contacting the shipowners.
Idea established. Team found. Market validated. Next was the prototyping process. A prototype is a preliminary model of an idea that leads to future developed forms and, eventually, the final product. Considering most of the ideas at the European Innovation Academy were digital, many teams set up web-based applications.
“Team’s set up fully functioning websites with landing pages that were made available for potential customers,” Madeline Rogers, a two-time past participant and chemical engineering student, explained. “Every team’s product essentially became available online where customers had the chance to get a comprehensive understanding of the product, input their contact information for more information, give feedback and sign up for when the beta testing process begins.”
Idea established. Team found. Market validated. Prototype available. Students are now at a point in the trip where the program becomes more of a competition. During the final week, participants find themselves facing a room full of venture capitalists, fellow students and executive-level professionals. Their next steps include pitching their ideas and asking for funding. Typically, the chief executive officers of these new startups assume the role of lead pitch person, becoming the one who stands in front of the entire room, asking investors to open their checkbooks and invest in their team’s new business idea.
That trend, though, is not always true when there is an Alabama student on the team.
Advisor Harold Wright explains: “Chloe Denorme was not supposed to be the pitch person for her team, but a day before the presentations, she approached me and effectively said ‘I am going to pitch. I am the only one equipped with the knowledge of what we are doing.’”
Denorme had just celebrated her 19th birthday during her time at the program. The other four people on her team were, on average, late twenties to early thirties, all with several years of work experience.
“Following the pitch,” Wright continued. “I went up to the venture capitalist and thanked him for listening to Chloe who had just turned 19 and finished her freshman year. He looked at me and said ‘that was easily the best pitch I have ever heard.’”
Apart from the program rules, there is also a “Wright Rule,” which allows for only one Alabama student per team.
Per the “Wright Rule,” Paige Harris, a chemical engineering major, was the only Alabama student and female on her team. The rest of her team included participants from Switzerland, Denmark, Singapore and Michigan who all voted Harris in as their chief executive officer and lead pitch person for their startup tech company, Bippy, that helps find parking in Europe. In three minutes or less, Harris pitched her entire company from idea to business plan to market strategy to two investors: one who invested a lot of money in Disney and one who is the vice president of Alchemist Accelerator in San Francisco, California.
Harris’s company was selected as a top 10 team and was awarded the HAG Venture Building Program and Expedited Interview with Alchemist Accelerator awards. The Alchemist Accelerator award, which is known as one of the “most prestigious awards” at the program, grants Harris a direct line to an interview with Alchemist Accelerator anytime she submits an application on a potential investment idea.
“The entire three-week experience was incredible,” Harris noted about her time abroad. “When am I ever going to be in another room with 11 venture capitalists that can write me a check for a quarter of a million dollars?”
Students had the opportunity to travel on the weekends.
Harris and her team’s company, that they created in July, recently received stage one funding and are currently up and running.
Zimmerman, who attended EIA in 2018, is still acting chief executive officer for his company, Rottweiler, a security company that protects personal items. Zimmerman and his team received the provisional patent award from Nixon Peabody, covering any and all fees when it comes to filing for a patent.
“The chief technology officer and I are currently in product development,” Zimmerman said. “He is from Italy, but is soon moving to America.”
Shirah, who went through several ideas and found herself on several teams before settling, finished the European Innovation Academy a part of the program’s top team. The company, AME, LLC, creates a biocide-free product for the maritime industry.
“There are new regulations imposed by the International Maritime Organization that have banned most common biocide products that are used in killing off biolife on the ship hulls,” Shirah explained. “Our superhydrophobic, biocide-free product coats ships hulls and repels water at the surface to prevent bioaccumulation as opposed to the current method of relying on harmful chemicals to kill off the biolife after they accumulated.”
Shirah and her team’s idea won them a fully-expensed trip to Greece for the Funny Money Training Course, where they will learn about entrepreneurship, funding and succeeding as a startup.
Whereas, senior chemical engineer, Madeline Rogers, is a featured alum of the EIA Program, leading webinars as a successful student story from the program. She discusses her experiences and what the program offers to faculty and students, answering their questions in hopes that they will register and go.
“The European Innovation Academy is an invaluable experience to any and all participants,” Rogers said. “It’s something you can’t get anywhere else.”
While international students and staff members have their own resources for adjusting to UA life, their spouses have found their own community in B.B. Comer Hall.
ISG Photo by Joe Will Field
The International Spouse Group (ISG) has been serving the partners of foreign students and staff members over recent years. The ISG meets once a week, and faculty advisers are there to answer any questions the members have or just to talk about how their day is going. It is a casual and inviting environment, which is the goal of advisers Melanie Walker and Kay Geno.
Walker, an international staff member herself, noticed the positive attention incoming students and staff members got at the University.
“When I came to UA, I found it welcoming,” Walker said. “The school does a good job with the students and keeps them busy, but I think the spouse gets lost along the way.”
That is why the ISG was formed, Walker said.
“We want to bring people together,” Walker said. “When you come here with your partner, you don’t know anyone. It’s just a way of getting people to meet each other and realize they’re not alone.”
On a typical Wednesday morning, the group gathers at B.B. Comer Hall in a meeting room tucked away in the Capstone International Center. While this intimate setting facilitates conversation, the leaders also like to take things outdoors and give the members a chance to see other parts of the UA campus.
“We’ve done the [Hallowed Grounds] walking tour with Dr. [Hilary] Green, the Gorgas House tour, the Bryant Football museum tour, the Smith Hall History museum, seen the library archives,” Walker said. “We do things quite often.”
While Walker and Geno set up these events and promote the club on Facebook, they say it is all about the members.
“We invite new members all the time and reach back out to people who have already come,” Geno said.
Attendance varies between four to 10 members at a given meeting, but the group is always looking for new people that they can serve.
“Some international students have their own clubs and Facebook pages, like the Bangladeshi students, so we can reach out to new members that way, too,” Walker said. “There are always new students coming into the University, as undergrads or Ph.D. students, so we try to get a hold of them and their partners.”
The ISG currently has members from Nepal, Russia, Sweden, Bangladesh, India, Germany and more. No matter where the spouses are from, the mission of the ISG unites them.
“When people first arrive in the U.S., they find it important to do more than just finding their feet,” Walker said. “They feel lonely and think about what they have left behind. The wives have jobs and careers that their visa does not allow them to practice here. The initial adjustment to the culture can be hard.”
Not only do the members gain support and knowledge from the ISG, but Walker and Geno benefit as well.
“There’s a learning curve for everybody,” Walker said. “No matter where you’re from, you can always teach us something new.”
Antara Das has been a part of the ISG since the spring semester of last year. She moved to Alabama in the summer of 2018, along with her husband, Tonmoy Ghosh, and two-year-old daughter. Ghosh is at The University of Alabama pursuing a Ph.D. in electrical engineering.
“My husband actually gave me a pamphlet about the ISG,” Das said. “He told me about the meetings, and one day I went to one and got added to Facebook group.”
“I came to UA mainly for the scholarship,” Ghosh said. “But I went to the International Coffee Hour event, and that’s where I heard about the ISG. It is a great place to make friends and learn from the different cultures of the people there.”
Since then, Das and her daughter have been frequent attendees to the meetings and events of the ISG. The group helped Das and her family work past the initial growing pains of living in a new country.
“At first, things like transportation were hard,” Das said. “I didn’t know how to drive in the U.S. It was not easy to understand the language and the English accent.”
Das was able to pick up those skills and has since expanded on her involvement with Alabama culture. For this, she thanks the ISG.
“They’ve helped me know America and Tuscaloosa better,” Das said. “We’ve gone on trips to museums, and I have come to know a lot about the culture and history here.”
Das is planning to take the GRE exam and begin studying public health at the University if admitted.
“The people here are very friendly and helpful,” Das said. “My family feels very good here, even though we are far from our country.”
Rona Khadka, another ISG member, has resided in Alabama for approximately two years. Originally from Nepal, Khadka came here alongside her husband, who is pursuing his Ph.D. in data science.
Like Das, Khadka’s husband was the one who told her about the group.
“My favorite part has been getting to know people from the U.S. and making friends with people from other countries,” Khadka said.
Khadka appreciates the practice she has gotten with speaking English in the ISG and says that it has given her confidence to speak it more herself.
“I was worried about that for my medical exams,” Khadka said.
While the members of the ISG are guided through their time at The University of Alabama, they also highlight external opportunities as well, such as job placement. For example, Khadka, 27, obtained her undergraduate degree in nursing while in Nepal. She now has a job lined up in Nebraska and is hoping for a sponsor to secure her green card.
The ISG meets every Wednesday at 10 a.m. in B.B. Comer 105. For more information, visit their Facebook page.
When Melanie Walker’s husband got a job as an associate professor of educational psychology at The University of Alabama in August last year, they packed up and moved from their home in Durham, England, to Tuscaloosa.
But while he worked, she was left alone and unable to pursue her own career because for now the type of visa she was given doesn’t allow international spouses to work.
“As a spouse you’re basically an alien,” Walker said. “Everything you do has to go through the working spouse or the student. That’s possibly the hardest thing that people coming here have to deal with because when you are in your home country your identity and finances are your own, but when you come here as the spouse of a student, your identity and finances are connected to your spouse.”
With this not being her first international move due to her husband’s career, she quickly found ways to occupy her time and get involved. One of those ways she discovered was UA’s International Spouse Group, where she is now a co-leader.
“My husband and I saw the group on the website and I saw where they met and when, and I turned up one day to say hello and I was welcomed in,” she said.
The International Spouse Group brings together the spouses of international students, faculty, staff and scholars for activities and interaction by learning from each other and sharing unique knowledge and experiences, according to its website.
The home countries of current group members include Nepal, Brazil, Uganda, Bangladesh, Japan, England, the Netherlands, Germany and America. The group is open to American spouses who want to make international friends and support those friends in the process of acculturation.
The current American in the group, co-leader Kay Geno, is from south Louisiana and has been a member for a year and a half. She said she joined because she was new to Tuscaloosa and sought fellowship. She also wanted to help non-Americans acclimate.
“What I hope happens is that the camaraderie that they feel makes them understand that they aren’t the only ones who feel like they’re going through this struggle,” she said.
“We try to plug them into other places to volunteer and meet other people. Sometimes people come to our group for a long time and then others come here during their first year, get their footing and then go to other groups.”
Geno said group members generally have a lot of cultural questions, but also questions about how to properly conduct themselves in America.
“They ask things like, ‘how do I address someone in an email?’ ‘How many times should I call someone?’ They want help navigating through health care, purchasing a house, which of the 50 brands of toothpaste to buy, what cleaning supplies.
“So it’s just reassuring them that they were doing the right thing and helping them with next steps.”
The group also visits local and state hot spots.
Geno said the largest contingent in the group are spouses of graduate students.
The group meets each Wednesday during the school year from 10 to 11:30 a.m. in the International Student and Scholar Services offices in 105 BB Comer Hall.
To become a member of the International Spouse Group, simply attend a meeting. For more information, email Uofa.isg@gmail.com, or join their Facebook page.
Education Abroad Advisors Raven McKenzie and Sarah Kidwell and International Student & Scholar Advisor Chris Larkin were inducted into the NAFSA Academy for 2019-20.
The current Academy class of 61 trainees and 11 coaches met in Atlanta, Georgia on the Georgia Tech campus, where they spent an energizing and intense four days broadening their knowledge of the international education field, participating in 5 knowledge community based workshops, convening evening roundtable discussions, and connecting with a community of International Education peers.
The Academy for International Education is a selective program, in which trainees are provided foundational training around nine international education professional proficiencies and the primary knowledge areas of international education. The foundational training is enhanced by a personalized learning plan the Academy trainee develops, which guides and measures the trainee’s learning throughout the Academy year, in addition to individualized coaching from a international education coach.
Sakina Dhondia Receives William P. and Estan J. Bloom Award
The William P. and Estan J. Bloom Award honors a student who has improved relations among different groups. Past recipients have been chosen primarily for improving understanding and supporting interaction among groups for a common cause.
Sakina Dhondia finds that bringing people together for festivals – or even just coffee – can help UA students connect in ways they could not otherwise.
Thanks to her work with the International Students Association and as director of cultural experiences and diversity for the Honors College Assembly, she helped arrange activities, including the International Coffee Hour, the Diwali festival and the Crimson Culture Gala, that inspired interaction among the diverse student body of UA.
Dhondia, a finance and economics major, moved with her family from Delft in the Netherlands and now lives in Tuscaloosa. She has served as treasurer, vice president and president of the International Students Association, as well as a design partner for the Design for American project and budget director for Night to Shine, an Honors College initiative that creates a prom-like experience for students with special needs. She also works with the Alabama Transportation Institute.
The Chinese New Year celebration was hosted by the Association of Chinese Students and Scholars. It was held in the Ferguson Ballroom on Saturday, February 2, 2019, and provided attendees with Chinese food as well as traditional Chinese entertainment including dancing, Beijing Opera, comedy skits, and a fashion show. More than 350 students, faculty, staff, and members of the community came together to celebrate the Year of the Pig—2019!
On Oct. 20, international students and ISSS staff went to a Fall Cultural Retreat which was held at Tannehill Ironworks Historical State Park. The 40 students and staff who represented The University of Alabama at the retreat enjoyed visiting the Iron & Steel Museum of Alabama, a pioneer farm, hiking to the old ironworks facilities, seeing artists make their own hand crafts, and visiting “Trade Days” which is where people sell local food, handmade items, and antiques. Although there was a bit of rain throughout the day, it didn’t stop our students from having fun and exploring the state park grounds. International students were able to visit the Old Country store, see the Halloween decorations on display, and play games together near the campsite. Approximately 150 international students attended from various universities around Alabama including University of West Alabama, Samford University, Gadsden State Community College, and Jefferson State Community College. A Lebanese style lunch was provided by Regions bank, and The University of Alabama provided the snacks for the retreat. This truly was a cultural experience as students were able to learn about local Alabama culture, as well as make new friends from other countries!
International Student and Scholar Services (ISSS) is a part of the Capstone International Center and is an integral part of an international student’s experience at The University of Alabama. ISSS helps F-1 and J-1 students maintain their visa status while studying at UA. The mission of International Student and Scholar Services is to provide essential services and innovative programs for The University of Alabama international students, scholars and their families to enable them to achieve their educational, professional and social goals. ISSS seeks to foster diversity and strengthen inter-cultural relationships throughout the UA campus and community. It is our commitment to promote understanding and respect for the world’s many cultures. We do that through offering weekly activities such as International Spouse Group which meets from 10-11:30am every Wednesday, and International Coffee Hour which happens from 11:30am-1:00pm every Friday during the fall and spring semesters. ISSS also sponsors special events such as the Fall Cultural Retreat for our international students. If you want to keep up to date with all the activities ISSS is hosting, follow us on Facebook @UAInternationalServices.
International Student and Scholar Services (ISSS) is a part of the Capstone International Center and is an integral part of an international student’s experience at The University of Alabama. ISSS helps F-1 and J-1 students maintain their visa status while studying at UA. The mission of International Student and Scholar Services is to provide essential services and innovative programs for The University of Alabama international students, scholars and their families to enable them to achieve their educational, professional and social goals. ISSS seeks to foster diversity and strengthen inter-cultural relationships throughout the UA campus and community. It is our commitment to promote understanding and respect for the world’s many cultures. We do that through offering weekly activities such as International Spouse Group which meets from 10-11:30am every Wednesday, and International Coffee Hour which happens from 11:30am-1:00pm every Friday during the fall and spring semesters. ISSS also sponsors special events such as the Fall Cultural Retreat for our international students. If you want to keep up to date with all the activities ISSS is hosting, follow us on Facebook @UAInternationalServices.