The I-House Connection: November 2021

I-House Connection November 2021: Shaun Carver, I-House Executive Director

November 12, 2021

Shaun R. Carver, I-House Executive Director

Dear I-House Alumni and Friends,

In this issue of the I-House Connection, I’d like to highlight a food drive underway as an opportunity for Residents to support Afghan Scholars and their families. As a glimpse into life at I-House in the waning days of Fall Term, our Social Media Ambassadors have created a compilation of some of the fun Halloween festivities here at the House, and a French Music playlist for your listening pleasure. In this issue, we also bid farewell to Jason Patent, Director of the Robertson Center for Intercultural Leadership, and highlight an upcoming Cal Discovery Tour opportunity with Executive Director Emeritus Joe Lurie.

Many thanks for all of your support.

Sincerely,

Shaun Carver, I-House Executive Director
Shaun R. Carver
Executive Director
International House, UC Berkeley

Afghan Scholar Food Drive
Residents Rise to the Occasion

In collaboration with UC Berkeley's Human Rights Center, between now and Thanksgiving, I-House residents have the opportunity to donate a target of 2,484 meal swipes for use by Afghan Scholars and their families - 23 adults and children – during Spring term.

Follow the progress in real-time and look for the final results on I-House Berkeley Connect.

To encourage residents to participate, the Executive Director’s office will match resident-donated swipes one-for-one until our goal is met. As an additional incentive to donate in support of the Afghan Scholars and their families, residents on the floor with the most swipes donated per capita will enjoy a pizza party!

AFghan Scholars Food Drive

Funds raised by UC Berkeley's Human Rights Center, San Jose State's Human Rights Institute, and UC Berkeley's Afghan Students Association’s Afghan Scholars at Risk campaign were matched with a sizable contribution from UC Berkeley’s Vice-Chancellor of Research. These organizations are working to provide assistance such as translation services, housing, and other resources to offer to Afghan students and their families arriving in the Bay Area.

While I-House can’t provide housing, we can help with food! Together we can help relieve some of the enormous pressures on these Afghan Scholars and their families.

Fall Fun at I-House!
By Azza Chairannisa

Life is picking up at I-House as we’re now back to having a coffee hour every week! So far we’ve had Coffee Hours hosted by our Polish, Arabic, and French residents filled with truly exceptional poetry, music, and food. Our residents even organized a festive party for Halloween with spooky snacks, chilling tunes, and contests to determine the best costume and the best pumpkin carver. The fun didn’t end there because our residents also organized a day filled with Diwali celebrations complete from Rangoli to chai. They all had the opportunity to witness the talent within I-House through a showcase of classical Indian singing and flute which was followed by a fun dance session that everyone could participate in. Can't wait to see what our residents are up to next!

Halloween Video

Watch the Halloween video created by our Social Media Ambassadors, Azza Chairannisa and Louise Riché.

Ooh La La!

Listen to our playlist of "Favorite French Songs" on Spotify, submitted by I-House residents and staff. It was played during the French Coffee Hour on Wednesday, November 10th for everyone to enjoy! Vive la France!

Farewell to Jason Patent

For over seven years, Dr. Jason D. Patent has led and contributed to a wide range of important functions at International House at UC Berkeley, most notably the Robertson Center for Intercultural Leadership (CIL), a center of excellence for training to advance leadership, understanding, and collaboration across cultures. During Jason’s tenure, in addition to his leadership of CIL, he has contributed importantly to I-House Operations, Programs, Strategy, and Resident Support Services as Chief of Operations and, later, as Chief of Strategy. I-House congratulates Jason for his many accomplishments, thanks him for everything he has done to move the I-House mission forward, bids him farewell, and wishes him good luck and fortune as he begins a new chapter in his career. Please see the full farewell message on our website.

Cal Discoveries Tour in Apulia, Italy
April 6 - 14, 2022

Apulia Italy

Sharing an update from I-House Executive Director Emeritus Joe Lurie (IH 1988-2007):

Apulia - Undiscovered Italy: Apr. 6 – 14, 2022. A Cal Discoveries Trip accompanied by Joe Lurie to Undiscovered Italy Spring 2022 featuring his Lectures on Understanding Misunderstandings Across Cultures with a Focus on Discovering the Meanings of Gestures in Italy and Beyond.

Who Opened Doors for You?

As a way to honor the reopening of International House, we want to hear from you about Who opened doors for you? — whether at I-House, UC Berkeley, or beyond. Please fill out this form to share a story and upload a photo or video, or email us at ihalumni@berkeley.edu

Join the I-House Team!

We have been continuing to recruit for a variety of roles at International House. The search is underway for the following job opportunities:

If you or someone you know would be interested in any of these positions, please visit the Jobs portal: ihouse.berkeley.edu/jobs For hiring questions, please email HR@ihouseberkeley.org.

Calling All Alumni!

It is our goal to celebrate the lives and achievements of our alumni and the contributions they have made and continue to make in the world. Please help us to keep you informed of upcoming regional events, update our records to help you reconnect with old friends and locate lost alumni, and to share recent I-House news with you. If you have moved, changed email or mailing addresses, or want to give us an exciting update, please let us know by filling out your profile in I-House Berkeley Connect. As always, we welcome your news at ihalumni@berkeley.edu

We encourage participation in this online global community, where you can: