From climbing an active volcano in Chile to taking in a fireworks display in Iowa City to spotting a cow in an otherwise urban scene in India, University of Iowa students creatively captured moments from around the world for the 2019 International Programs Annual Photo Contest.
To view a gallery of all semifinalists, visit the International Education Week 2019 Photo Contest Flickr Album.
The contest winners—who are students from the U.S. studying abroad, as well as international students studying on the UI campus—will be recognized as part of International Education Week (Nov. 18–22). This joint initiative of the U.S. Departments of State and Education celebrates the ways international education and exchange opportunities prepare citizens for community-building in both domestic and international settings.
In addition to recognizing the photo contest winners, the UI celebration also will feature the annual UI International Impact Award recipient, a new Global Student Award, and a number of other events to inspire awareness of the many ways UI students can experience international education.
“It is more important than ever, as geopolitical strains and nationalism are on the rise, to reaffirm the value of international education,” says Downing Thomas, UI associate provost and dean of International Programs. “The current economic competitiveness and future prosperity of our state and of our country, and the ability of our students to thrive, whatever their field of study, require institutions of higher education like the UI to engage globally now.”
In fall 2019, more than 3,000 international students from 108 foreign countries and territories are studying or conducting postgraduate research at the UI. In the 2018–19 academic year, more than 1,300 UI students studied abroad in more than 74 countries.
International Impact Award
The UI International Impact Award recognizes distinguished alumni and other individuals with significant ties to the UI who have made important contributions internationally. The 2019 recipient is Simon Estes, a UI alumnus and internationally renowned opera singer.
Estes, of Centerville, Iowa, is among a group of performers who were instrumental in helping break down barriers of racial prejudice in the world of opera.
His exceptional musical talents were recognized when he joined the UI’s Old Gold Singers as an undergraduate, and led him to receive a full scholarship at the renowned Juilliard School New York City. His operatic debut as Ramfis in Aida at the Deutsche Oper Berlin in 1965 launched an international career that placed him among the first generation of black opera singers to achieve mainstream success. He was the first black man to sing a leading role at the prestigious Bayreuth Festival, where he performed the title role in Wagner’s The Flying Dutchman; has given performances in 84 of the world’s greatest opera houses; has sung for six U.S. presidents as well as Pope John Paul II; helped open the 1972 Olympics in Germany; and sang in South Africa in 2010 to open the World Cup, among many other notable performances.
DowningThomas and UI President Bruce Harreld will present the International Impact Award at 7 p.m. Thursday, Nov. 21, in the Voxman Music Building during the WorldCanvass program, Simon Estes: A Life in Music.
Estes, whose grandfather was a slave and father a coal miner, says he is ever-mindful of the life-changing role philanthropy has played in his life. He has created many educational scholarships and foundations at the UI and around the world to benefit children and students, and raises funds for the United Nations Foundation’s Nothing But Nets organization to fight malaria. For these efforts, Estes received the UN Foundation Lifetime Achievement Award. Regionally, he has received the Iowa Award, which is the state’s highest honor, and the Dr. Martin Luther King Jr. Achievement Award.
Global Student Award
The Global Student Award recognizes a current UI student who is an emerging leader deeply engaged in international education on campus or abroad.
The inaugural recipient is Yu Chak “Sunny” Ho, a PhD candidate in counseling psychology.
Ho, of Hong Kong, is vice chair of the International Student Advisory Board; an international student workshop facilitator; Paul Opstad and Franklin Stone International Student Award recipient; and Bridging Domestic and Global Diversity program mentor.
“Sunny has been a great advocate for international students since he set foot on campus in fall 2015,” says his nominator, Shuhui Lin, UI international student support and retention specialist. “He brings his perspectives, as well as his passion for advocating for international students, to his work—whether it’s helping facilitate workshops on different identities within the international communities, such as LGBTQ International Identity Intersections, How to Be a Proud Graduate, and Professional #GlobalHawkeye; promoting mental health awareness on campus; helping to plan 2018 International Education Week; or cultivating student leaders on campus. His countless contributions have shown his commitment to making campus a more inclusive space, and he has empowered many other student leaders to follow in his footsteps.”
Learn more about International Education Week and view a full schedule of events.
