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Questions & Answers
Kathy L. Curtis is associate director of the English Language Institute.
What is the mission of the English Language Institute?
The English Language Institute, founded in 1971 and a unit of the Graduate School of Education, provides English language instruction, cultural orientation and pre-academic training to international students, scholars and professionals on an intensive, as well as on a per-course, basis. The ELI administers four major programs: the Intensive English Program (IEP), which specializes in preparing students for university study in the United States; the English as a Second Language Program (ESLP), for students enrolled in academic programs at the university; a part-time Evening Program for Buffalo-area professionals, and overseas and customized programs offering language-learning and teacher-training opportunities, both on campus and in other countries. The IEP is our core program, annually enrolling 400 to 500 students in full-time programs of language instruction and pre-academic orientation. Barbara A. Campbell and I are responsible for administering the IEP, which conducts programs in the fall, spring and summer. The ESLP, administered by Keith Otto, provides credit-bearing ESL courses in reading, writing and oral communication to matriculated UB students. In addition, the program provides testing and training for the university's international teaching assistants and works with the departments and International Admissions to set English language proficiency standards, both for admission to the university and teaching assistantships. The Evening Program offers a variety of part-time courses in grammar, writing, oral communication and TOEFL preparation for Buffalo-area professionals. The ELI's overseas and customized programs, administered by Janice A. Nersinger, collaborates with UB departments and overseas partners to develop special programs that may include English language instruction, teacher training and professional development activities.
How does the ELI work with the rest of the university?
The ELI is a service unit of the university, preparing prospective UB students for university study and providing credit-bearing ESL courses to enrolled students who are non-native speakers of English. Through this instructional support, the ELI plays a key role in making it possible for UB to enroll larger numbers of international students. In addition, the ELI works closely with the departments and the Graduate School to set English language proficiency standards for international applicants and to test and train international teaching assistants.
What are some of the major changes you have seen in terms of the institute's role at UB?
One of the most significant changes has been the expansion of our mission to include other programs. When it was established in 1971 by our director, Stephen C. Dunnett, vice provost for international education, the institute was named the Intensive English Language Institute to designate our primary mission. Over the years, we have taken on additional responsibilities, including UB's credit-bearing ESL courses and overseas programs, which have made the institute a more integral part of the university. We changed our name in 1995 to reflect this broader mission. Despite the addition of new activities, the ELI remains committed to our core program, the IEP, which we believe is one of the best in the country and provides an outstanding preparation for academic study in the U.S. That's why we like to remind the departments that our six- and 12-week summer programs serve as an excellent pre-academic program for incoming graduate and undergraduate international students.
Who are the ELI students and where do they come from? Have the students changed a great deal over the years? Do many Intensive English Program students eventually enroll at UB?
Our IEP students have changed over the years in keeping with larger trends affecting the numbers of students coming to the U.S. from various regions of the world. These trends have depended on economic, as well as geopolitical, factors. For example, in the 1970s, most of our students came from Iran, Lebanon and Latin America, followed by sponsored students from oil-rich Algeria and Venezuela. By the early 1980s, we had fewer students from the Middle East and began seeing large numbers of students from Asia—Japan initially and later Korea and Taiwan. East Asia continues to be our largest source of students.
This week is International Education Week. What is International Education Week and how is the ELI participating?
International Education Week (IEW) was established in 2000 by the Clinton Administration as a joint initiative of the departments of State and Education to promote and celebrate the benefits of international education and exchange. Since then, hundreds of educational institutions across the country participate in IEW each year. UB organized its first IEW in November 2001, and this year the scope and extent of the week's activities have been expanded. Thanks to funding from the Department of State through a Cooperative Education Program grant from NAFSA: Association of International Educators and donations from local sponsors, UB's IEW includes more outreach activities to the wider community. Some of the highlights of the week include a keynote lecture by Andrew J. Bacevich, a professor of international relations at Boston University, who spoke yesterday on "Bush's National Security Strategy: How It Has Affected U.S. Foreign Policy." A mini international film festival has been organized in cooperation with Dipson Theaters to present films at both the Student Union Theatre and the Market Arcade theaters in downtown Buffalo. The films include "Pièces d'Identité" (Congo, 1998); "Joint Security Area" (Korea, 2000); "The Running Fence" (USA, 1978), and "Shower" (China, 1999). In another outreach activity, international students enrolled at the university and the ELI are visiting City Honors High School and Tapestry Charter Elementary School to share their languages, cultures and traditions with local students. Yesterday, ELI hosted 40 Frontier High School students for a day of class observations. The institute has been hosting Frontier students since 1979.
What question do you wish I had asked, and how would you have answered it?
A question about the ELI "Chat Room." A new initiative begun last year, the Chat Room is not, as its name suggests, an Internet-based meeting place; rather, it matches domestic UB students with international students for face-to-face conversation practice and cultural exchange in English. All UB international students are eligible to sign up for Chat Room sessions, which are scheduled in the late afternoon. Native-speaking undergraduate students earn two credits of ESL 320 by serving as Chat Room tutors for a semester. While the Chat Room was created to provide practice in conversational English for international students, there are plans to expand it to learners of Spanish and other languages commonly studied at UB.