JAMESTOWN, N.Y. – SUNY Jamestown Community College is pleased to welcome 12 international students to the Jamestown Campus for the 2021-2022 academic year as part of the U.S. Department of State’s Community College Initiative (CCI) Program. The CCI Program is providing 191 participants from underserved global communities with a one-year, non-degree academic program in workforce development fields at eleven U.S. community colleges in eleven states.
Among JCC’s CCI Program students are the college’s first-ever students from Bangladesh, Indonesia, and Turkey as well as students from Brazil, Cote d’Ivoire, the Dominican Republic, Egypt, India, and South Africa. Lena Young, of Jamestown, is coordinating the program on the local level.
Second row: Leeza Fernand, Associate Director of International Education
and Sponsored Programs, Northern Virginia Community College;
Shireesha Ravichetti, Sertap Zengin, Nermeen Ahmed, Reski, Rohmania
Noorgraheni, Christian Baffoin, Diana Abrams, Santru Mohan, Marsha
Ahmed, and Lena Young, Global Community College Initiative Coordinator.
The CCI Program builds participants’ technical skills, enhances leadership capabilities, and strengthens English language proficiency. The program also provides opportunities for professional internships, service learning, and community engagement activities to build relations between citizens of the United States and other countries. In the past five years alone, CCI participants contributed over $4,360,000 in service to local U.S. communities through volunteering and unpaid internships, as calculated by independentsector.org rates for volunteer hours. CCI participants also contribute to their U.S. host communities by bringing diverse, global perspectives to classrooms, campus life, and local organizations.
“We are fortunate to be part of the CCI program,” said JCC President Daniel DeMarte. “The presence of these students on our campus helps expand global perspectives for all of our students as well as for the communities we serve. The pillars of the CCI program – academics, service learning, internships, cultural exchange, leadership, and action planning – are well aligned with the values and mission of JCC.”
The Institute of International Education states that in 2017-2018, less than 11% of all undergraduate students in the United States had the opportunity to study abroad. This number drops to about 2% at community colleges. International exchange programs provide internationalization of U.S. campuses and provide students with an opportunity to learn from others to prepare them for their role as global citizens.
After completing the CCI Program, participants return home with a deeper understanding of U.S. culture and with improved technical and vocational skills to contribute to the economic development of their home communities.
Since 2007, the CCI Program has hosted more than 3,400 participants from 21 countries. This U.S. Department of State program is administered by Northern Virginia Community College (NOVA) in cooperation with the NOVA-led Community College Consortium. For further information, please contact the NOVA CCI Team at CCCIP@nvcc.edu and the Bureau of Educational and Cultural Affairs at eca-press@state.gov.