Metro International Celebrates Global Classroom in the Community
A Pilot Program Funded in Part by The Henry Luce Foundation
Metro International Brings Global Perspectives to NYC Kids and Families

New York City, May 21, 2002 - On Thursday, May 23, Metro International will mark the success of its inaugural 2002 Global Classroom in the Community program series with a dynamic celebratory event. This closing celebration will bring middle school children from District 13 in Brooklyn together with international university students to dialogue on the importance of international education and the Global Classroom experience. Middle school participants will join in a panel discussion and an international country fair sharing their own perspectives with educators and international university students. Participating in the event will be more than 100 middle school students and teachers from Brooklyn, and Fulbright scholars and other international undergraduate and graduate students from countries including Ghana, Brazil, Trinidad & Tobago, Russia, Spain and Paraguay.

This activity marks the culmination of Metro International's first year of Global Classroom in the Community, which has brought international speakers into District 13's Satellite West and Satellite III Academies to do presentations about their countries and cultures. Funded, in part, by The Henry Luce Foundation, Global Classroom in the Community also facilitates interaction and dialogue among the participating students, their families, and international students through community programs. In the aftermath of September 11, this person-to-person diplomacy is more important than ever.

"Although New York is one of the most diverse cities in the world, many children never travel beyond their own neighborhood. The Global Classroom in the Community program changes young people's understanding of the larger world, and even of the kids from other cultural backgrounds a few blocks away. It prepares them to thrive in New York City and to compete in the global marketplace," said Margaret Shiba, Executive Director of Metro International, an organization that builds cross-cultural understanding through programs that connect international students and New Yorkers.

Metro International's Global Classroom is a year-round program that brings Fulbright scholars and international students into classrooms throughout the five boroughs, under the terms of a contract with New York City Board of Education.

Schedule
2:00 pm to 3:00 pm ­ Opening Remarks, Panel Discussion, and presentation of awards to middle school students (Satellite III Academy, 170 Gates Avenue, Brooklyn, NY.)

3:00 pm to 4:00 pm ­ International Country Fair featuring exhibits prepared by middle schoolers about the countries they have explored through Global Classroom in the Community.

About Metro International (www.metrointl.org)
Metro International creates global learning opportunities for students, educators, and the community, in New York City and beyond. Metro was founded in 1977 to provide international undergraduate and graduate students with a bridge between their isolated campus environments and the broader New York community. Today Metro International's programs and services promote interaction between international visitors and New Yorkers in settings as diverse as local neighborhoods, school classrooms, businesses, and cultural institutions. Metro serves as the officially-designated coordinator of enrichment programs for visiting Fulbright scholars in New York and is a nationally and internationally recognized leader in providing substantive and innovative educational programming.