ONU to host Sakae Institute

Ohio Northern University will host the Sakae Institute of Study Abroad, a preparation program for Japanese and Chinese students who will begin studies at U.S. high school, colleges and universities in the fall, from July 7 through Aug. 10.

Twenty-two students will take part in this summer’s institute, now in its eighth year at ONU. Taught by ONU faculty, the students will practice reading, writing, listening and speaking in English, take short academic courses on a variety of topics, and learn about American culture.

Marjorie Naylor Pitts, director of the ESL Bridging Program at ONU, is director of the summer program. Mary Drzycimski-Finn, assistant to the dean of ONU’s College of Arts & Sciences, is the assistant director and will teach advanced reading and writing.

Intermediate listening and speaking will be taught by Mary Jo Beining, lecturer in English. Tom Beery, also a lecturer in English, will teach intermediate reading and writing, while 2009 ONU graduate Jennifer Rowe will teach the advanced listening and speaking course. Dr. Harry Wilson, visiting assistant professor of geography, will present a North American regional geography course, and Dr. Keith Durkin, chair of the Department of Psychology and Sociology, will offer a criminology course.

The students also will take physical education “mini-courses” in tennis, American touch football and Frisbee golf from Bob Rohan, ONU’s assistant football coach. ONU student assistants for the summer program are Diego Sandino, a junior journalism/theatre major from Attica, Ohio, Daniella Chambers, a sophomore international studies and political science major from Medina, Ohio, and Japanese student assistant Kohei Takatsuka, a junior economics/mathematics major at Grinnell College and a graduate of the 2009 ONU Sakae program.

In addition to studying the English language and American culture, participating students will have opportunities to travel around the state of Ohio, including attending ONU Day at Cedar Point, visiting the Columbus Zoo and Aquarium, and browsing the Toledo Museum of Art. 

Yoko Sakae founded the Sakae Institute of Study Abroad in 1972 to make the transition to life on a U.S. college campus easier for Japanese students.

Published: Thu, 05/12/2011 - 9:53am