Saint Martin’s University forms new division of international education
Aug. 19, 2005
Lacey, Wash. – Saint Martin’s University has been
expanding opportunities for its students to study abroad and for
international students on its campus for the past 22 years. Now Saint
Martin’s is consolidating its cultural and international exchange
programs as part of a new division of international education.
Saint Martin’s President Douglas M. Astolfi, Ph.D.,
said the new division will build stronger ties with foreign universities
and lead to new opportunities for both Saint Martin’s students and
international students wanting to study at the university.
“In the decades ahead, our graduates will compete in
an international/global market place,” Astolfi said of the university’s
increasing emphasis on international programs and international aspects
of programs already in place. ”They will be at a disadvantage if they do
not learn how to understand and appreciate other cultures.”
Josephine Yung, former director of the Office of
International Programs, has been named as the division’s first dean.
Yung has a master of arts from University of Washington and has been in
charge of cultural and international programs at Saint Martin’s since
1983. She has served on past Washington state delegations in China and
will be a member of the delegation for Governor Christine Gregoire’s
International Trade Mission to Japan and China in September.
Yung said that through its programs, the division of
international education offers Saint Martin’s students a broad-based
international education program that combines academic skills with real
life experiences.
“The new division is committed to preparing Saint
Martin’s students to be global citizens, dedicated to serving others in
the global community,” she said.
One of Saint Martin’s unique exchange programs is
the International Business Study Tour, which gives students a chance to
visit major East Asian companies and organizations such as Toyota,
Makita and the Hong Kong Trade Development Council. Saint Martin’s
students also can take courses at colleges and universities in Japan and
China through the division. The division also will continue to offer a
Japan cultural exchange, opportunities to teach English abroad,
international study tours for all majors, overseas internships and
family/international student outreach programs.
Saint Martin’s regularly hosts students from
Mukogawa Women’s University, Okazaki Women’s College, Kobe International
University and Reitaku University in Japan; Shanghai Maritime
University’s Pudong Business Administration College and Wuhan University
of Technology in China; and the Formosa Overseas Study Center in Taiwan.
“We value the presence of international students on
our campus. We consider them ‘cultural ambassadors’ that enrich our
community,” Yung said. “Reaching out to international students is an
institutional priority.”
Astolfi praised Yung for her work in attracting
international students to Saint Martin’s and said he wants more Saint
Martin’s students to broaden their educational experience through
international programs here and abroad.
“We are extremely fortunate to have a person like
Josephine Yung in charge of the division because she has the vision, the
drive and the knowledge to build programs that will have broad student
appeal and high academic standards,” Astolfi said.
Saint Martin’s is an independent, Roman Catholic
co-educational college founded by the Benedictine Order. About 1,100
students are enrolled on its main campus and about 600 more in programs
at the university’s extension campuses at Fort Lewis Army Post, McChord
Air Force Base and Olympic College.
Josephine Yung
Dean, international education
360-438-4375; jyung@stmartin.edu
John DeWeese
Assistant media coordinator
360-486-8857;
jdeweese@stmartin.edu