Executive summary
This proposal is aimed at raising the awareness of international students about the benefits of attending churches.
This proposal includes several elements:
- the design of brochures and leaflets about the churches in California;
- distribution of these leaflets;
- evaluation of students’ experiences and attitude toward churches.
The proposed program can assist learners who struggle with culture shock and alienation from others. People, who will be involved in this project, should have qualifications in several areas such as management, design, and social research. The budget of this project will be $ 2000. There are several important outcomes:
- ability of international students to adapt to a different environment;
- their resistance to culture shock;
- the increased awareness of educators and social workers about the problems that international students have to struggle with.
This project can be supported by various public organizations, but the most important role can be played by California Association of Student Councils. This agency can support a great number of international students. These are the main aspects that should not be overlooked.
Introduction
This proposal is aimed at increasing student’s awareness about the benefits of joining local churches that are located in California. In particular, it is necessary to design and distribute brochures that contain the following information:
- names and addresses of local churches;
- the time when one can attend these churches;
- the benefits of joining such organization.
This initiative has several rationales.
First, it should be noted that international students face such a problem as culture shock. This issue can be attributed to various factors such as lack of knowledge about culture, language barriers, or inability to see one’s relatives (Arthur 26; Burnapp 43).
Furthermore, these learners establish close contacts only with people who share their language or culture. As a result, after several years of study they know very little about the host country, and they cannot integrate themselves in the community.
One can say that this problem will become even more important in the future because the number of international students will only increase (International Student Trends unpaged).
In turn, by joining local churches, these people can develop their communicative skills and learn more about various aspects of foreign culture (Montgomery 100). This approach has already benefited learners from other countries. It will be easier for them to integrate themselves into the society.
The following section will include the description of the project, its budgetary requirements, and timelines. On the whole, the successful implementation of this initiative can positively affect the lives of many international students whose experiences can be impaired by culture shock and alienation.
Description of the project
The significance of the proposal
Overall, this project can affect a great number of stakeholders. One should take into account that in 2011 there were 96,535 international students in California (International Student Trends unpaged). Moreover, this number is likely to increase in the future.
One can say that the success of this project can positively affect academic performance of students (Andrade and Evans 50). Finally, these people can eventually learn more about the country in which they live.
These are the main issues that should be considered. This initiative can be supported by California Association of Student Councils.
The main steps
This project will consist of several stages. At first, it is necessary to design a brochure which contains relevant information about local churches. It is vital to focus on those churches located in the most populous districts of California.
In other words, international students should be able to find these organizations as soon as possible. Furthermore, these leaflets should clearly explain the benefits of joining churches. These are the main requirements that should be met during the stage of design.
Apart from that, it is necessary to distribute leaflets and brochures in those areas in which there are many universities and colleges that international students can attend. This approach can significantly simplify the work of volunteers who should be involved in this project. This is one of the issues should be considered.
Finally, it is important to conduct a follow-up evaluation of those international students who chose to join one of local churches.
This assessment should be related to the following aspects:
- the wellbeing of students;
- their perception of foreign culture and country;
- their attitude toward the church.
Furthermore, in the course of the interview, one should also find out how many of students decided to attend churches and how much time they spend there. This assessment is important for determining whether this initiative is effective. These are the main elements of this proposal.
On the whole, this proposal can be of great use to many people, especially those ones who help international students adapt to a new cultural and linguistic environment. These people will not be alienated from local community, and this is the main outcome of this proposal.
This is one of the main aspects that be identified. Moreover, this project can be completed by people who have expertise in various areas. One can say that this project can have significant implications for many educational organizations in California.
Qualification and experience
As a person, who majors in economics, I am able to manage the implementation of this strategy, especially its costs. Moreover, I can coordinate the efforts of other people, who will be involved in this project. In this case, one can speak about volunteers who will design and distribute the brochures to students.
I have already worked on various group assignments, and I had to act as the team leader. Apart from that, I know many international students, and I am familiar with their experiences. Additionally, I know what kind of difficulties these people face, especially when they have to leave in different environment.
Yet, one has to admit that this initiative can be successfully implemented provided that I am assisted by people, who have skills in areas that are not related to economics. Much attention should be paid to such fields as design and psychology.
The first group of external consultants will be engaged in the design of the brochure about local churches. Secondly, this project should involve individuals, who are skilled in social research because they need to survey those international students who decided to attend the churches.
These are the main requirements that should not be overlooked.
Timeline
The tasks identified in this proposal can be successfully implemented in the course of four months. In particular, one can single out the following stages:
- Approximately thirty days will be needed to design and publish the brochures and leaflets. At this point, it will be essential to attract the attention of international students and explain why local churches can be of great use to them. This is why one should spend a sufficient amount of time on this assignment.
- Furthermore, it is necessary to spend at least two days on the distribution of these materials to students. The main task of volunteers is to explain what kind of information will be presented in brochures and leaflets.
- Finally, it is important to mention the follow-up survey which is aimed at determining whether any people, who received the brochure, decided to join one of local churches. This task should be carried out after the distribution of the brochures.This assessment can show whether the attendance of local churches can change the attitude of international students. This is why this step should not be overlooked.
Budget
Overall, this initiative should be viewed as a pilot project. It is necessary to distribute approximately 100 brochures and leaflets. Each brochure will cost approximately $ 10. In turn, the total cost of publishing these materials will be $ 1000.
Furthermore, it is necessary to spend costs on the additional interview of international students. This assignment will require additional $ 2000.
Therefore, this budget should be at least $ 3000. This proposal can be sponsored by California Association of Student Councils. In this way, this public organization can significantly assist many learners attending local colleges and universities.
Conclusion
The tasks indentified in this paper are aimed at increasing the awareness of international students about churches in California. By joining these organizations, these people can overcome culture shock, develop communicative skills, and establish contacts with the representatives of other cultures.
Overall, this project can bring improvements into the experiences of international students who are frequently isolated from other people. They will be able to overcome both cultural and linguistic barriers that prevent them from integrating into the society.
By supporting this proposal, California Association of Student Councils cam help a great number of foreign learners. Provided that this initiative proves to be successful, it can be implemented in other parts of the country.
Works Cited
Andrade, Maureen, and Norman Evans. International Students: Strengthening a Critical Resource, New York: R&L Education, 2009. Print.
Arthur, Nancy. Counseling international students: clients from around the world, New York: Springer, 2004. Print.
Burnapp, Dave. Getting Ahead as an International Student, Boston: McGraw-Hill International, 2009. Print.
International Student Trends. 2012. Web.
Montgomery, Catherine. Understanding the International Student Experience, New York: Palgrave Macmillan, 2010. Print.