FOR RELEASE UPON RECEIPT Contact: Heidi Butler

February 20, 2007 610-861-5453

Northampton Community College Chosen for Project Funded by State Department

Northampton Community College is one of seven community colleges in the country chosen to participate in a pilot program funded by the United States Department of State to provide technical training for students from Africa, South America, Asia, and Eurasia. Northampton will host students from Brazil, Turkey, and South Africa who are studying engineering.

The $3 million State Department grant was awarded to Community Colleges for International Development, Inc. (CCID), an association devoted to utilizing international education to improve people’s lives worldwide.

The project is intended to provide students with expertise that will be useful in their homelands and to give them an appreciation of life in the United States. Students will live with host families and study leadership and democracy along with academics.

The program grew out of a Summit on International Education hosted by Secretary of State Condoleeza Rice and Secretary of Education Margaret Spellings in January of 2006. It is expected to have “positive reverberations throughout the world,” according to Dr. Gwen Stephenson, chair of CCID’s board of directors.

"We are excited to be part of this initiative," says Dr. Arthur Scott, president of Northampton Community College. "As our students interact with the international students, they will gain skills that will help them learn to function in a global society, and the international students will gain a deeper understanding of our way of life."

Dr. Manuel Gonzalez, director of international programs, at Northampton, will serve as the official liaison for the College. Northampton has been involved in international education for more than a decade. It has a large English-as-a-Second Language program, residence halls to accommodate international students enrolled in degree programs, and an active cultural exchange program.

Other colleges participating in the “Community College Summit Initiative Program” are Daytona Community College and Hillsborough Community College in Florida, Highline Community College in Washington, Kirkwood Community College in Iowa, North Harris Montgomery Community College District in Texas, and Parkland College in Illinois.