TROY News Center

TROY – Troy University students who participate in the International Student Cultural Association are broadening horizons with themed meetings this semester.

 

Each meeting focuses on a presentation of a particular nation by student members. ISCO, the longest-standing international organization at the University, includes not only international students, but American-born students as well.

 

Thursday, for example, is “Russian Night” where students from Russia will present their nation and its cultural heritage, and usually, a sample food, according to Joe McCall, a history lecturer who serves as the faculty advisor to the group.

 

“Each presentation from week to week is different depending on who is presenting, consequently each week’s session has the unique stamp of the cultural differences represented on our campus. We follow this weekly meeting format once our ISCO Festival is completed in November,” he said. “We have a great time with it, and it really does serve to give students and non-students a glimpse of real life in other countries.”

 

The meetings take place in Room 119 of the Trojan Center, and are open to all students, staff, and faculty. The organization was founded in 1975 by nine students under the leadership of the late Dr. Nolan Hatcher and specifically designed to promote student awareness of the world around them. The organization’s signature event, the “ISCO Festival,” features ethnic cuisine and entertainment.

 

The organization also organizes other events and field trips for members that showcase Alabama, the region and the United States.

 

Members of Troy University's International Student Cultural Organization, or ISCO for short, participate in a traditional Pakistani circle dance at a recent meeting. Each week, ISCO highlights a particular country and hosts a cultural presentation on traditions, customs and current events. (TROY photo)

The Troy University Chinese Students and Scholars Association (CSSA) will celebrate the New Year of the Snake with the annual Chinese Spring Festival Celebration on Friday, Feb. 8, at the Troy Campus.

 

The event will kick off at 6 p.m. inside the Trojan Center Ballrooms. Sponsored by the Confucius Institute at Troy University and CSSA, the festival will gather Chinese and other international students, visitors and faculty members to celebrate together with their American peers.

 

“Celebration of this traditional Chinese festival season will express the love for the motherland of all the Chinese students at TROY,” said Wei Li, director of the event and president of the CSSA. “By gathering American and international students, the event also allows them to experience the traditional Chinese culture and plays a positive role in promoting the cultural diversity at Troy University.”

 

Chinese Lunar New Year, first known as Spring Festival, is the most important traditional festival for Chinese people. The event will feature a number of performances with strong traditional Chinese characteristics, including the "Jasmine" folk dance, the classical Chinese "fleeting dance” and programs featuring a combination of eastern and western cultures.  Authentic Chinese cuisine will also be served.

 

The event is open to the public. Tickets are $10 for students and $17 for faculty, staff and members of the public, and can be purchased inside Pace Hall, room 116. Reservation for tickets can also be made by emailing This email address is being protected from spambots. You need JavaScript enabled to view it. .

 

For more information, please contact Wei Li at 334-434-0467.

 

Troy University’s Chinese Students and Scholars Association and the Confucius Institute at Troy University will celebrate the Chinese New Year on Feb. 8.

BEIJING – The Confucius Institute at Troy University has been named one of six Confucius Institutes of the Year in the United States.

 

TROY’s Confucius Institute is the state’s only such institute with a statewide mission of providing the people of Alabama with knowledge of China that will serve business, educational, cultural, and public interests.

 

The award, presented by Liu Yangdon, State Councilor of the Peoples Republic of China and Xu Lin, Director General of Hanban at the 7^th World Confucius Institute Conference in Beijing, recognizes extraordinary efforts by Confucius Institutes and their host universities to spreading Chinese language, culture, art and history. Troy University’s Confucius Institute is one of 400 institutes worldwide in addition to some 500 Confucius Classrooms.

 

“When we held the ceremony in 2007 in Beijing establishing the Confucius Institute at Troy University, we proclaimed our goal to become the best Confucius Institute in the world. This award takes us a step closer to that goal,” said Chancellor Dr. Jack Hawkins Jr. “This award reflects the outstanding work of many on our staff, but it also reflects our commitment to being Alabama’s international university. Troy University must be international if it’s to realize its full potential.”

 

“This is an extraordinary and deserved honor for our institute at TROY,” said Dr. Iris Xu, the institute’s director. “All of us at Confucius Institute are very proud that our programs in Chinese language and culture have been recognized as truly world class. The Confucius Institute at Troy University reflects the strength of Alabama’s connection to China and gives the state and the region a competitive advantage in doing business with China as it emerges as a leading economic force in the world.”

 

Troy University’s Confucius Institute serves schools, businesses, communities, government, nonprofit organizations and the media throughout the region by offering statewide instruction and lectures on Chinese culture and language , providing Chinese language teacher training, high school student summer camps, consultation for economic development, and promoting outreach programs on Chinese culture and language. It is a cooperative project of the State of Alabama, the Office of Chinese Language Council International, the Chinese Ministry of Education and Chinese universities.

 

The Confucius Institute at Troy University was established in 2007 with support from the Chinese Ministry of Education and was established to serve the entire state of Alabama.

 

Confucius Institute at Troy University director Iris Xu shows the award naming the University’s Institute as one of six Confucius Institutes of the Year in the United States. The award was presented in late December in Beijing by the Chinese government for extraordinary efforts by the Institute and the University in spreading Chinese language, culture, art and history.  TROY’s institute is Alabama’s only such with a statewide mission to provide people knowledge of China that will serve business, educational, cultural and public interests. (TROY photo/Kevin Glackmeyer)

TROY – A visiting scholar is sharing China’s traditional dance culture with students at Troy University. Qian Chen, a teacher of folk dance at Sichuan Normal University in China, was invited to lecture and teach by the Department of Theatre and Dance for four months. “The dance major at Troy University mainly features modern dance and ballet, so I hope that my dances with Chinese characteristics could better facilitate culture exchanges and students’ understanding of China,” Chen said. In China, folk dance incorporates most traditional Chinese dance styles, with more concentration on ethnic styles including Tibetan, Mongolian, Uygur, North Korean, Dai and Li. Chen said she hopes to present most of the traditional forms of dance to students, faculty members and the community at large to promote “a mutual understanding between folk dance in China and modern dance in the United States.” During her time at the University, Chen has presented lectures and taught technique to dance majors, and has performed at various events, including the Troy Rotary Club’s Peace Forum initiative, International Education Week and the International Student Cultural Organization’s Festival.