March Event Details

We have three big events in March. The first is our International Family Fun Night, March 11. This event is designed to provide a fun evening for our international student who have a spouse and/or children with them here at MTSU. The event will start at 6pm in the Tom Jackson Building. We plan to end the evening at 8pm. The evening will feature light snacks, games designed for children of all ages, and prizes with some of the games. International students without families here at MTSU are also encouraged to get involved. We hope you'll be interested in helping us plan and execute the evening, as well as being there to play with, and encourage, the children. Sometimes, we forget the big changes in the lives of these children. They have come to another country, yet they may not speak the new language, and may have trouble making friends. Our goal is that this evening will help them to enjoy their time here a little better, and feel more a part of our community.

The next event on the calendar will be our Evening at Opry Mills Mall, March 18.. Our office will provide transportation to the Opry Mills Mall in Nashville. We will leave campus at 3pm and travel to the mall. Once there, you will have many popular, yet unique, stores to shop. Many of these stores are from among the more "upscale" stores in America, such as American Eagle, Saks, and Tommy Hilfiger, some of which are not available in Murfreesboro. There is also a large food court for your dinner meal, and a large movie theater complex. You'll be on your own to do what you want, you'll just need to rejoin us after the mall closes so we can leave and return to campus. We will plan to leave the mall at 9:30pm. So, if you want to take in a move, you'll need to select one that ends before that. We're taking vans, so you should have plenty of room to bring back all your goodies from the trip. If you'd like to join, you'll need to email the ISSS office to reserve your spot. Space will be limited.

Our final big event for the month will be the International Day with the MTSU Men's Tennis team, Saturday, March 19. They will battle College of Charleston at 2pm. They want us to begin the match with a Parade of Flags, and will offer free pizza and tips to improve your tennis game afterwards. If you can help out with the Parade of Flags by carrying the flag of your homeland, please email the ISSS office and let us know in advance. We have the flags, we just need you to carry it. Show your pride!

As always, if you have any questions about any of these events, don't hesitate to email the ISSS office. We're always glad to answer your questions!

March Events

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Events of Interest, Feb. 23-28

In an effort to grow the value of this site, I'll start posting weekly events.

Tuesday, 2/23
- Baseball vs Lipscomb, 3pm, Reese Field
- Conversation Partners Meal, 6pm, PSF House

Thursday, 2/25
- Men's Basketball vs Western Kentucky, 6pm, Murphy Center

Saturday, 2/27
- Men's Tennis vs Columbia and TSU, 1pm and 6pm (respectively), Adams Tennis Complex at Old Fort Park
- Men's Basketball vs Marshall, 5pm, Murphy Center

Volunteer Opportunity

MTSU's international population has a growing number of students and scholars who are bringing their children with them when they come to our campus. With this growth, we are looking to begin programming designed specifically for these families. In the past, they are welcome to bring them to most of our activities, but if you remember being a child, you will remember not wanting to spend all of your time around "grown-ups." Children have different needs for entertainment, and children who have moved to a completely different culture are not different. Even the parents of these children have needs that are different from most traditional students.

Therefore, we are looking for volunteers. If you love children, and would love to help out your fellow international students with events designed specifically for families and children, please contact the ISSS office. We will get together with those who are willing to volunteer and put together various activities with these families in mind. The events can be educational, games, or a combination of both. The sky is the limit, as they say. Then, once we have them planned, you'll be able to help put them together so they have a great time.

This is just another way for you to get involved in the growing international community here at MTSU!

Valentine's Dance, Feb. 12, 2016, Follow-up

Success! That's what everyone who attended thought. There was a good crowd who came out to dance, including coming to the lesson portion. Those who came to the lessons learned to waltz, rumba, swing, and salsa. After the lessons, we danced for the next two hours. Everyone had a great time, and even talked about wanting to do it again! Dancing is a great way to exercise and meet people. We hope you'll join us the next time we do this!

Be sure to check out more photos from the night. You can do that by following the link to our Google photos page from the ISSS page on the MTSU site.

Valentine's Dance, Feb. 12, 2016

What better way to spend Valentine's Weekend than dancing!? This evening, from 8 to 10pm, we will do just that, in the Tom Jackson Building on campus. Come out and enjoy a fun evening, and dance the night away!

Don't know how to dance? Don't worry, we've got you covered. From 7 to 8pm, we'll offer free dance lessons, teaching four basic dances that will be useful all evening; waltz, rumba, basic swing, and salsa. Don't worry, these dances are fun and easy to learn.

Don't care to dance "ballroom" style? Don't worry, you are free to dance any way you like. We want you there to enjoy the evening any way you like.

Don't have a date? No problem. Many will be there just like you. This isn't about dates, anyway. It's about having fun. And, since everyone is there to "dance the night away," ask away. You'll have lots of dance partners.

So, we hope you'll join us for the evening. Go to dinner, come take dance lessons, then dance, dance, dance! And look for photos on Monday!

Game Board Night, Feb. 5, 2016

Snacks!!!

Dutch Blitz

 We had a great time last Friday at our First Friday event. If you recall, we planned on playing board games throughout the evening and munching on snacks. Well, Alan Parker with the Baptist Collegiate Ministry came and brought quite the feast; pizza and wings! He also brought quite a few good, popular games. Throughout the evening, we played Battleship, Skip-Bo, Jenga, Dutch Blitz, and Apples to Apples. Everyone had a great evening in the Tom Jackson Building. If you made it out, thanks again for making the evening a very fun event. If you didn't, know that we missed you and hope you will join us at our next event, also in the Tom Jackson Building, our Valentine's Dance, this Friday, February 12, from 7 to 10pm.