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Wednesday, November 27, 2013

Thanksgiving

Welcome to Eurogator's Thanksgiving edition!  We have much to be thankful for today - adequate lighting (thank you Vincent McLeod), no lines at Starbucks, grant applications filed on time, funny news stories (see for instance Russia's attempt to get its citizens in shape and in the mood for the Olympics by offering free subway rides for a few squats http://www.forbes.com/sites/andrewbender/2013/11/14/moscow-subway-station-lets-passengers-pay-fare-in-squats/), etc.  But alas, such is the deserted university campus on a day before a holiday break.  We truly do have much to be thankful for though and we hope that everyone has a safe and enjoyable break.  With any luck, most of you will be able to spend some time at home with friends and family and not have to worry too greatly about upcoming exams, papers, and other assorted academic assignments.

One of the things that I am most grateful for at this moment is Santa Fe College's Global Society.  As part of our Getting to Know Europe grant, the Global Society club will be working with local area high school students on a model EU competition.  Rachel Rothstein and I had the absolute pleasure of meeting with the club's Vice President and President, Catherine Barrios and Roberto Garcia respectively, a couple of weeks ago and we were very impressed with their proposal.  Talk about two students with bright futures ahead of them!  Here's what Catherine had to say about their group:

"Global Society was founded in 2000 at Santa Fe College for the purpose of providing students with a deep interest in international affairs.  It is a group to socialize, and eventually, participate in Model United Nations conferences.  Since its inception, Global Society has managed to win awards and recognition at these conferences nationwide.  We compete against Ivy League and major universities by portraying our chosen country as accurately and diplomatically as possible.  This allows an opportunity for students with an interest in engaging as a UN delegate and in attempting to resolve major world issues to learn more.  As for our campus events, Global Society hosts lectures, fundraisers, dignitaries, and other social events throughout the semester.  Thus, we are active throughout the year by preparing for these events and partaking in them.  Global Society events consistently deliver a global message to the campus and community participants in an attempt to spread multicultural awareness.  

We are looking forward to working with UF's Center for European Studies on this special project.  It is our hope that we can increase awareness of how the European states collaborate, the importance of the European Union, and introduce current issues affecting this region of the world to the high school students and our community as a whole." 

Until next time, have a happy Thanksgiving and enjoy the long weekend!

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