Navigating the World with Evolving Identities
5th Annual Third Culture Kids & Global Nomads Conference
February 25th, 2017
Parking Information:
There is ample, free parking around Clark University. TCK conference attendees may park in the Admissions lot (entrance on Maywood Street) and on the upper level of the commuter section of the parking garage (entrance on Downing Street). Street parking is also available along Main, Woodland, Florence, and Maywood Streets, but please check street signs carefully for parking restrictions as some areas limit street parking to two hours. Winter parking bans may be in place on some streets.
WiFi Information:
To access the WiFi, please join the ClarkGuestWiFi network and sign in using any social media account once it is connected.
10:00 – 10:30am : Conference Registration
Tilton Hall, Higgins University Center, 2nd Floor
10:30 – 11:20am: Session 1
Constructing Transnational Identities: International Mobility and the Imagined Community of Nation-States
Presenter: Melina Toscani
Room: JEFF 133
In accordance with this year’s conference theme “Navigating the World with Evolving Identities”, this lecture describes how various transnational identities (including TCKs, migrant and diaspora communities) emerged from the strict structure of the nation-state system. Based on my final research paper for my Bachelor’s Degree, this presentation discusses how the social construct, or the “imagined community”, of the state are built upon a series of inclusionary and exclusionary forces that affect different types of internationally mobile people (e.g. tourists, immigrants, refugees) in drastically different ways and lead to the emergence of these new transnational identities.
The Beauty in the Madness: The Advantages of a Complex Identity
Presenters: Kaiomi Inniss and Ashleigh Nongogo
Room: JEFF 222
This workshop based presentation will focus on breaking down the various aspects of a TCK’s identity and how they intersect to create a uniquely qualified global citizen. The workshop will also aim to discover where TCK’s fall in the recent wave of racial tensions in US Society today.
This workshop based presentation will have an interactive component, a presentation, and end with an open discussion.
How to Start a TCK Group at Your Institution
Presenters: Santiago Deambrosi
Room: JC 001
This workshop will go over ways to start a TCK group on campus, how to maintain interest in it, and how to expand it. We will go over “case studies” of programs, networking, and methods implemented in the past here at Clark, as well as articles, infographics, and videos on the topic. We will also be having a discussion at the end for individuals to bring up their own ideas, programs, or other. This is intended for individuals who have interest in starting a group in their colleges, high school, or work, as well as for individuals who have already started one and would like to share their insights.
11:30am – 12:20pm: Session 2
Storytelling as a Tool for Creating Home and Identity
Presenter: Sylvie Scholvin
Room: JEFF 218
This presentation examines the complementary relationship between the construction of identity and multicultural travel experiences, and the resulting influence on one’s notion of home. Specific examples will be drawn from the life of a Sicilian man who left his high social standing for a nomadic lifestyle–a remarkable change considering the time frame (1960s-80s) and place (a small town with rigid social norms and fear of rootlessness). He maximized local and expat networks, promoted his experiences as valuable and desirable, and lived and traveled without earning or spending any money to ultimately become a town legend. His transformation of self, the creation of eccentricity, and his interpretation of “home” will be addressed.
Does Bilingualism Make Me a Different Person?
Presenter: Simon Escapa
Room: JEFF 222
Have you ever wondered why the other person, when he/she speaks another language, seems to behave differently? In this session, we will explore what it means to speak different languages. Why does swapping languages changes speech patterns and behavior? Are they specific to the language? We will explore in this session why speaking different languages can make other people believe that you are a different person when you speak another language.
Visualizing Your Social Self: Culturegrams
Presenters: Farah Weannara and Francisco Borges-Rivera
Room: JC 001
We will explore the different aspects of identity using the auto-ethnographic technique, culturegrams! In this session, attendees will fill out their own culturegrams and take part in an interactive, intimate sharing experience. The facilitators will share their own culturegrams and give various prompts to spark discussions about identity and culture. Participants will be encouraged to share their personal experiences in a judgment-free, safe space in hopes of finding the things that link and differentiate us.
12:30 – 2pm
Lunch & Keynote Speaker
Tilton Hall, University Center
Anh Vu Sawyer
Southeast Asian Coalition, Worcester MA
Anh Vu Sawyer declares herself as a “daughter of the world”, because of her connection between the east and west.
As Executive Director for the Southeast Asian Coalition of Central Massachusetts, Ms. Sawyer oversees the agency’s mission to provide critical assistance to SE Asian refugees, immigrants and low-income families so that they can successfully integrate, thrive and become contributors, while helping to preserve the Southeast Asian cultural heritage in Central Massachusetts. Since 2015, her agency has also provided assistance to refugees from Iran, Iraq and Syria. During her directorship, SEAC received 2016 Katherine Forbes Erskine Award, 2016 MCPHS Community Partner Award, 2016 John Auerbach Community Leader Award, 2015 Massachusetts Non-Profit Network Excellence Award, 2015 Massachusetts Immigrant and Refugee Advocacy Outstanding Member and 2014 Eleanor T. Hawley Human Rights Commission Award. Ms. Sawyer is a member of Governor Baker’s Advisory Council For Refugees And Immigrants and Attorney General Maura Heally’s Advisory Council On New Americans.
As a college student, Ms. Sawyer and her family left Saigon, Vietnam, via the American Embassy rooftop in 1975, a few hours after the fall of Saigon. In addition to helping the start-up of several innovative companies (People Express Airlines, Scanning America), while raising her three children, Ms. Sawyer partnered with her husband in their humanitarian work bringing educational and medical projects to Vietnam. Every year, Ms. Sawyer travels to the highlands of Vietnam for economic development and art and cultural preservation projects among Vietnamese ethnic minorities.
Ms. Sawyer is a published author (Song of Saigon, Warner Books, 2003), essayist and award-winning instructor.
2:10pm – 3:00pm: Session 3
Finding the Line Between Discrimination, Humor and Lifestyle
Presenter: Jonathan Tai
Room: JC 001
Sometimes people make jokes. Some about themselves, some about others, some that cover great generalizations, sometimes intended to be offensive but most of the time not. We all know why we find it offensive or why someone else might find it offensive. But what happens afterwards? How do we host productive conversation with the other person, to find the humor and correct misconceptions? Let’s talk about that!
Repatriation While in a Long-Term Relationship
Presenter: Leyla Gentil
Room: JEFF 133
Coming back to your native country after many years overseas can be a very daunting task for most TCKs. This interactive session will go over repatriation and potential difficulties in coming back home, as well experiences in being in a relationship with a non-TCK from your home country. Participants will be invited to share their experiences, frustrations and discoveries in similar situations.
3:10 – 4:00pm: Session 4
Alumni Panel
Panelists: Teja Arboleda ’85, Simon Escapa Otani ’16, Maisha McCormick ‘13, Sakshi Khurana ’16, Michino Hisabayashi ’15
Room: JEFF 218
This is a chance for any participants to ask away questions to some Clark and WPI alumni who share the TCK experience! Topics of this informal discussion may include but are not limited to: how they reflect on their undergraduate experience now, what it was like to get an internship or a job after graduation as a TCK, their life views and future goals, words of wisdom, etc.
Faculty/Staff Panel
Panelists: Colleen Callahan-Panday (OISS, WPI) and Amanda Connolly (ISSO, Clark)
Room: JC 001
International Student Advisors can play a pivotal role in helping Third Culture Kids not just adjust to the college community but also to feel a sense of belonging. The session will address key factors in TCK identity development as well as specific ways that campus professionals can meet the needs of this population.
TCK/GLOBAL NOMADS CONFERENCE SPONSORED BY:
SIT GRADUATE INSTITUTE:
SIT Graduate Institute offers interculturally-focused master’s degrees and certificate programs in international education, peacebuilding and conflict transformation, sustainable development, and TESOL (Teaching English to Speakers of Other Languages). Programs are based on an experiential learning model and a commitment to social justice and intercultural communication. Full-time and low-residency (online) options are available.
CLICK HERE TO SEE SIT’S POSTER AND CONTACT: engaged-inclusive-experiential
TCK/GLOBAL NOMADS CONFERENCE 2018 