Fostering Connections: Empowering International Student Volunteers
The Taipei Juvenile Detention House
Bangka (Wanhua District)
Taiwan's growing international community has largely been overlooked in university social responsibility (USR) initiatives. International students face significant challenges when it comes to volunteering, which can be seen as a double barrier compared to their local peers. On one hand, language and cultural hurdles often prevent them from fully engaging with local society. On the other, very few English-taught courses incorporate the concept of USR.
At the same time, local communities and organizations in need of volunteers have limited channels to connect with international students. This has created a significant gap between the supply of international student volunteers and the demand for their services.
This project focuses on NCCU's international student body, aiming to create a comprehensive platform that empowers and trains them as volunteers. The goal is to gradually enhance international students' ability to engage with and impact Taiwanese society. Concurrently, we will help local communities bridge language and cultural gaps with an international perspective, fostering more equitable and sustainable community development.
The main goal of this project is to empower international students to become effective volunteers in their courses, local communities, and university social responsibility (USR) activities. We want to ensure the spirit of USR is not only promoted but also deeply embedded both on and off campus.
We've partnered with seven courses across three key areas: immigration, education and equality, and local revitalization. International students will not only learn foundational knowledge and understand social issues in these fields but will also develop practical skills for social engagement.
We will also create a multilingual, cross-cultural, and mutually supportive environment through events like the annual joint exhibition, art therapy sessions, the "Immigration Garden," and an international student volunteer project competition. Our goal is for students to develop project proposals based on their coursework and social experiences.
These proposals should address specific social issues and unique characteristics of a given community, integrating both international and local perspectives with the potential to offer concrete solutions.
Additionally, we will encourage students to submit proposals that focus on empowering international student volunteers. These proposals should outline plans to help build the capacity of international students both within the university and the broader community.
he success of this program will be measured using three key evaluation methods:
Focus Group Interviews:
We will conduct interviews to understand participants' overall impressions of the program, including their satisfaction levels, the challenges they faced, and their suggestions for improvement.
Proposal Competition Analysis: The proposals submitted for the international student volunteer competition will be analyzed to assess how well students understand social issues and their ability to develop innovative solutions.
External Consultant Evaluation: We will invite an external expert to conduct an independent assessment of the program's operations. This will provide an objective analysis of its overall effectiveness and its educational and social impact, helping to ensure the project's quality and sustainability.
