Mentors hosting events

Thanks to our wonderful mentors for planning several exciting SNG events this semester!

Last week, Lauren hosted a dinner and panel of professional women in the disciplines of marketing, human resources, accounting/finance, and supply chain.

Peyton and Tamara hosted a Multicultural Pig Pickin' for the rural SNG and the Latin American SNG. Peyton said, "Everyone brought dishes representative of their culture. After the meal, we had some great presentations and discussions. One of the students from the LA SNG was from El Salvador and she spoke about the differences between her family's culture and American culture, and some of the unique aspects about her family life. Students were given the opportunity to ask her questions and then we began a discussion about the main differences in business culture that her parents faced when coming to the US. That opened up into a great general discussion about the things students may need to prepare for in dealing with other cultures in business and life here in the US and abroad. Several students shared experiences they had had while traveling outside of the US and even within NC. We had a great some great comments about how people living in different parts of the same county may even bring different cultural views and perspectives to a variety of situations. I led the discussion with the students and provided them with examples from my transition from country life to Raleigh and then from Raleigh to France and the rest of the world. Following our discussion, we ended the evening with a Latin dance lesson where I taught the students some basic bachata moves and provided some background on the dance."

Next month, Diane will host a Customs Exchange event, where students will meet and connect with each other while learning customs and practices from other cultures. Each student will be asked to bring at least 2 facts from other culture(s) and one American professional business tip that they can share with the group. For example, how business cards are exchanged in China, the tradition of gift giving in Japan and why one should wear your name tag on your right collar. These gems of knowledge in a casual, fun setting.

Dennis will hold a "Resume / How To Interview" workshop for the students in the Asian Pacific SNG.  A Human Resources Manager from Eaton Corporation has volunteered to run the workshop for the students.

We are grateful for all of the time and energy the professional mentors are investing in the program and look forward to reading the student reflections on the events.