Elated to Welcome 34 High School Students from Argentina

Everyone here at ELI is thrilled to have welcomed over 30 new students this week. All of these students come from San Pedro Apóstol Bilingual School of Córdoba in Argentina and speak great English. We love having them here in Wheeling!

Already, these students have completed a NASA simulated mission, taken 4 days of classes with our caring and competent teachers, done some serious shopping at The Highlands, attended activities at the Wheeling Waterfront, and, of course, played LOTS of soccer. In short, they're keeping busy. We'll have photos and updates on these and all of our wonderful summer students soon. Thanks for reading!

Adios/Goodbye/Au revoir

On Friday, we took a group photo on the main steps of Ignatius, ate some chocolate cake, and said goodbye to 3 of our fabulous students from the Basque Country: Adriana, Alejandra, and Natalia. Alejandra and Natalia are off to study in Paris, and Adriana will continue her globe-trotting in Brussels. How interesting and adventurous these students are! We will miss them, but we wish them the best of luck back in Europe. We know our paths will cross again... Until then, here are a few kind words from Adriana, one of our dear Spanish friends:

Adriana

Adios/Goodbye/Au revoir!

A Typical Summer Day at ELI

Good morning! First, you'll grab a coffee or tea in the ELI lounge, where you'll run into your grammar teacher and a friend from Vietnam, before you head over to the language lab to practice your listening and speaking for the TOEFL test. At 10:30, you'll most likely come back to the lounge or, if it's a nice day, the terrace of Ignatius Hall, for an "English Only" break. After practicing your English for a bit (and discovering the deliciousness of the quintessentially American combo of peanut butter and jelly), you'll return to your morning class for another exciting lesson.

At lunch, you'll hang out with some friends on campus and maybe even work on pronouncing "desert" and "dessert." Then, it's time for afternoon class! Today, you and a few classmates will be playing a special classroom version of the TV show Survivor. You're going to have to plan and present your imaginary escape from a remote island, and your only tools will be a hanger, pen, CD, scarf, and calculator. Good luck! After a long but enjoyable day of learning, you'll be ready to go watch some American cable or play soccer in the park!

Welcome to the WJU ELI Blog!

Hello, world (literally)! We've created this blog to keep our alumni, colleagues, friends, fans, and prospective students around the globe up-to-date on the exciting happenings in the international community at Wheeling Jesuit University. We'll try to keep you posted on all the latest news and events in the highly regarded and ever-growing International Student Center, and we'll pay special attention to the dynamic activity of the English Language Institute (ELI). The ELI at the International Student Center is a joyful, supportive, and rigorous school for the study of English as a learning language. Here, students from 5 continents gather to take classes, experience a slice of American life, exchange ideas and customs, and develop lasting relationships with classmates, teachers, and mentors. You'd have trouble finding another place in Wheeling where you can taste Ukrainian pyrohy, get some beautiful henna hand art, watch a Congolese folk fashion show, listen to live Greek music, hear family stories about South Korean holidays, and feel like a true citizen of the world. Yep, ELI is pretty special place (just ask the students in the photo below). We hope you enjoy learning more about it from this blog!

Pictured below is Eileen Viglietta, the Director of the International Student Center. This summer is a busy one for her and her staff, who will be welcoming over 60 new students in the coming weeks! We'll be sure to share our stories with you as the sun continues to shine on our happy corner of Wheeling Jesuit University.

Stay tuned!