The ELI Weekly
Scholarship Nominees
It is very difficult to be nominated for a scholarship. This means the nominees all worked extra hard this semester and achieved the following criteria:
- Full-time C semester student
- Academic Excellence: 4.0 GPA and high level of proficiency in at least three of the four skill areas
- Outstanding Progress: outstanding progress in language skills
- Excellent Attendance: no more than ten hours absences
- Speak English: make every effort to speak English at all times
- Successful Work Strategies: demonstrate personal initiative in and out of the classroom
Congratulations nominees! Good luck to all of you!
Out and About: The Warmth of the Classroom
by Manal Almalki, RW20
There is an old proverb that says, “Places never forget their visitors.” Everyone has a special place, and that place is so cozy for them. My ELI classroom at UF is one of those places. It has modern furniture, comfortable chairs, and heart-shaped tables. It is as if the room is telling students, “I love you.” Whenever I enter my classroom, I feel so excited, and it is a place where students like to spend time. The classroom is small, but it is full of achievements. Students sometimes use the space to struggle with exercises or solve problems together in groups. My classroom is my favorite place at UF. I can study, meet international students, work alongside great teachers, and have fun too.
CIP Activities
Sign up for all activities here: https://www.signupgenius.com/go/20F0C4BA9A823A02-student17
Monday November 8th – Cabana Hangout – 6:00 – 8:30pm
Come swim in the pool, play games, and socialize with LAs and friends at the Cabana Beach Apartment pool area! Bring your bathing suit and towel. If you don’t want to swim, just come and socialize! Take bus 21 to Cabana Beach Apartments.
- You must sign up to attend this activity.
Tuesday November 9th – Soccer – 6:30 – 9:00pm
Come play Soccer on campus at Flavet Field! No experience necessary!
- You must sign up to attend this activity.
Wednesday November 10th – Volleyball – 6:30 – 9:00pm
Come play volleyball and hang out at Lexington Crossing Apartments Phase 2! No experience necessary! Take bus 34 or 35.
- You must sign up to attend this activity.
Thursday November 11th—No Activity for Veterans Day Holiday
Friday November 12th – Lunch at the Plaza – 12:15 – 2:45pm
Because there is no Gator Nights this Friday, come have lunch together with students and LAs at the Plaza instead. Get Krishna Lunch or takeout from University Ave and meet us at the Plaza of the Americas in front of Library West during your class break! You can also bring a lunch from home.
- You must sign up to attend this activity.
Weekend Activity
Saturday November 13th—Gator Football Game—11:00am-3:00pm
Come see the Gators play football! Meet at the Reitz Union Subway, and then walk to the Stadium together! You must have already purchased a ticket from Tate in the CIP office. Make sure to bring your e-ticket and have a charged phone to scan and enter.
If you would like to put your name on the waiting list or learn how to purchase a ticket through the Gator Ticket Office, see Tate in Matherly 211.
Conversation Partners (CPs)
Want to meet with an English speaker once a week and make a new friend?!
Sign up here! https://forms.gle/ctQAzW8EjXgvhYgHA.
Returning students who want a CP should still fill out this form, even if you had a CP last semester!
This is optional, but if you sign up, you agree to meet your partner once a week for one hour to speak English and respond to them when they contact you to make plans to arrange a meeting.
Try meeting them on campus or a coffee shop. Try chatting about your family or home country to start practicing English with your new friend! CPs are excited to meet you! Wait two weeks after signing up to be paired. Email conversationpartners@eli.ufl.edu if your partner does not respond after one week.
International Education Week #IEW2021
International Education Week is November 15 – 19, 2021. UF is hosting many events, like the parade of flags! You may sign up to carry one or multiple flags at Reitz Union North Lawn on Wednesday, November 17, between 11am-1pm: https://internationalcenter.ufl.edu/flags-display-expression-board. The ELI family is welcome to attend any of the UF events on campus.
The ELI also has activities to celebrate International Education Week. Join in the Spirit Week activities and show us your country’s language, colors, and clothing on certain days!
Also, tell us your international stories and we will share them in the Weekly and on social media! Tell us stories about study abroad, an international friend, or a language or culture study. Send video, audio, or brief written stories with photos to show how being involved in international education impacts your life. Please make sure audio and videos are brief and clear. The deadline is November 12th. Send your international stories to Maya (mshastri@ufl.edu).
Notes from the Office
Veterans Day Holiday: Thursday, November 11 is Veterans Day. There will be no ELI classes, and the ELI main office will be closed.
Out of the office: Victoria will be out of the office on November 5th. Daryl will be out of the office from November 8th-10th. Plan around these dates if you need to talk to them.
Thanksgiving Holiday: Thursday, November 25th is Thanksgiving. There will be no ELI classes, and the ELI main office will be closed on Wednesday, Thursday, and Friday (Nov. 24-26). Please remember that classes will meet as normal on Monday and Tuesday (Nov. 22nd and 23rd).
Diversity, Equity, and Inclusion Group: The ELI wants students to feel welcome. In order to do this, we need your perspective. Therefore, you are invited to a Student Focus Group meeting. At the meeting, you can give your opinions about different ELI policies and activities so that we can improve in the future. We will have two meetings, and you should attend the meeting that best fits your schedule. The first meeting will be Tuesday, November 16th, at 5:00pm, and the second one will be Friday, November 19th, at 2:00pm. Both meetings are in Matherly Hall, rooms to be announced. If you have questions, please email Thomas Dolce (tomdolce@ufl.edu).
Student Voices: We love to see our students writing, but more than that, we like to see the writing in print. Every semester, we take your writing and publish it in Student Voices. Past submissions have included paragraphs, essays, creative stories, recipes, letters, obituaries, poetry, creative stories, class projects, and other interesting works on a variety of topics. I encourage you to submit anything of your work that you wish to see published. It can be from any class or something you have written on your own but ask your teachers for help editing! You can email it to Olga (omoody@ufl.edu) or to your teacher. Please include your name and class on your submission. The deadline for submissions is Friday, November 19th.
Check Your I-20: If your I-20 is expiring soon, make an appointment with Daryl in MAT 223 to renew your I-20 before it expires.
Weekday Activity Photo
Birthdays!
Students:
- 11/8 Taisa Aozani Prochnow Pipkin
- 11/10 Yousef Alenezi
- 11/11 Joshua Arroyo Arcos
- 11/12 Jaewon Kang
- 11/14 Brandon Diaz-Moret
Staff: 11/9 Lia Brenneman
Manners & Culture
I visited a library called the Alachua County Library last weekend. What are the differences between Gainesville ‘City’ and Alachua ‘County’?
A: This is a great question because the difference can be confusing. A county in the U.S. is a political region of a state. Usually, a city is smaller than a county. For example, Gainesville, Archer, High Springs, and Alachua are all cities or towns within Alachua County. However, some cities, like Jacksonville, FL, are the same size as their county, and New York City is so big that it covers 5 counties. Cities and counties also provide different public services. Cities are often responsible for court systems, law enforcement, and health services, while counties provide similar services on a large scale and also manage resources like libraries and public schools.
Grammar
Q: When do I use “so do I” and “so am I”?
A: They both mean that you agree with the person talking but which one you use depends on the verb in the original sentence. Use “so am I” for the be verb. Use “so do I” for all other verbs. Here is an example:
Saud: I am excited about final exams.
Riphine: So am I.
Ricardo: I want to go to Starbucks after class today.
Yao: So do I.