Eastern Mennonite University Intercultural Programs

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Eastern Mennonite University Intercultural Programs

Experiential intercultural learning, emphasizing peacebuilding, cultural understanding, and creation Why?

Each academic year, more than 150 EMU students study in diverse cultural contexts in locations from the Shenandoah Valley to other continents across the globe. EMU’s intercultural program is designed to develop cross-cultural understanding and global awareness through an experience of living and learning in a different culture. The focus of the program is to learn from and with others which goes b

eyond and is more interactive than learning about others. Learning in a new cultural setting occurs in a dynamic and cyclical process of orientation - disorientation - reorientation and on again through disorientation - reorientation. The result of this cyclical learning pattern is to see one’s self and the world differently because of the relationships, awareness and understanding which develop through interaction in a different cultural context. The world in which we live, rapidly changing and increasingly smaller, calls for persons who have learned truths and commonalities which lie beyond the boundaries which cultures tend to place on knowing.

05/19/2026

Yesterday we were given the chance to take a cooking class, and let’s just say it didn’t disappoint!

05/08/2026

As everyone gets settled in we enjoyed tapas at a restaurant in plaza de Santa Ana and discussed how everyone was feeling after their first night in the hostel.

4 groups did a local scavenger hunt today and traveled from plaza to plaza eating and sharing food along the way.

05/06/2026

Every journey begins with the first step...Bendiciones y buen viaje to our summer travelers leaving for Spain today!

04/01/2026

For the Record - between 5-7:00p.m. all LovEMU gifts (https://fundraise.givesmart.com/e/4WgYsg?vid=1pm8yx) will support Intercultural Programs. Help ensure all students are able to access EMU’s impactful intercultural experiences. 80 gifts of any size needed to unlock $20,000 from Ed Shenk ’83, in honor of Christine Good Shenk '83. Read all about the new fund started in her memory:
https://emu.edu/now/news/2026/this-is-something-she-wouldve-supported-alumnus-donates-90k-to-new-intercultural-fund-in-memory-of-late-wife/

03/27/2026

Intercultural look back: do you know how many years ago students studied in Guatemala and Nicaragua in the same semester? Bonus points if you can name the leaders of this group!

Join in the LovEMU celebration and support Intercultural Programs on April 1!
What a Wonderful World - 5-7 p.m.
In honor of his late wife Christine Good Shenk ’83, Ed Shenk ’83 has put forward a $20,000 match for Intercultural Programs. Christine’s cross-cultural to the Middle East during her time at EMU was incredibly transformative for her. With 80 gifts from 5-7 p.m., we will unlock $20,000 to ensure all students are able to access EMU’s impactful intercultural experiences.
https://fundraise.givesmart.com/e/4WgYsg?vid=1pj9qq

03/17/2026

I arise today, through
God's strength to pilot me,
God's might to uphold me,
God's wisdom to guide me,
God's eye to look before me,
God's ear to hear me,
God's word to speak for me,
God's hand to guard me,
God's shield to protect me,
God's host to save me
From snares of devils,
From temptation of vices,
From everyone who shall wish me ill,
afar and near.

I summon today
All these powers between me and those evils,
Against every cruel and merciless power
that may oppose my body and soul,
Against incantations of false prophets,
Against black laws of pagandom,
Against false laws of heretics,
Against craft of idolatry,
Against spells of witches and smiths and wizards,
Against every knowledge that corrupts man's body and soul;
Christ to shield me today
Against poison, against burning,
Against drowning, against wounding,
So that there may come to me an abundance of reward.

Christ with me,
Christ before me,
Christ behind me,
Christ in me,
Christ beneath me,
Christ above me,
Christ on my right,
Christ on my left,
Christ when I lie down,
Christ when I sit down,
Christ when I arise,
Christ in the heart of every man who thinks of me,
Christ in the mouth of everyone who speaks of me,
Christ in every eye that sees me,
Christ in every ear that hears me.

-St. Patrick

02/13/2026

Wildlife Conservation lecture Monday, 2/16, 10am - GC 2027 Tanzania SST leader Tim Pinion
The Tanzania SST leaders for spring 2027 are Phil Allman (GC, Marine Biology) and Tim Pinion. Tim will present Wildlife Conservation in Action: Lessons from U.S. National Parks and Wildlife Refuges. Don't miss your chance to hear from an expert in this field.
Contact [email protected] for the Zoom link to the lecture, or to join the Tanzania SST group, SP '27.
Tim's passion for learning from new places started early in his career while living and working in the Caribbean and Central America. Back in the U.S., Tim worked for the U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service on Everglades restoration before spending over a decade with the National Park Service as a wildlife biologist and endangered species coordinator in the Southeast. Later, at Mammoth Cave National Park, he guided an interdisciplinary team in natural and cultural resource stewardship. Most recently, he served with the National Wildlife Refuge System, helping shape system-wide policy for over 570 refuges.

02/02/2026

ICYMI: CBS Mornings featured Gloria Steinem and Leymah Gbowee, authors of Rise, Girl, Rise: Our Sister-Friend Journey. Together for All (Orchard Books, $19.99, 9781338888942). Gbowee is a 2011 Nobel Peace Laureate and EMU alumna.
The book release is Feb. 3.

https://www.instagram.com/p/DUHkXiMkv2p/

01/07/2026

E is for Experiential learning
Speaking of transformative programs and hands-on experience, EMU’s unique experiential intercultural learning opportunities prioritize immersion and mutual engagement with people from different cultural backgrounds. Graduates call their intercultural experiences “life-changing,” giving them the foundation they need as lifelong learners in a global context.

We made the ABC's list of EMU favorite things! https://emu.edu/now/news/2025/the-abcs-of-emu/

11/21/2025

Need a new view? Are you grappling with life purpose or career direction? EMU India - Fall 2026 could be just the thing to inspire or jumpstart your learning!

Learn about world religions, colonial and post-colonial history, and sociology of oppression (gender, caste, race, ethnicity, class and religion) - it all connects with Business, Environmental Sustainability, Education, PolySci, Sociology, Technology and Health Care practices.

The India IC application will be open until Dec. 5. Join us to explore and learn from Delhi, Mumbai, to the northern highlands! emu.edu/intercultural/application-process/

Address

1200 Park Road
Harrisonburg, VA
22802

Telephone

+15404324146

Website

http://www.emu.edu/intercultural/

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