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Rollins knows no borders

On Feb. 9, Rollins will host the “13th Annual Summit on Transforming Learning: Crossing Borders.” This summit, held across our campus, will empower students and provide powerful opportunities to influence policies on immigration and global mobility.

The summit will concentrate on international issues and cooperation between nations. Every year the summit brings together Rollins students, staff, faculty, and other members of the Central Florida community to debate the pressing issues in the United States and around the world. Students can engage with the summit in a variety of ways, which include attending film screenings, listening to presentations, and interacting with panels.

The founder of the summit, Lord Family Assistant Vice President for Student Affairs Micki Meyer, states that “this year’s sessions at the summit are intended to help advance an understanding of ‘crossing borders’ through lived experiences, dialogue, relevant data, research, and ideas.” She goes on to explain that this would be accomplished through a series of “workshops, panels, and programs.”

A variety of worldwide problems will be tackled at the summit, including the status of Deferred Action for Childhood Arrivals, the refugee crises, immigration, international cooperation, international activism, and transnational adoption. The various summit events can help students gain an awareness of the world’s problems and also help prepare them for becoming useful global citizens.

The summit will begin with a morning symposium, featuring a screening of the film Indivisible: Love Knows No Borders. The film is a documentary that revolves around three Dreamers who want to leave the United States to visit their families and be able to legally return. After the screening, a panel—which will include University of Central Florida student Evelyn Rivera, one of the Dreamers featured in the film—will answer any questions that the audience have about the film and about deferred action in general.

The morning symposium will be followed by statements and reflections from students, faculty, members of the HOPE Community Center, and from Rollins President Grant Cornwell.

The afternoon is comprised of three breakout sessions, with the participants in each session holding in-depth discussions on topics relating to the core themes of the summit. Many of these sessions will be hosted by students themselves.

“I believe that some of the most powerful teachers at Rollins are our students,” averred Meyer. “We have a number of students presenting this year… this includes international students, undocumented students, and those who have engaged in global service learning.”

The summit will end, fittingly, with a United States citizenship ceremony, which will emphasize the importance of becoming engaged citizens of not just this country, but of the world.

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