The MIT Hosts to International Students Program (HISP) is looking for Institute staff members who can help by being a friend to students who are new to the United States as well as MIT.
HISP matches foreign undergraduate and graduate students with American "hosts" who act as friends and mentors, staying in touch with the student by phone or in person. The program is purely social; the International Students Office and other support services handle problems relating to visas, academics and other issues.
All foreign students accepted at MIT are invited to participate in the program, and up to 200 apply for a host each year. Thus, HISP constantly needs a pool of new volunteers, said coordinator Kate Baty. Some hosts are former Peace Corps volunteers who want to maintain connections to the countries in which they worked. It's also a good way for recent retirees to keep up their links to the Institute, she noted.
HISP will hold evening orientation sessions for prospective hosts on Thursday, Sept. 11 from 6-8pm at MIT, Tuesday, Sept. 16 from 7-9 pm in Lexington, and Wednesday, Sept. 24 from 6-8 pm at MIT. Contact Ms. Baty at x3-4862 or <baty@mit.edu> for more information.
A version of this article appeared in MIT Tech Talk on September 10, 1997.
