ELI NEWS English Language Institute • University of Pittsburgh Parkvale Building, Room M13, 200 Meyran Ave • Pittsburgh PA 15260 Short Classes Today The final day of classes in the ELI is a day for you to receive feedback from your teachers on your work and to review your final exams. On this day, the ELI holds shorter classes, so you will meet at a slightly different time. Your class will meet in your usual room. Check the schedule below for the times of short classes August 4: If your class begins at… then your short class today meets… 10:00 am 10:45 – 11:00 am 11:00 am 11:05 – 11:20 am 12:00 noon 11:25 – 11:40 am 2:00 pm 11:45 – 12:00 pm 3:00 pm 12:05 – 12:20 pm 1:00 – 3:00 pm Closing Ceremony TODAY: ELI Closing Ceremony by Stacy Ranson The ELI would like to invite you to the Closing Ceremony for this semester. The ceremony will be today, August 4, from 1:00-3:00 p.m. in the Lower Lounge of the William Pitt Union. We’ll take pictures, have some refreshments, and hand out attendance certificates at the ceremony. You all have played a big role in making this semester great— we hope you’ll come celebrate with us. Keep In Touch! Some students will be continuing in the ELI next term; others will not. Be sure to “Like” the ELI’s Facebook page (www.facebook.com/PittELI) and join our LinkedIn professional networking community (www.tinyurl.com/ELILinkedIn) to keep in touch! Fall 2016 Registration and Payment Students who pre-registered with Stacy this month were electronically registered for the Fall 2016 Term. There is no need to take a registration form to Thackeray Hall. If want to change your registration—add a class, drop a class, drop all classes—please talk with Stacy. Payment can be made by cash, check, or money order by visiting the Student Payment Center in Room G-7 Thackeray Hall. Credit cards or debit cards are not accepted there. Remember, you may pay by eCheck online for free. This is an online transfer from a U.S. checking account into your Pitt account. To do this, log on to my.pitt.edu and select PittPay and click “Make Payment”. Students may also transfer money online via Flywire. To learn more, visit http://www.flywire.com/pitt Online payments by credit card are available, but a 2.75% fee is assessed. For more information about payment options, please visit the “Making Payments” page on the Student Payment Center’s website: http://www.payments.pitt.edu/makingpa yments.html. You may also ask Brian or Anthony in the ELI Main Office if you have any questions about registration or payment. The deadline to pay tuition or submit a financial guarantee is September 17. After this date you will begin to receive late fees each month. 08-04-16, Volume 50 Issue 13 Brian Deutsch, brd51@pitt.edu Stacy’s Office Hours Term Break I know that some of you may need to see me after the ELI term ends. Remember, if you are planning to leave the U.S. and return to the ELI next semester, I must sign your I-20 before you go. If you need me for this, or for any other reason, please note the following dates and times. I will be available in my office (M22) during the hours below. I will not be available any other time during the break, and I will not write letters of recommendation or review statements of purpose over the break, so please plan carefully. Monday, August 8 9:00 am10:00 am Tuesday, August 9 12:00 pm1:00 pm Wednesday, August 10 12:00 pm1:00 pm ELI Activity: ELI Picnic Refunds The ELI Picnic was a great success! Thank you to everyone who attended and helped. If you are an ELI student, and you attended the picnic, you can get your $5 deposit back. Please see Ece in Room 107 at 12pm today, Thursday, August 4. If you cannot come at that time, please email Ece at ecu4@pitt.edu to arrange a time. Remember: If you plan to leave the country before the fall term, Stacy must sign page 3 of your I-20 before you go. ________________________________________________________________________________________________________________ Visit the ELI NEWS online: http://www.eli.pitt.edu/GENINFO/activities/index.html Lose Something? Check the Lost and Found! By Brian Deutsch Did you forget a book in your classroom? Do you think you left headphones in the computer lab? If you lost something at the ELI, please check the “Lost and Found” in the Main Office. Teachers and students routinely bring us things left behind in the classrooms. And if you found something that belongs to another student, please bring it to the Main Office so we can find its owner. Clean Out Your Locker By Brian Deutsch Please remove everything from your lockers and take off the lock by August 13. After August 13, we will prepare the lockers for the summer term. You will have a chance to register for a locker again in September. Anything left in the lockers after this term will be removed. Finally, be sure to take your lunch boxes or any other items you may have in the ELI kitchen refrigerator or cabinets by August 13 as well. Anything left will be thrown away. ELI Fall Schedules and Book Swap If you are continuing in the ELI for the fall term, you may pick up your new schedule anytime after 12:00 pm on Thursday, September 8. Classes start Friday, September 9. The ELI will also make the Vault available to students on Wednesday, September 8, from 12:002:00 pm for a textbook swap. If you would like to meet up with your classmates to sell or exchange textbooks for the fall term, the ELI will provide updated book lists for fall classes and the space; negotiations are all up to you! First Day of Next Term Please remember that if you are planning to study at the ELI this fall, the first day of official attendance is Friday, September 9, 2016. If you arrive at the ELI after the first day of official attendance, you will be counted absent for each day that you miss. If you cannot arrive by Friday, September 16, you will need to wait until the next semester to attend the ELI. Please see Stacy if you cannot arrive by September 16. Join the ELI Student Council This Fall! By Stacy Ranson The ELI is interested in listening to our students’ ideas about our program. We want to know what you want and need from us, and we want to find ways for our students to contribute to making the ELI the best it can be. For these reasons, the ELI forms a Student Council each term. Student Councils can perform many different functions, and as a member of the Student Council, you will help to decide its focus. Student Councils sometimes give input on program policies and classes, help plan special events or projects, and support or mentor other students. Student Councils give the student body a voice; they speak for all of the students. As a Student Council member, you will have the chance to communicate with ELI administrators about the ELI program and to make a difference in your own language education. The Student Council is a great way to practice your English and to meet new people. We know that ELI students are very busy, so the Council will decide how often to meet and for how long. If you are interested in being a part of the ELI Student Council next term, see Stacy in her office in room M22 or email her at sar72@pitt.edu. We hope that you will be a part of making our students heard at the ELI! Transfer Process Students with F1 visas who want to transfer to a new school must see Stacy to complete the transfer. You must bring a copy of the acceptance letter and the transfer form from the new school. You may transfer at any time during the term, but you must complete this process to remain in legal status. Remember that after you complete your final term of study at the ELI, you have a 60-day grace period. During that time, you may stay in the U.S. without studying, and you may request a transfer at any time during that 60-day period. If you do not request a transfer during the grace period, you will be out of status at the end of the 60 days, and it will be too late to transfer your SEVIS record. Please see Stacy if you have any questions about this process. Want an Extra ELI T-shirt? Extra ELI t-shirts are available for sale in the ELI Main Office for $10! A perfect gift for family and friends. We have a limited number of white and gray shirts in adult and youth sizes. August Events in Pittsburgh Spending August in Pittsburgh with nothing to do? Here are a few ideas: Cinema in the Park – outdoor screenings of popular movies at Pittsburgh parks. Cinderella, Me and Earl and the Dying Girl, Abduction, Star Wars: Episode VII, and more are playing in Schenley Park in August. http://pittsburghpa.gov/citiparks/cinemain-park Historical city bike tours – every Saturday through November: http://www.biketheburgh.com/ Let’s Speak English – free informal conversation groups at Carnegie Library branches throughout the city Visit http://www.clpgh.org, click “Events” and search “Let’s Speak English”. ____________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________ Visit the ELI NEWS online: http://www.eli.pitt.edu/GENINFO/activities/index.html 2