ISS Listserv
APR 11, 2008
ISS LISTSERV MENU: SUAB Movie / Indian Cultural Dinner / OPT update / LAST TAX workshop / Nepalese-Bangladeshi New Year / Withdraw Deadlines / H1B Quota met / 24 season drum troupe news / NDSU student survey
____________________________________________________________________
SUAB MOVIE:
This week Enchanted is showing for the SUAB Outside Movie on the Library Lawn. The movie begins at 8:30 pm on Friday, April 11th. Admission is FREE!
Check out the SUAB website for more info! http://union.okstate.edu/suab/movies.htm
____________________________________________________________________
INDIAN CULTURAL DINNER
Indian Student Association presents Indian Cultural Dinner Thursday, April 10 at 5:30 pm at the Starlight Terrace in the Student Union. The menu will include:
- Samosa
- Cubed lamb with onions & spices
- ChickenTikka Masala
- Chana Masaledar
- Basmati rice with spices
- Mutter Paneer
- Green beans with ginger
- Sweet tomato chutney
- Spinach Raita
- Naan (Indian bread)
- Carrot Halva (dessert)
The cost is only $4.50. Cash, meal plan, and bursar are accepted.
_________________________________________________________________
OPTIONAL PRACTICAL TRAINING (OPT) UPDATE!!!
On April 3rd, 2008, The Department of Homeland Security announced the publication of an Interim Final Rule that makes significant changes to Post-Completion Optional Practical Training for international students. The summary of the announcement are:
Allow F-1 international students who earn degrees in certain Science, Technology, Engineering, and Math fields to apply for an additional 17 months of Optional Practical Training (OPT), giving them a total of 29 months.
Allow students who are engaged in OPT and who have properly filed and been selected for an H1-B petition with an October 1st start date to remain in U.S. and continue working during the "cap gap" (the period between the end of OPT and the beginning of the fiscal year - October 1, 2008).
International Students and Scholars (ISS) is going to hold two informational sessions to address these changes in the OPT process. The sessions will be held on:
Wednesday April 16th 12:30pm - 1:30pm Location: Willard Hall 010
Thursday April 17th 6:30pm - 7:30pm Location: Willard Hall 010
Please attend if you want to hear more details on OPT. Additional details will be listed on the ISS web-site next week. ____________________________________________________________________
TAX HELP FOR INTERNATIONALS 2008 WORKSHOPS TO SHOW YOU HOW TO USE SPECIAL SOFTWARE AND HOW TO COMPLETE OKLAHOMA TAX FORMS
Bring any tax forms you have such as W-2 or 1042-S or 1099. You must know your passport number. Please also bring a hard copy of your last year’s tax return.
APR. 12 SAT. CLB COMPUTER LAB 1:00 PM
SPONSORED BY VITA FOR INTERNATIONALS
____________________________________________________________________
NEPALESE & BANGLADESHI NEW YEAR CELEBRATION
SGA, in addition to ISS and Campus Life, is sponsoring the Nepalese and Bangladeshi New Years celebration. Free dinner, dance and music, attractive door prizes! The celebration begins April 13th at 5:00 pm in the Student Union Little Theater, and continues in the Centennial Lounge (301 SU) for dinner.
_____________________________________________________________________
Spring 2008 Drop and Withdraw Deadlines:
Friday, April 18 (end of week 14) Last day to withdraw from all courses with assigned grades of “W” or “F.” No tuition refund.
Documentation required: (1) A completed withdrawal form and (2) A withdrawal supplement form completed by the College Academic Services Director and signed by each instructor with grades of “W” or “F” assigned for each course.
Short courses follow different drop deadlines.
_____________________________________________________________________
ENOUGH PETITIONS RECEIVED TO EXHAUST H-1B CAP: LOTTERIES ARE THE NEXT STEP
The U. S. Citizenship and Immigration Services (USCIS) issued a notice indicating that it has already received enough H-1B petitions to exhaust both the 65,000 H-1B quota and the 20,000 exemption from the quota for graduates of U.S. universities with a master’s degree or higher. In other words, both the “bachelor’s degree cap” and the “master’s degree cap” have been exhausted.
USCIS will now begin the lottery process, first selecting 20,000 petitions for the “master’s cap.” Any petitions not selected for the “master’s cap” lottery will be considered for the “bachelor’s cap” lottery. Petitions not selected for processing will be returned (with filing fees).
Fee receipts for a given petition will indicate that it has been selected in the lottery, and likely will be approved. We will continue to update you about this year’s H-1B petition selection process.
_____________________________________________________________________
O.S.U Malaysian 24 Seasons Drum Troupe (M24D) are now officially an organization in OSU.
Library Lawn Show Off and New Membership Application
Date: April 11th, Friday
Show off Time: 12.25pm (sharp) - between class time
Location: Student Union South Garden
Purpose: To show off our new drums and get new members!!!
A booth will be set up near the Chi-O-clock to hand out the membership form from 12.30 pm till 2pm. They can contact Ben loh to get the application form at ben.loh@okstate.edu
If anyone misses the show at 12.25pm, we will be performing again at the Colvin outdoor track field at 9pm (Friday, April 11th) for the Relay for Life organized by the American Cancer Society.
For more information Contact: Ben.loh@okstate.edu or the Malaysian 24 Seasons Drum Troupe facebook's group at http://www.facebook.com/group.php?gid=6504563267
_____________________________________________________________________
NDSU Student needs help with International Student Survey
My name is Agnes N. Lyonga, a graduate student in the School of Education at North Dakota State University. I am conducting a research project to determine food safety issues, concerns, perceptions, and the cultural influences on food safety behaviors of international college students.
It should take about 10 to 15 minutes to complete the questionnaire about food safety behaviors and culture. By completing this survey, you will be eligible for a random drawing to win a $ 50 gift card from a major retailer (Target, Wal-Mart) of your choice.
You are invited to participate in this research project. Your participation is entirely your choice, and you may change your mind or quit participating at any time, with no penalty to you. However, your assistance with filling out this survey would be of great importance to this study. Your opinions are very important and will help in making this research project a success.
If you decide to participate, please click on the link to advance to the survey questions:
http://www.ndsu.nodak.edu/gdc/Surveys/gdc1638/welcome.htm
You must be 18 years of age or older to participate. Your identity will not be revealed in the research results or at any time throughout the research. Your information will be combined with information from other students taking part in the study to be used in summary form and to make group comparisons. You will not be identified in the written materials.
If you have any questions or comments, please call or email us as soon as possible. You can reach me at phone number 701-231-7085, or email:
Agnes.Ngalelyonga@ndsu.edu or my advisor, Dr Eighmy at 701-231- 5775
(email: Myron.Eighmy@ndsu.edu) and Dr Garden-Robinson at 701-231-7187
(email: Julie.Garden-Robinson@ndsu.edu).
If you have questions about the rights of human participants in research, or to report a problem, contact the NDSU IRB Office, 701-231-8908, or ndsu.irb@ndsu.edu. If you wish to receive a copy of the summarized results, contact Dr Eighmy and Dr Garden-Robinson, at North Dakota State University, Fargo, ND 58105.
Thank you for your participation in this research,
Agnes N. Lyonga, Researcher.