Cross-Cultural Programming allows students in various disciplines to explore cultures that reside in countries outside of the United States. After learning about the culture through direct collaboration with students from a partnered university, students create a final presentation that informs their classmates, their cross-cultural partners, and their surrounding communities on what they’ve learned. Participation in the organization of Cross-Cultural Experiences through a UMF course or the participation of the event can earn Global Competency Micro-Credentials.
Fall 2024 and Spring 2025
Stay tuned!
Spring 2024
France Global Seminar
UMF students travelled to France to collaborate with UMF’s sister university and collaborated with students virtually throughout the semester. Learn more about what they did on our Global Seminars page.
Spring 2023
Senegalese Easter Celebration – April 2023
During this anthropology course, students analyzed and global and environmental issues that impacted both Maine and Senegal and offered potential solutions. Towards the end of the semester, UMF students celebrated Easter with Senegalese foods, activities, and beverages.
Fall 2022
Italian Festival – November 2022
Students taking this Honors level course jointly created a musical piece involving the theme of water by including it in lyrics and imagery. For their Co-Curricular event, the students invited the UMF community to a screening of “Invisible Cities: An Opera Set in Los Angeles Union Station.”
Indigenous Peoples Week Events – October 2022
After completing a project where students explored issues in-depth relating to a chosen border, students invited the UMF community to celebrate Indigenous Peoples Day with indigenous foods, live Passamaquoddi music, and learn more about the customs these populations celebrate and experience.
Celebration of Japanese Culture – October 2022
In this course, students analyzed and compared the use of natural resources in their communities. During the semester, they invited students to partake in activities in food originating from Japan, and watch a screening of “Howl’s Moving Castle”, an anime film by Studio Ghibli.
Spring 2022
Cyprus Cultural Celebration – April 2022, 2023
Partnered with University of Nicosia in Cyprus
Students in EDU 420 virtually collaborated with students from the University of Nicosia in Cyprus to learn about their culture, history, and how it affects their life today. At the end of the semester, the participating UMF students organized an event open to the UMF community to celebrate Cyprus’s culture. This outdoor celebration included authentic food, music, and more.
EDU 420: Cyprus Cultural Celebration - April 2022
Fall 2021
Flamenco Workshop and Spanish Tapas – December 2021
Partnered with Universidad de Alicante (Spain)
UMF students in SPA 201H collaborated virtually with students from Spain to learn about their country’s history, culture, and customs so they could present it to the UMF community. As their final presentation, UMF students organized an evening of traditional Spanish dance and appetizers. This event brought traditional Spanish traditions to UMF for students to enjoy for free.
SPA 201H: Flamenco & Spanish Tapas - Dec. 2021
Fawkes Day Bonfire – November 2021
Partnered with Anglia Ruskin University (United Kingdom)
Students in REH 277: Community Organizing 101 organized a community celebration of Fawkes Day, a British holiday commemorating the successful rebellion led by Guy Fawkes against the Gunpowder Plot on November 5, 1605. The Gunpowder Plot was an attempt to overthrow parliamentary government by using violence and killing politicians. UMF students celebrated with a bonfire and ate candy apples (a British tradition) and s’mores to add an American spin. Through the planning of the Fawkes Day bonfire celebration, UMF students learned about British history and culture from students in the U.K. and how organized community events for Fawkes Day affect their culture and community as a whole. Learning this from their U.K. student partnerships taught UMF students to appreciate the power of community-organized events to bring about meaningful change.
Forest Bathing – October 2021
Partnered with the University of the Ryukyus (Japan)
Students in EPP/GEO 238S: Forest Management: Science, Institutions, and Communities led an event in Farmington’s Flint Woods to experience the Japanese practice of forest bathing, where participants take all of their senses through the forest atmosphere as they immerse themselves in the scenery. UMF students virtually collaborated with students from Japan to learn about their culture, way of life, and the impact of forest bathing on their mental and physical health. Through this process, UMF students learned how to conduct a forest bathing session so they can lead others through a successful experience.
For more information about Global Classrooms, contact:
Office of Experiential & Global Education
University of Maine at Farmington
106 Fusion Space
117 South Street
Farmington, Maine 04938
UMFGlobalEd@maine.edu