The University of Hawaii Orientation Center

Abstract

The University of Hawaii has been conducting an orientation program for the Department of State through its contracting agency, the Institute of International Educa tion, for the past seven years. Grantees from Asia have been oriented during a six-week program from 1954 through 1959; from 1960 the program has been reduced to a four-week pro gram for the "middle" group in English proficiency. At the Orientation Center, a well-rounded program of academic, so cial, and cultural activities is planned to make the transition from one culture to another a relatively painless process. The aims of the program are to provide an opportunity for the grantees to become adjusted to the social environment of the United States, to introduce them to American society and cul ture, to prepare them for academic and administrative pro cedures in institutions of higher learning in the United States, and to give those students who need it confidence and facility in the use of the English language.