The University of Iowa Office for Study Abroad honored the winners of the annual photo contest, “Show us the World Through Your Eyes,” during a reception on Friday, Nov. 21, 2008 at the Old Capitol. The ceremony was part of a series of events presented during the ninth UI International Education Week, Nov. 17-21.

Photos were submitted by 84 UI students, from either the perspective of an international student studying in the United States or a U.S. student studying abroad. Award winners were selected by two judges: Mark Tade of Gazette Communications, and Jim Snitzer, UI professor of photography.
The photo contest is sponsored by the UI Office for Study Abroad (OfSA) and the UI International Student & Scholar Services (ISSS).

The following students won prizes in the “Study Abroad Students’ Views of the World” category:

• Chris Busch, a senior Asian language and literature major from Des Moines, won first place for his photo, “Hunan Schoolboy,” taken at a small village in the Hunan Province of China.
• Ivy Donaldson Soberanis, a graduate student in industrial engineering from Jamaica, received second place for her photo “She Sells Sea Salt on the Seashore,” taken in Tamil Nadu, India.
• Michelle Gin, a junior international studies major and global health minor from Eden Prairie, Minn., received third place for her photo “Fairy Tale Reality,” taken in Keukenhof, The Netherlands.
• Anna Kimball, a recent graduate in international studies from Waterloo, was selected for the Popular Choice award for her photo “Defying Gravity,” taken at a Korean folk village outside of Seoul, South Korea.

The following students won prizes in the “International Students’ Views of the U.S.” category:

• Weidong Xu, a graduate student in physiology from Suzhou, China, won first place for a photo, “Gateway to the West,” taken in St. Louis.
• Mitul Sarkar, a postdoctoral scholar in pharmacology from Luknow, Uttar Pradesh, India, received second place for his photo, “A Lipizzaner Stallion Bows,” taken in Cedar Rapids.
• Sigrun Vala Thorgrimsdottir, an undergraduate exchange student, received third place for “A Chili in my Garden,” taken in her yard in Iowa City.
• Emilie Terryn, an undergraduate exchange student from Challes Les Eaux, Savoie of France, was selected for the Popular Choice award for her photo “On a sunny afternoon,” taken at the Pentacrest on the UI campus.

To view the all of the submitted photos, visit the IP Web site at http://international.uiowa.edu/study-abroad/students/returnees/photo-contest/default.asp [1]

For more information about study abroad, call Janis Perkins, director of the UI Office for Study Abroad, at 319-335-0353, e-mail questions to study-abroad@uiowa.edu [2] or visit the Web site at http://international.uiowa.edu/study-abroad/default.asp [3]