UCC Regina Assisting With the 2010 Ivano-Frankivsk Program at the U of R

July 7, 2010 – Host Families are required for 5 Ukrainian Exchange Students from Ivano-Frankivsk University, Ukraine. The students will be in Regina for about 3 months commencing September 3rd to December 1st.

The students will be placed with Sask Power, Petroleum Technology Research Centre, MERA Group and Prairie Adaptive Research Collaborative. Students are able to speak English as well as Ukrainian. They receive a monthly expense allowance from the University and a Bus Pass. Each Host Family will receive approximately $600 cash plus a charity (tax) receipt in the amount of approximately $1200 for the stay period. In addition, each Host Family will have a cultural experience that they will value far beyond the remuneration.

A description of the program is included below.

Those interested, or if you know someone that may be interested, please contact Ed Lysyk (789-6622), Tony Harras (586-6805) or Ken Mazur (789-4062).

The University of Regina is once again sponsoring the Canada-Ukraine Students Scientific Internship Program. To sustain the program, the U of R has approached the Ukrainian-Canadian community for financial support as well as help with billeting and the development of a social/cultural program. This year there will be five students from the Ivano-Frankivsk State University of Oil and Gas arriving in Regina in September. The UCC-Regina Branch is coordinating our community’s efforts with regards to this program.

These students are highly qualified and will be in Regina for approximately three months. This year, the students will be arriving September 3rd and will stay until December 1st.

The merits of the program for the community are positive and worthy of support. Specifically, the involvement of outstanding students from Ukraine in our community will help stimulate interest in Ukrainian matters amongst our youth in particular and the students will, to a certain degree, be role models for them.

UCC-Regina established a committee to work with the U of R on ‘inter-relationship with the Ukrainian Canadian community’ and finding families to billet/host the students. The members of the committee are Ken Mazur (789-4062), Ed Lysyk (789-6622) and Tony Harras (586-6805) who would be happy to answer any questions.

Please note that families could still host a student even if they might be away for a week or two as long as the Committee can find another family to take the student in while they are away. The payments and receipts would obviously have to be split between the two families in proportion to the length of ‘hosting’ done by each family.

Hosting families will be required to:

• ensure that the student has a means to travelling to and from his/her place of employment. (The University supplies each student with a bus pass.) This could mean that the hosts may just need to familiarize him/her with the bus routes. This year two students will work at SaskPower and three at the U of R,
• provide him/her with accommodations and board,
• work with UCC-Regina on a ‘public participation’ program where the students will have an opportunity to participate in various community events during their stay in Regina,
• assist them with acquiring clothing suitable for Regina winters (the University will provide them with a spending allowance),
• ensuring that they have an opportunity to socialize with their colleagues from Ukraine and with the host,
• ensure that they receive medical attention should the occasion arise (they will have health insurance), and
• if possible, provide the students with access to computers and the Internet.