The Delta Upsilon chapter of Dobro Slovo National Slavic Honor Society will welcome Scotty Colson, Honorary Consul of Ukraine in Alabama, along with six Ukrainian Open World Delegates to Samfrod University November 20 at 5 p.m. in Reid Commons as part of a ten-day professional exchange during International Education Week.

The Open World program focuses both on assisting the U.S. Congress in its oversight responsibilities and on conducting exchanges that establish lasting professional relationships between the up-and-coming leaders of Open World countries and Americans dedicated to showcasing U.S. values and democratic institutions.

The theme of this year’s exchange is "media literacy” and the delegation coming to Samford includes journalists as well civic and NGO leaders:

Iryna Yosyfivna Baran, Regional Coordinator for IREX in Lutsk, Ukraine

Iryna Serhiivna Mokrytska, Communications Manager of the NGO “Center UA”

Kateryna Vylivna Novosad, Chief, Department of Media Work and Public Relations, Vinnytsia City Council

Mariia Pavlivna Ulianovska, Correspondent, "The Babel" News and Media Website

Tetiana Antatoliivna Skaprovska, Deputy Head of the NGO, "New Active Ukrainians"
Khrystyna Krukivska, Junior Associate, Precedent Academics

Samford Critical Languages Program alumnus Matt Tucker, a program manager at the Open World Leadership Center in Washington, D.C., also will attend the function.

Critical Languages Program Director and Dobro Slovo faculty sponsor Heather A. West, Russian tutors Irina Pidberejna and Larissa Charny, and lab assistant Slavik Pyzh will welcome the group. Chapter president Kourtney Rausch and students from Russian 101 and 201 classes will present information about Samford University, the University of Alabama at Birmingham, and the Birmingham area. Students will have the opportunity to network with the delegates.