A Penn State partnership bridging generations and culture is helping multilingual international students develop the communication, social and intercultural skills they need for academic success and career readiness.

By pairing international students who are preparing to study at an American university in the Penn State Intensive English Communication Program (IECP) with volunteers from the Osher Lifelong Learning Institute (OLLI) at Penn State, which is part of Penn State Outreach, the initiative turned classroom learning into real-world connection.

During eight weeks, a class of students in the ICEP course “Oral History and Digital Storytelling” partnered with 13 OLLI volunteers — community members aged 50 or better — to share stories, build relationships and create digital storytelling projects with the support of Penn State Teaching and Learning with Technology.

Through the collaboration, students practiced academic English in authentic settings, learning to communicate across cultural and generational differences while developing the social confidence and intercultural awareness central to IECP’s curriculum and essential for success in the classroom and beyond.

“The interaction with students had more positives than I could have imagined,” said OLLI member Barbara Carlson. “Where else would an 80- and a 20-year-old from such diverse cultures have the opportunity to learn from each other so openly, safely and with equal respect. I loved every moment.”

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Through these roles, students apply classroom knowledge to real-world experiences that help library operations thrive. Students work closely with supervisors and faculty librarians who are experts in their fields, often shadowing them to learn day-to-day responsibilities. Over time, students are trusted with projects that are actively used within the Libraries, giving them both confidence and professional experience. In addition, student workers collaborate with their peers, building teamwork and communication skills that will benefit them beyond graduation.

“I can do a lot more than I expect of myself, and I’m very proud of how much I’ve done and how far I’ve come,” said Nat Arias, who works in the Thun Makerspace at Berks Thun Library. “I see libraries in a whole new light — the opportunities truly are endless.”

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The summer series will take place throughout June on Tuesday mornings via Zoom. The series is designed for faculty and staff who want to deepen their knowledge of Penn State-supported tools, gain hands-on experience, and discover new strategies to strengthen student engagement, learning experiences, and student outcomes.

Each session will spotlight a Penn State enterprise learning tool platform, with representatives providing an overview of key features and demonstrating how the tools can be applied in teaching and learning contexts. Participants will also have opportunities to explore the tools in action and consider practical ways to integrate them into their courses.

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Five Penn State instructors from three campuses worked in teams with Penn State’s Teaching and Learning with Technology (TLT) over the past two years as part of the 2024-26 TLT Faculty Fellows program. Their goal was to enrich the student engagement experience through technology, addressing themes such as generative AI, student connection and belonging, and digital fluency.

Faculty Fellows are selected through an application process and collaborate with TLT to enhance innovative opportunities in their teaching and research, with the chance to disseminate their discoveries widely within Penn State and the broader higher education community. Additionally, they strive to revamp courses by utilizing technology-driven teaching methods tailored to support University, campus or college objectives.

“The Faculty Fellows program highlights what’s possible when faculty have the time and support to experiment and collaborate,” said Amy Kuntz, lead for the TLT Faculty Fellows program. “These projects showcase creative, discipline-specific approaches to teaching with technology that can scale across courses, campuses and the broader Penn State community.”

As the current cohort is wrapping up their projects, the following are lessons learned from their work. Read the full PSU News article for more details.

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Lee Ahern, an associate professor of advertising/public relations in the Donald P. Bellisario College of Communications, is the recipient of the 2026 Teaching and Learning with Technology Impact Award.

The award celebrates the accomplishments of faculty members whose work transforms education through the use of technology, and is given in recognition of excellence represented by a single contribution or series of contributions.

Nominators said Ahern’s vision, leadership, innovation and commitment to technology-enhanced learning has transformed the experiences for thousands of students at Penn State.

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Each spring, Penn State recognizes outstanding faculty and staff with annual awards in teaching and excellence. These awards highlight many of the University’s faculty and staff who go above and beyond in their work at Penn State.

This year’s honorees will be recognized at an invitation-only awards ceremony on April 9.

Additional information about each of these University-wide awards is available here.

The 2026 faculty and staff award winners are:

Teaching and Learning with Technology Impact Award

• Lee Ahern, an associate professor of advertising/public relations in the Donald P. Bellisario College of Communications