A generous contribution from Dr. John Schmertmann, Emeritus Professor from University of Florida College of Engineering, has secured the future of the Kristen Hagen International Education Fund within the Center for Global Engagement. Dr. Schmertmann, Kristen Hagen’s father-in-law, donated two gifts totaling over $90,000, which helped the fund reach endowment status. The endowed fund will generate approximately $4,000 annually in interest to use to support international education initiatives and international students every year going forward. Dr.
Featured Stories
Duke Davis, who earned his FSU bachelor's degree in marketing and management in 2024, also completed the Global Citizenship Certificate as an undergraduate student to continue exploring international opportunities and connect with other globally minded students. During a study abroad experience through the Semester at Sea program in his junior year, he developed a curiosity that would shape both his worldview and career path.
FSU Global Exchanges give international exchange students the opportunity to experience life at Florida State University while allowing FSU students to explore the world through partner institutions abroad. Sometimes those experiences intersect in unexpected ways, creating connections that extend far beyond a single semester.
For Anchal Khansili, an international Ph.D. student in Musicology from India, music has always been a way to connect people across cultures, backgrounds and experiences. That belief inspired her to revive the FSU Indian Ensemble, creating a space where students, community members and musicians of all skill levels can come together through a shared appreciation of Indian music.
More than 200 students filled the Globe Auditorium and lobby on Oct. 1 for the Arepa Showdown, a collaboration between the CGE, PorColombia, the Venezuelan Student Association (VenSA) and the Hispanic-Latine Student Union (HLSU). Student leaders from the partnering organizations made a presentation before packed audience on the similarities and differences between Colombian and Venezuelan arepas, highlighting their origins, ingredients, flavors and cultural significance.
Zuania Fernández, JD, Program Manager for New International Student Services at the Center for Global Engagement (CGE), participated in the Student-Athlete Academic Services (SAAS) Guest Coaches Program, along with three others, shortly after starting her position at Florida State. According to SAAS, Fernández was selected for this opportunity due to serving as the CGE liaison with FSU Athletics.
Aman Myrsten, a double major in business-focused French and sociology, spent the Spring 2026 semester at Griffith University on Australia's Gold Coast through FSU’s Global Exchanges program. After returning from her exchange in Australia, Myrsten has come full circle as the newest Outreach Intern for the Global Exchanges team at the CGE.
On Friday, September 25, the Puerto Rican Student Association (PRSA), in partnership with the Center for Global Engagement (CGE), will bring the vibrant traditions, flavors and welcoming hospitality of Puerto Rico to campus through Global Café: Puerto Rico.
When new international students arrive at FSU, they are often excited to begin their academic journeys while navigating the challenges of settling into a new country. For first-year Ph.D. student Seth Alebia, that transition has been made easier thanks to a familiar face: his longtime friend and mentor, Desmond Adofo. Both students hail from Ghana's Ashanti Region and share a passion for English Education. This fall, Alebia attended FSU's international student orientation not only as a newly admitted doctoral student, but alongside the mentor who helped inspire his path to Tallahassee.
This fall, the Center for Global Engagement welcomed over 400 new international students from more than 60 countries. The countries with the highest number of new students for Fall were Bangladesh, China, India, South Korea and Panama.