Some familiar faces will return to campus later this month when we host a three-day study group from Japan’s Dohto University.

Together our institutions are celebrating a 25-year partnership as “sister” universities. To help provide diverse cultural experiences for our students and theirs, we hosted a three-week study group last fall for about 35 students and staff members from the Japanese university.

This year’s participants will be three staff members and 14 students, including four who visited TTU last year. The students are sophomores and juniors majoring primarily in social welfare, with others majoring in design, architecture or management.

“I’m proud that TTU can offer such an exciting educational opportunity with Dohto University,” says President Bob Bell. “This partnership is important because it helps teach students from both cultures how to interact positively in a global environment.”

The group will arrive in Cookeville Monday night, Oct. 20, and be welcomed with a reception brunch the following day at Walton House.

A tour of campus will follow, and among the sites the group will visit are the Fitness Center, Eblen Center, Tucker Stadium, University Bookstore, Appalachian Center for Crafts and our newest residence hall, still under construction.

Students will also attend a Web Course Tools, or WebCT, presentation. WebCT allows instructors and students to coordinate course work via the Internet and facilitates partnerships like the one between TTU and Dohto.

In fact, that technology helped take the partnership between the two universities to a new level last fall with a joint Internet course in international professional communication. That relationship continues this semester with another such course — this time in international management.

During their visit to Cookeville, students will participate in an overnight “homestay” with several local families, providing both students and host families with opportunities to learn about cultures and family life in other countries.