The International Women’s Group at Penn State Harrisburg organized the Bubble Tea and Painting Night where girls came together to have boba tea and create their paintings. The International Women’s Group is an all-female group that is open for girls to connect, make new friends, share resources, and support one another.
Qing Ma, a Staff Coordinator and Adjunct Instructor who started this group, described what it looks like and who it is for.
“I started the International Women’s Group because I wanted to foster a safe space for international women to get together, make connections, and build their sisterhood. It is for all international women regardless of their cultural background and identity. It’s a safe space for people to connect, share resources and go on adventures together,” Ma said.
Just like any other program, the
International Women’s Group exists to provide students with more opportunities as well as make them feel engaged.
“I think the heart behind having this group flows from the Global Lion Mentor Program as we seek to support our international students. We really want to have unique groups within that support as well, and this is one of them,” Global Education Coordinator Wendy Moynihan shared.
During the event, the girls went to a boba store as their first stop for some bubble tea and ramen. Then from there, everyone went to an art studio in Lancaster to create their paintings.
During the painting session, there were instructors helping everybody out, answering questions and teaching them how to draw on canvas. While some students followed the instructor to paint a similar piece of art, there were a handful of them using their creativity to do their own paintings.
“Just to go and paint and be in a safe, creative, peaceful, stimulating environment together and have that unique shared experience was really wonderful,” Moynihan added.
It was also a great opportunity for students to take a break by hanging out with friends as well as expressing themselves through art.
“I was very happy to see people being really engaging and having a lot of fun this time. I’m looking forward to the next event”, Qing Ma said.
The International Women’s Group is always open for female international students to join. For more programs and events at Penn State Harrisburg, download the Corq app or check out the school email to keep up to date with future events.
