The second to last week of November, ETA Shannon Pinzon hosted several events to celebrate International Education Week (IEW) at her school. With the help of a few peers, Shannon held three scholarship workshops, each focusing on different study abroad and exchange programs. The first workshop was held for grade 10 students and it primarily centered around the Kennedy-Lugar Youth Exchange and Study (YES) program and AFS Asia Kakehashi program. Shannon was able to connect with both a university student in Malang who is a part of the AFS programs selection committee and an American high school student in the YES program who currently studies in Malang. They both shared some helpful tips with the students at SMA lab for the application process. The second and third workshops were for grades 11 and 12 and primarily focused on university-level scholarships. For both sessions, Shannon co-presented with a recent university graduate who had studied abroad in Japan on a full scholarship. The recent grad provided encouragement and insight into international experiences.

Later that week, Shannon took her English Club students on an American Corner visit at Universitas Muhammadiyah Malang (UMM). The visit included learning about steps in applying to universities in the US, learning about international student leader programs, and playing English games. IEW culminated with a screening of the international film, Lion, where Shannon and her students discussed topics such as culture, family, and belonging.

Shannon Pinzón is currently teaching at SMA Laboratorium UM in Malang, East Java.