For Tiffany Lu, the English language is more than a means of expression. It is a key to making more friends and getting better career opportunities.

The first-year accounting major is one of 300 international students starting the English Language Improvement Program this month. The Centre for English Language Development welcomed the students Friday with a free barbecue luncheon to meet their classmates, instructors and staff.

“English is very important in the professional world today,” Lu said. “This knowledge will open more doors for me back in China.”

She came to Windsor following a suggestion by her sister’s friend, who has lived in the area for many years. She had heard good things about the business school and decided that the quiet border city best suited her.

“I really like it here,” she said.  “The people are nice, and the teachers I have met are so kind. I am very excited.”

Following Friday’s lunch, both old and new students met their professors and picked up their class schedules and textbooks, said the centre’s director, Jennie Atkins.

“It is ideal for our students meet each other as well as their instructors and other University of Windsor staff in a more social setting,” she said. “The students really appreciate it, and we hope to help them ease into the environment this way.”

Students this year are from a diverse group of countries including Brazil, China, Iran, Japan, Korea, and Saudi Arabia.

The students have already begun exploring the local region, trying their hands at bowling and making sightseeing trips to Pelee Island.

—photo and story by Chantelle Myers