{"465351":{"#nid":"465351","#data":{"type":"news","title":"Students, Employees Invited to Share Homes for Thanksgiving","body":[{"value":"\u003Cp\u003EAs Thanksgiving approaches, many students make plans to head home for the break. Due to restraints such as time and cost, though, many international students are unable to return home. Because of Tech\u2019s large international student population, the Student Government Association (SGA) launched Home for the Holidays last year to pair international students with local families during the Thanksgiving break.\u003C\/p\u003E\u003Cp\u003EAll local Georgia Tech faculty, staff, students, and alumni are invited to participate in this new community-building tradition. Families can choose whether to host students overnight or just for Thanksgiving dinner. Transportation and other needs should not prevent students or hosts from registering, as SGA will match groups based on the information provided in a questionnaire. Last year, about 70 international students and around 55 families participated.\u003C\/p\u003E\u003Cp\u003EAside from providing international students with a meal for Thanksgiving, Home for the Holidays is a unique opportunity to share cultures and embrace the diversity of the Georgia Tech community.\u003C\/p\u003E\u003Cp\u003E\u201cNot only does Home for the Holidays help provide students with a home environment, but it also promotes the exchange of cultures,\u201d said Laura Margaret Burbach, SGA chief of staff. \u201cSince Thanksgiving is a U.S. holiday, many international students have never experienced a traditional American Thanksgiving. It\u2019s great for them to get to share this experience and great for the host families to learn about their guest\u2019s culture as well.\u201d\u003C\/p\u003E\u003Cp\u003EThe program was conceived in 2014 when Brandie Banner, former SGA vice president and a resident advisor in Housing, noticed how many international students stayed on campus during breaks.\u003C\/p\u003E\u003Cp\u003EThe deadline to register as a host or guest is Friday, Nov. 6. Those interested in hosting can complete\u0026nbsp;\u003Cstrong\u003E\u003Ca href=\u0022https:\/\/docs.google.com\/forms\/d\/1qSNC3NVxPWWMWX-qq1R0yGs23NBei-3x4bvSBJeQPZQ\/viewform\u0022\u003Ethis form\u003C\/a\u003E\u003C\/strong\u003E. International students should fill out\u0026nbsp;\u003Cstrong\u003E\u003Ca href=\u0022https:\/\/docs.google.com\/forms\/d\/1sZNTJL1SZN6dWp84_dX-ieNsfPJ63bmf01Hd1VwdB9I\/viewform\u0022\u003Ethis form\u003C\/a\u003E\u003C\/strong\u003E.\u003C\/p\u003E","summary":null,"format":"limited_html"}],"field_subtitle":"","field_summary":[{"value":"\u003Cp\u003EHome for the Holidays pairs international students with local families during the Thanksgiving break.\u003C\/p\u003E","format":"limited_html"}],"field_summary_sentence":[{"value":"Home for the Holidays pairs international students with local families during the Thanksgiving break."}],"uid":"27469","created_gmt":"2015-11-03 08:13:04","changed_gmt":"2016-10-08 03:19:54","author":"Kristen Bailey","boilerplate_text":"","field_publication":"","field_article_url":"","dateline":{"date":"2015-11-03T00:00:00-05:00","iso_date":"2015-11-03T00:00:00-05:00","tz":"America\/New_York"},"extras":[],"hg_media":{"465381":{"id":"465381","type":"image","title":"Eckert Family - Home for the Holidays","body":null,"created":"1449256395","gmt_created":"2015-12-04 19:13:15","changed":"1475895211","gmt_changed":"2016-10-08 02:53:31","alt":"Eckert Family - Home for the Holidays","file":{"fid":"203728","name":"eckert_family_-_home_for_the_holidays.jpg","image_path":"\/sites\/default\/files\/images\/eckert_family_-_home_for_the_holidays_0.jpg","image_full_path":"http:\/\/hg.gatech.edu\/\/sites\/default\/files\/images\/eckert_family_-_home_for_the_holidays_0.jpg","mime":"image\/jpeg","size":391660,"path_740":"http:\/\/hg.gatech.edu\/sites\/default\/files\/styles\/740xx_scale\/public\/images\/eckert_family_-_home_for_the_holidays_0.jpg?itok=LMpbpZhK"}}},"media_ids":["465381"],"related_links":[{"url":"https:\/\/docs.google.com\/forms\/d\/1qSNC3NVxPWWMWX-qq1R0yGs23NBei-3x4bvSBJeQPZQ\/viewform","title":"Sign Up as a Host"},{"url":"https:\/\/docs.google.com\/forms\/d\/1sZNTJL1SZN6dWp84_dX-ieNsfPJ63bmf01Hd1VwdB9I\/viewform","title":"Sign Up as a Guest"}],"groups":[{"id":"1214","name":"News Room"}],"categories":[{"id":"130","name":"Alumni"},{"id":"129","name":"Institute and Campus"}],"keywords":[{"id":"146601","name":"cultral"},{"id":"4104","name":"holiday"},{"id":"4374","name":"international students"},{"id":"166922","name":"sga"},{"id":"166923","name":"student government association"},{"id":"2282","name":"Thanksgiving"}],"core_research_areas":[],"news_room_topics":[{"id":"71871","name":"Campus and Community"}],"event_categories":[],"invited_audience":[],"affiliations":[],"classification":[],"areas_of_expertise":[],"news_and_recent_appearances":[],"phone":[],"contact":[{"value":"\u003Cp\u003E\u003Ca href=\u0022mailto:stucomm@gatech.edu\u0022\u003ERachel Isaac\u003C\/a\u003E\u003Cbr \/\u003EInstitute Communications\u003C\/p\u003E","format":"limited_html"}],"email":[],"slides":[],"orientation":[],"userdata":""}}}