Program Spotlight: CELE Program Growth
Over the last two years, NU’s International Education department faced the challenge of providing a substantive and meaningful educational experience amid a global pandemic. We are grateful for the many lessons we learned during this season and especially for the growth we saw in our programs. We are now positioned for an even more impactful student experience as we move into the future.
In the fall of 2020, we shifted to a hybrid format and then saw our first fully in-person classes return in the fall of 2021—while many universities were still teaching online. During the 2021–2022 school year, we saw our Center for English Language Education (CELE) enrollment numbers triple, welcomed the first English for Airport Management cohort, and continued to offer excellent field trips and events, such as our Lunar New Year celebration, Easter egg painting, and trips to the Seattle Mariners game and the Woodland Park Zoo. We even welcomed our first short-term program since March of 2020 in July of 2022.
Now, just 12 months after returning to in-person classes, our CELE student population has grown from 17 to 59 in the fall of 2022—the highest our enrollment has been.
In addition to this, our Airport Management enrollment has grown from 3 to 19 students over one semester. All these students are currently participating in fully in-person classes (with safeguards still in place for COVID). CELE students have enjoyed many activities, events with local students, and field trips. We have already been to a Mariners game and on a hiking trip and have also had our first international student club meeting of the year.
We also continue to look forward in anticipation to the rest of the fall semester and to the future of CELE. Our students still have much in store, like our annual week-long International Education Week celebration. But most importantly, we all look forward to continuing to see growth in our students’ English development and are excited to provide more opportunities for growth as the semester continues.
The Center for English Language Education provides a rich learning environment where a diverse group of students form a community while growing in their English learning skills. CELE is one of the International Education department’s fastest growing programs, inviting students with varying levels of English to find a home away from home while improving their language skills.
Interested in being a part of our growing CELE program? Learn more about us and how to apply at northwestu.edu/international.