Thanksgiving SpecialThe Smithsonian National Museum of the American Indian

History of Thanksgiving

5 Things you have to try on Thanksgiving

The Indian Food

The Oculus

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DIRECTOR’S GREETING

Dear Teachers, Faculty Staff and Students:

As we are approaching the end of the year, may I wish you and your family a happy Thanksgiving and happy holidays!

With more than 20 years of experience in providing education for students in downtown Manhattan, OPMI Business School has always strived towards becoming the primary ESL and vocational school in Manhattan. As such, a new strategic plan to enhance the ESL program and expand the school has been put in place. You will see some significant changes in the ESL programs in 2017!

For the vocational programs, we will continue exploring new programs to offer to give our students a competitive advantage in the market. We will also be upgrading our technology and software programs to facilitate our students’ study process.

In addition, we commit to improve our communication with all students and colleagues who are invested in the development of OPMI. To achieve this mission, we have decided to issue this OPMI Newsletter monthly. This newsletter is to inform all of you of what has happened in the school and what will take place in the coming months.

Today, I am very excited to present the first issue to you, thanks to the efforts of the editorial team led by Ms. An. I strongly encourage all staff and students to provide feedback so that we can further enhance the growth and development of the School. Please feel free to write to me, Director Jay Yang, or to the editorial team of the Newsletter if you have anything to share with us. Hope this newsletter will keep us in close loop with each other.

Hinman AuExecutive Director, OPMI Business School

The Smithsonian National Museumof the American Indian

History of Thanksgiving

Elementary school children across America grow up learning about the festive and bountiful dinner of peace that the Pilgrims and Ameri-can Indians shared at a celebration in Plymouth, Massachusetts in 1621. This celebration is identified as the first Thanksgiving. These days, most adults in America are aware of the myth of Thanksgiving and understand it to be the beginning of the controver-sial displacement and decimation of the Native Americans. In recent news, American Indian tribes have been protesting the construc-tion of a controversial oil pipeline that threatens to ruin the local water supply in North Dakota. My Lower Advanced class has been reading and discussing updates on this topic, so we decided that a visit to the Smithson-ian’s National Museum of the Ameri-can Indian would be insightful.

~ By Mr. Brian Kim Leo ESL Instructor

Brian Kim Leo is a first- generation American who was born in New Jersey. His mother is from South Korea and his father was born in Italy. Having been raised in The U.S.A. by immigrant parents, he feels that he has a profound understanding of the challenges and limitations that can arise for those whose first language is not English. The insight that Brian has gained from his cross-cultural upbringing has given him the ability to adapt to different customs and traditions as well as value the significance of other cultures.

Shortly upon graduating from Rutgers University in 1999, he began teaching ESL in South Korea, where he had worked for a year. He then traveled through parts of Asia and Europe, learning about different cultures along the way. In 2001, he moved to New York City and has been teaching ESL here for the last 15 years. Teaching ESL in NYC has been incredibly rewarding for Brian.

On October 14, we left OPMI and took a stroll to the museum. The main exhibition was entitled, Unbound: Narrative Art of the Plains. The exhibit showcases historic artwork from the museum’s collection along

with new pieces commissioned by the museum from 16 contemporary artists. In the first gallery, many of the works were painted on animal hides. The other rooms concentrated mostly on historic and contemporary draw-ings and paintings on ledger paper.

Ledger art gets its name from discarded ledger books from traders, settlers, military officers, missionaries and U.S. government agents from the 1850s to the early 1900s. Early ledger art focused on battles and hunting, but as the buffalo disappeared and the Plains tribes were increasingly confined, the drawings began to focus more on personal experiences, such as courtships, battles, disease outbreaks, ceremonies and imprisonments . Ledger art was a way for the American Indians to document their experiences and history through easily understood images and not with words.

OPMI students discussed that a lot of the content in the newer art pieces included objects from contemporary life, such as cell phones, pop icons and corporate logos incorporated with traditional American Indian culture. This is probably because contemporary ledger artists honor pre-reservation cultures and the battles and strug-gles they had experienced alongside making visual commentary on the world that we live in today.While families across the country enjoy their Thanksgiving Day feasts, many American Indians will honor their ancestors who died due to colonization and reflect on its horrific, bloody history. If you have some time and would like to gain some additional insight on the American Indian experience, we highly suggest that you visit, Unbound: Narrative Art of the Plains, which runs from March 12 to December 4, 2016 at the Smithsonian National Museum of the American Indian in New York (One Bowling Green, Financial District, Manhattan).

Thanksgiving is one of the most important festival in U.S.A. Schools usually have 4-6 days break for all the students. Do you know when is Thanksgiving Day

2016? It is Thursday November 24th. The date of Thanks-giving changes because it always on the fourth Thursday in November. Thanksgiving Day trandition-ally kicks off the “holiday season” in the United States. The day was set in stone by President Franklin D. Roosevelt in 1939 and approved by Congress in 1941. FDR changed it from Abra-ham Lincoln’s designation as the last Thursday in November (because there are sometimes five Thursdays in the month).

Thanksgiving Day can be traced back to the 1621 celebration at the Plymouth Plantation, where the religious refugees from England known popularly as the Pilgrims invited the local Native Americans to a harvest feast after a particular-ly successful growing season.

While Britons think of it as a warm-up for the Yuletide period, many Americans think it of it as just as important as Christmas. If you’re staying here for your first Thanksgiving, there are five great things you can try!

Shopping on Black Friday

Make your own Thanks-giving Turkey

Have a fall foliage trip

Enjoy the Macy’s Thanksgiving Parade

Write a thank you card to you loved

By Xiang Li & Si Chen

4 Best places to go Christmas Shopping 1. Woodbury Common Premium Outlets Address: 498 Red Apple Ct, Central Valley, NY 10917 Time: 12:00am-6:00am 2. Walmart Open from 6:00pm 3. Best Buy Open 5:00pm-1:00am 4. Macy’s Open from 6:00pm Online sales start 12:00am

Thanksgiving Turkey Recipe 1. Preheat the oven to 325 degrees F. 2. Fill the turkey with aromatics like chopped onions and herbs 3. Tent with foil and roast for 2 hours 4. Remove the foil, baste with more melted butter and crank the oven to 425 degrees F. 5. Roast for another hour or until the meat at the thigh registers 165 degrees

6 Great spots to view fall scenery » Bear Mountain Park, NJ » Ringwood State Park, NJ » Minnewaska State Park, NY » Valley Railroad in Essex, CT » White Mountains, NH » King Park, RI

Macy’s Thanksgiving Day ParadeThe Parade begins at 77th Street & Central Park West at 9am. The Parade will march south on Central Park West. At Columbus Circle, the Parade will then turn EAST onto Central Park South instead of heading down Broad-way.You can book the ticket from: www.viator.com/new-york-city/tours

After enjoying all the activities during the Thanksgiving, it is time to sit down and share our happiness with families and friends. In American culture, Thanksgiving is the day we should send our love and thanks to we loved. Where you can get your card: 1. Find a card from grocery store2. Make one by yourself3. Make a E-card on line

One significant aspect that sets OPMI apart from other ESL schools is our close proximity to many

historical and intriguing sites. Located in the Financial District of lower Manhattan, OPMI is literally steps away from Wall Street, the National 9/11 Memorial, The Federal Reserve Bank, South Street Seaport , and renowned cultural institutions. Ferry terminals are also easily accessible to visit the Statue of Liberty and Governor’s Island. At OPMI, instructors take advan-tage of this proximity by scheduling class excursions which correlate to the topics and lessons discussed in the classrooms in order to enhance student learning.

On September 14, 2016, My Lower Advanced class and I left our classroom at OPMI and headed up John Street to The Oculus at the WTC transporta-tion hub. The Oculus, designed by Spanish architect, Santiago Calatrava, had been one of our current event discussion topics for that week. In class, students had worked in groups discussing whether the 12 years of construction and $4 billion dollars in public funds were actually worth the effort and price tag. When we arrived there, the students had the chance to see The Oculus with their own eyes and debate in English whether Calatrava’s intentions had been con-veyed. We had read that one of Calatrava’s goals was

to create a structure that resembled a winged dove, but my student’s had different reactions once inside. Some students said it reminded them of bones or a rib cage, while others said it was similar to the inside of a spaceship or a science fiction movie set.

One unifying reaction that the student’s shared was a sense of awe. There is no denying that The Oculus is a work of art which sym-bolizes hope for many New York-ers, in a location that was desolated after 9/11. I was

able to share my personal anecdotes of being in NYC on September 11, 2001 and answer questions that the student’s raised. Overall, visiting The Oculus together as a class proved to be an enriching experience for us.

The Oculus The WTC Transportation

- - by Mr. Brian Kim Leo

finally we decided to try different variations of several dishes. I ordered a huge masala dosa and masala tea. It was incredibly tasty. Even my classmates that weren’t into spicy food enjoyed the experience as well.On the way back to NY City we tried one more thing. We purchased it at a small deli-like store near the res-taurant and it was prepared quickly right there on the spot. It is hard to describe the specific taste, because it is a mix of at least five different flavors. I would try it again if I had the chance.

I am very glad that we made that trip and really ap-preciate the teacher’s fantastic idea to take us to this wonderful part of New Jersey that resembled India.

Field Trip to Indian StreetNew Jersey ------by Kateryna Zamkova ESL Student On October 19th our class took a trip to New Jersey. We wanted to visit the Indian neighborhood there, so we met at OPMI and then walked to the World Trade Center PATH station.First of all, I was really surprised by how fast and convenient the trip to NJ was. It took us about twenty minutes to get there. Also, the train was very com-fortable and I enjoyed the view from the window during our ride.It took us about ten minutes to walk from the train station to Indian Street. It was really interesting because we saw a really old movie theater contrast-ing with the modern architectural style of the other buildings.Finally we made it to Indian Street, which was easily recognizable with all of the colorful flags and other Indian decorations. Our first stop was an Indian Hindu temple. It was small but authentic. Before we entered we needed to remove our shoes. The smell of incense, burning herbs and oils surrounded us.

Of course, my favorite part was the lunch in the authentic Indian restaurant called Sri Ganesh Dosa House. It was recommended to us by our classmate who lives in the area and showed us around.It took a while for us to figure out what to order, but

The Indian Food

Mr. Matti Havens ESL Instructor

Matti Havens was born in the Netherlands and raised in the Finger Lakes region of New York. Furthermore, he has lived, studied and/or worked in Ecuador, Italy, South Korea, Switzerland and Poland.

He started his English teaching career in South Korea, where he taught at an after school academy. After earning his MFA in Sculpture from the Maryland Institute Col-lege of Art in Baltimore he lived and taught in Wroclaw, Poland for a year and a half. He currently lives in Sunnyside, Queens.

Activities & Information » OPMI Newsletter Editorial Board was established on October 13, 2016. » The first issue has published on November 15, 2016.

Michael D. Kurtz, DDS is a general dentist based in Hollis, NY. His

team specializes in root canals, dental implants, and Belleglass. He has worked as the team dentist for college basketball teams and more. His patients love his twenty-five years of expertise as he helps them to achieve their best smiles ever!Website: sportsdds.com

OPMI BUSINESS SCHOOLAddress: 116 John Street, New York, NY 10038TEL: 212-269-4000 Fax: 212-269-9070Email: info@opmi.edu http://www.opmi.eduPublisher: OPMI Business School Editorial Advisory: Ms. Juwen An If you have any questions or comments, please email us

at news@opmi.edu

Ryoko Takeda Si Chen Xiang Li

Editorial Team

2016.12 VolumeComing Soon...