The Friends of the International Center Records document the activities of the Friends, a volunteer organization dedicated to supporting the programs of the UC San Diego International Center and fostering international education, friendship, and cooperation.
Friends of the UC San Diego International Center Records, 1969-2017 (RSS 3086)
Extent: 5 Linear feet (4 records cartons, 2 flat boxes, 1 map case folder), + .139 GB of digital files
Digital Content
This collection contains digital photographs.
The Friends of the International Center is a volunteer organization which provides support to the UC San Diego International Center. The Friends participate in the Center's programs and encourage widespread community involvement, especially from UC San Diego staff, faculty, students, and their families.
Every year, dozens of foreign scholars, accompanied by their families, relocate to the La Jolla area. These international scholars come to study and work at the various scientific, medical, and academic institutions of the area. The Friends welcome and assist new arrivals as they settle into life as members of the UC San Diego community. They foster friendship, hospitality, and cooperation by providing cultural and educational services, implementing programs and events, and facilitating international scholarship programs. Members of the community are encouraged to share aspects of their own culture, and to experience the many diverse cultures represented in the UC San Diego community.
Founded in 1961 by the Zonta Club of La Jolla, the International Center was established in a small rental property in downtown La Jolla. Recognizing that the international students and scholars affiliated with UC San Diego required a support system, they set about incorporating under the name International Center of La Jolla, Inc. in 1963. By 1969, the UC Regents and the International Center of La Jolla, Inc. had signed an agreement establishing an International Center on the UC San Diego campus, and a fundraising campaign for a campus facility was well under way.
With the opening of its first building on October 1, 1971, the International Center now had a dedicated space located in the heart of the UC San Diego campus. In 1973, the Friends of the International Center was officially founded, and it was charged with supporting the programs of the International Center and maintaining the International Center building. The Friends continued to help develop the International Center, inaugurating the Friends Scholarship Program in 1975, opening the Friends Resale Shop in 1981, and raising funds that paid for a major 1986 addition to the building.
In 2010, the University decided to design a brand new Center building on the site. In 2016, the Friends moved out of the existing building. They continue to provide support for the International Center even as the programs and services are temporarily split up and located at different sites around the UC San Diego campus. The building was demolished in 2017.
The Friends of the International Center Records document the activities of the Friends, a volunteer organization dedicated to supporting the programs of the UC San Diego International Center and fostering international education, friendship, and cooperation.
Arranged in seven series: 1) NEWSLETTERS, 2) ADMINISTRATIVE FILES, 3) SCHOLARSHIP FILES, 4) PROGRAMS, 5) SPECIAL EVENTS, 6) PHOTOGRAPHS & SCRAPBOOKS, and 7) POSTERS.