Last fall, the David C. Pollock Scholarship committee asked the question, "Who is missing from the FIGT table?" and subsequently sought a diverse, cross-sector pool of potential scholars who would bring new dimensions to FIGT in both experience and pursuits. The results surpassed our hopes!

The Pollock Scholars of 2015 will share perspectives and make connections across sectors from international education, business, missions, military, diplomacy, immigration and refugee work and experience. Four out of our six scholars are TCKs and all the scholars come with extensive global experience.

We are excited to welcome Tayo Rockson, Virginia Sampson, Brittani Sonnenberg, Jean Kim, Irena Tsoustas and Andrew Jernigan. Along with short bios, we also asked each scholar to share what she/he hopes to gain from FIGT15.


Tayo Rockson is the CEO and president of UYD Media LLC, a media company encouraging global people to use their difference to make a difference while celebrating diversity and educating others. He is an avid writer contributing to The Huffington Post, Entrepreneur.com, Social Media Club, as well as Global Living magazine. He is an authority on Third Culture Kids and assimilation into new cultures and his podcast and blog are heard and read by thousands of people in over 100 countries.

"I hope to be able to make some lifelong friends with whom I can partner to change the world for the better."

Virginia (Ginny) Sampson is a professional artist, high school/IB Visual Art teacher, and mother of an adult daughter and twin sons. Originally from the east coast but currently with a home base in Oregon, she has lived and worked in Malaysia, China and Austria since 1997. She juggles connections, professions, and homes across countries and continents.

"I hope to make new connections and glean greater perspectives from others juggling transient global living communities."

(Photo credit Alex Trebus)

Brittani Sonnenberg is the author of the novel Home Leave. Sonnenberg lives in Berlin, where she is a frequent contributor to Berlin Stories on NPR. She is an annual visiting lecturer at the MFA program of the University of Hong Kong and leads TCK workshops at international schools worldwide.

"I hope to make lasting connections with other global citizens and hear about how others have adapted to a life among worlds."
 

Jean Kim grew up as a TCK, studying and working in 7 different countries. For the last 15 years, she has worked as a global communication specialist and educator, empowering professionals and university students from all over the world. She is also the Founder & Chief Empowerment Officer of GlobalJKim, which continues to take her around the globe.

"I'd love to be able to connect with other TCKs and learn insights on how I can create a support network for families in global transition in Toronto (my current city of residence)."

Irena Tsoustas grew up between Greece and the U.S. She is an IB graduate, received a B.A. in Political Science from the University of Florida, and an M.A. from the Brussels School of International Studies. Since graduating, she has lived in 6 cities and has sampled careers from restaurant management to lobbying the European Parliament. She is currently an intern at the International Rescue Committee in Dallas and hopes to soon enroll in an MSW program focusing on TCK and global transition issues.

"I hope to learn from others' experiences as TCKs to better understand my own path and I also hope to walk away with long-lasting symbiotic personal and professional relationships."

 

 
Andrew Jernigan is a passionate father of TCKs and is married to an international citizen. He has lived on multiple continents and dedicated his life to helping those in the multicultural lifestyle thrive through networking, resourcing and caring. He currently leads International Care, www.facebook.com/intlcare with focus areas in mental health, medical, security/safety, global mobility, insurance/financial, and training/consulting.

"I hope to learn from the experts and professionals, and network to see each [global nomad] succeed."

I must thank Ellen Mahoney, previous Committee Chair for her help and support as well as the committee members, Jody Tangredi, Josh Stephens, Dounia Bertuccelli and Wendy Wilson for excellent work. Well done!

-- Michael Pollock, 2015 Committee Chair 

FIGT began as four people around a kitchen table and remains strong and unique because of the "home" it offers to the "smaller scale": the individual and the small business. Many FIGT members operate small businesses that provide quality services to the global citizen community. Small businesses often do not have extra resources to spend on advertising and sponsoring, even when the cause, like FIGT, is dear to the heart.

Sponsorship is integral to the success of the FIGT Conference, and we are fortunate to have several stalwarts supporting us.

However, as a way of offering our small businesses and independent supporters a way to be recognized, we've added a new way you -- or someone you know -- can help make FIGT15 the very best: our Patron  level. For $125, you can help FIGT put on the annual conference and get your name mentioned in the program book, on screen at the conference and on the website with a link to the site of your business.

There is also the possibility to run a half-page or whole-page ad in the program book for $250 and $500, respectively.

Please do consider sponsoring FIGT in this way -- you will become part of a movement to support families in global transition! For more information, please click here.
 

Did you know... that 62 percent of the FIGT Research Network members are based in the United States, with 33 percent international? Add your voice, international experience and cultural perspective to the body of knowledge that supports our mission. Participants are therapists, students, professors, researchers, government employees, counselors, and consultants, among other occupations. Research backgrounds include communication, theology, mental health, family psychology, sociology, intercultural communication, geography, borderlanders, child and family support services, and more.

Interested in getting involved? Want to learn more about research in the field? Join for free, and register to attend the FIGT Researchers Forum Friday, March 6 at FIGT15. For more information, email FIGTResearchNetwork@gmail.com.
 

One of the highlights of FIGT15 will be the Conference Bookstore, featuring intercultural handbooks, reference books, memoirs, novels and stories of interest to anyone living across cultures. This year, the bookstore is especially pleased to highlight new works from our distinguished speakers and conference guests, such as Doug Ota, Brittani Sonnenberg, Eva Laszlo-Herbert, Valerie Besanceney, and others.

Two titles of particular interest are the TCK anthology The Worlds Within and the 2014 Yearbook Insights and Interviews from the 2014 Families in Global Transition Conference: The Global Family Redefined.

Thanks to the generosity of sponsors, 15 percent of the profits from the sale of The Worlds Within will be donated to The FIGT David C. Pollock Scholarship Fund. Why not buy either -- or both! -- as a gift for the professional, parent, TCK or cross-cultural person in your life, knowing that a portion of the profits support FIGT's ongoing work?

Want a sneak preview of an excerpt from the Yearbook? Check out 2014 Parfitt-Pascoe Writing Resident Terry Anne Wilson's article on the IGNITE Session Beloved Stranger by Julia Simens here.

Attention authors: If you are attending the 2015 FIGT Conference and have authored a recent book of interest to attendees, you may be eligible to have your book included in the Conference Bookstore. For details, please click here.

Remember, FIGT members save 10 percent on books purchased from the Conference Bookstore. If you're interested in becoming a member, click here.