Office of International Programs and Services gets facelift

International students coming back from the winter break will notice a surprising improvement to the Office of International Programs and Services at Pittsburg State University.

The office recently completed a two-week remodeling project that has improved the look of the suite and provided more room for employees and students to work and study.

“We have 103 international students coming in next week to start at PSU for the first time, so we serve a large group each year,” said Vickie Mense, the office’s administrative assistant who facilitated much of the project. “We were happy to move back in. It already feels different.”

Plans for the project were first discussed last August, when the office hired two new employees and discovered the cubicle walls they installed were making the area too crowded and difficult to maneuver through.

The construction crews at PSU began work in mid-December, leveling out the floor by removing a stage area and a low divider wall in the center of the room. They laid new carpeting, patched and painted the walls, and replaced old ceiling tiles to give the room a more spacious and fresh look.

With approximately 400 international students attending classes at Pitt State each semester, Mense expects the office to get plenty of traffic this spring – especially since there’s now more room for it.

“It’s so much better for students to come in and have things clean and neat and for the employees to have more room,” she said. “It’s a lot nicer over here.”

---Pitt State---