Paula Alvarez Tames, Study Abroad and International Student Advisor

Creator

Olivia Glover, Ursinus College

Preview

Creation Date

Fall 2015

Description

Archival pigment print of Paula Alvarez Tames, measuring 16x20 inches.

This project was made possible with the support of a Civic Engagement Grant from the Ursinus Center for Advocacy, Responsibility and Engagement (UCARE).

Panel Text

Paula Álvarez Tamés is the Study Abroad and International Student Advisor here at Ursinus. Her home in the Ursinus area is Schwenksville where she has lived with her husband and five children since 2001. Her hometown is the big city of Madrid, Spain. As you can imagine Paula sees many differences between Collegeville and her hometown. She remembers her first job working on her grandparents' small farm. When Paula was younger she wanted to be a teacher just like her grandmother. Another career path she thought about was getting a law degree. Ultimately, the life experience that had the biggest impact on her was studying abroad to France, which has led her here to Ursinus. She was exposed to so many different things and wants other students to have this as well. Pictured with Paula is her dog TiTi. Paula says that even though she wasn’t the cutest dog she knew TiTi was the one for her as soon as she saw her. When visiting with Paula she also showed me her favorite gift, which is a small bell-like object that used to belong to her grandfather. She likes to be able to touch something that was once in his hands and will even talk to it from time to time. Paula’s days are pretty busy between the Ursinus students and her five children at home. When I asked her what her ideal day would be she said watching Broadway shows all day. Also, she said that her dream in 10 years would be to be packing up to move back to Spain for good. Paula is full of life and loves interacting with the students here at Ursinus. She loves to chat and help students discover the world.

Rights

Copyright of the underlying work is held by the artist. The digital image presented here is for educational purposes only and is not for commercial use.