1998 Eastern graduate Tian Li has moved on to work for Radio Free Asia, a news organization that provides accurate news to Asian countries where access to free press is prohibited.

Li, of China, along with seven other international alumni will be welcomed back at 5 p.m. today in the University Ballroom of the Martin Luther King Jr. University Union.

“The journalistic experience not only fulfills my career goals in helping promote China’s progress and bridging the East and West, but it also enables me to fully utilize the knowledge I acquired at EIU,” said Li in a letter to the Office of International Students and Scholars.

International students and scholars started hosting the International Alumni Reunion in 2007. They also hold an awards dinner for the international graduates to receive the title of Global Ambassador. This year’s will be at 5 p.m. Saturday in the Grand Ballroom in union.

“These are truly global ambassadors in that they share the message of Eastern Illinois University around the world,” said Sue Songer, international student adviser for Office of International Programs.

The title global ambassador is given to international graduates who have been nominated, hold a record of outstanding achievement in their career and received a certain level of recognition for accomplishments or contributions.

Including Li, eight alumni will receive the award.

The others are Vicente DiBella Jr. (Brazil), Peter Gitau (Kenya), Karl H. Hecker (Germany), Paramjit Sidhu (India), Brenda Gonzales Tanner (Phillipines), Ray Wallace (Northern Ireland), and Wen-Jyh Daniel Wang (Taiwan).

Wang’s visit will be a family reunion with his son Steven Wang, who is a computer science major at Eastern.

Hecker, a 1986 graduate, has made a career in the field of science. As a chemical industrial engineer, he led the development of more than 100 commercially successful products.

He has authored 16 peer-reviews publications.

Inaugural awardees Ejike Igboegwu of Nigeria and Sylvia Jerdan of Peru from 2007 will visit again this year.

Igboegwu is a college instructor at Ivy Tech Community College in Indiana and guest lectures at Purdue University.

Jerdan worked at numerous state hospitals and co-owns Mitchell-Jerdan Funeral Home of Mattoon with her husband.

To learn more about these alumni, the biographies of all eight award winners can be found at www.eiu.edu/~graduate/alumni/2009global-ambassador.pdf.

James Roedl can be reached at 581-7942 or at dennewsdesk@gmail.com.