An inside look into the lives of the 10%

It is hard to imagine having to live the majority of the year away from ‘home,’ yet more than 1,000 students do that every year during their college career – and many even after college. The University of New Hampshire is a very diverse school, though many students don’t realize it because they don’t look ‘foreign.’ When some people think about being an international student, all kinds of things come to mind: being able to speak more than one language, wearing different types of clothing/trends, having an accent, and some even think about being “different.”

It is for this matter that I consider extremely important knowing who are our international classmates and what their lives here in the United States are like. How different is their culture from the American one? Why did they come here? Do they like it? Do they want to stay?

Originally from Hamburg, Germany, Vivienne ‘Vivi’ El-Sibay came to the U.S. as a college freshman the fall of 2015 to follow her dream of swimming in college at the same time that she pursues her degree. El-Sibay admitted that what she likes most about the U.S. is not only that New England feels like home, but also that “you don’t really need to travel to different countries because [the U.S] already has so much diversity,” said El-Sibay. She has made strong bonds with both American and other international students with whom she travels during the short breaks – like Spring break or Thanksgiving – and hopes to stay friends after college. El-Sibay is thankful for this opportunity, as she recognizes that not everybody has the chance to study abroad and do what they like best: study and live the American college life.

Mike Yang came from China after a professor recommended him to follow the Graduate Program that the University of New Hampshire offers to electric engineers. Yang enjoys the tranquility and peacefulness that Durham offers, as he is a quiet guy that likes to spend time relaxing. “Things weren’t as I expected them when I got here, they were even better,” said Yang. Yang not only hopes to achieve good grades and abilities in his field that he’ll be able to put to work once he finishes the 3-year program, but also expects to get better at basketball and snowboard – as he believes the United States is the land of sports. Though Yang loves the people and the high standards of learning, he admits to miss the traditional cuisine from back home but is satisfied with all the new foods he has gotten to try from his stay in New Hampshire.

Silje Wilson is the type of student that most people would believe is American, as her looks and slight accent don’t draw special attention. Little do people know that Wilson is from Norway and has been at UNH for three years now. Her journey to the United States begun when she was in high school and realized that she didn’t want to give up skiing, her sport ever since she was a little girl, to just study. Then she found UNH, a university that not only allowed her to get a higher-level education in the Nutritional Science field, but also to excel in the Ski Team. “This is a lifetime opportunity: studying in a different country, a new culture. Like I’ve learned so much just by being here,” said Wilson. Wilson adapted very quickly to the culture of the United States thanks to her teammates and how well they opened up and welcomed her. Wilson doesn’t know what exactly she wants to do after she graduates in the spring of 2019, but she can’t wait to go back to Norway and show those who told her it was stupid to go abroad how wrong they were.

Zach Cassou isn’t your average international student. Though he was born in Virginia, Cassou moved to Germany when he was just a toddler given that his parents were teachers for the Department of Defense Education Activity. After living in Germany for more than 13 years, Cassou decided to move back to the United States to pursue his degree. After living in Florida for two years working as an I.T. guy, Cassou came back to New Hampshire to attend the University of New Hampshire with a focus on Computer Science and Technology, where he started this fall. After graduation, Cassou is hoping to be able to move back to Europe. “I really want to travel to a new place every year and explore the area, or settle down somewhere in Europe while working [remotely] for an American company,” said Cassou. Cassou thinks of himself as a European-American, regardless of what his citizenship says, as by nature and his way of being he feels more identified with the European standards of life.

Following his dad’s advice, young Maytane “May” de Mendieta, from Mexico, decided to come study in the United States due to the prestige institutions hold all around the nation. When her time came, de Mendieta applied to schools all over New England, given the fact that her sister lived in New York at the time, and she wanted some closure with family just in case something happened. De Mendieta feels comfortable and advantaged of her different race and nationality, as she believes this opportunity to study abroad has opened her eyes to how other cultures behave and to how diverse a small state like New Hampshire can be. However, de Mendieta acknowledged that though she doesn’t believe most Americans to be racist, some are ignorant towards this diversity. “Sometimes they’ll say jokes or something and I obviously won’t get mad, but I can definitely see that ignorance and it sometimes just hurts,” she said. De Mendieta’s future is unsure right now, as she isn’t positive about what she wants to do after graduation spring of 2019 but she will always be grateful about what this experience has taught her, and although times may be tough for international students from time to time, de Mendieta believes that “you end up where you are supposed to end up, so after all I’m happy that I’m here,” said de Mendieta. 

These five students only represent a microscopic sample of what the international community is like and how they feel about living abroad in the United States. Nowadays, it is important to keep our eyes and mind open toward our differences and equalities in order to understand each other and live up to the standards that this nation was based upon – the  idea that all people are created equal and have the same rights no matter where they are from or what their beliefs are.

Thanksgiving through the international eyes of an American student

For many across the country, Thanksgiving break is a time of the year for scholars to relax and do nothing special. But for Rachel Foote, a sophomore at the University of New Hampshire, Thanksgiving is one of the only chances in the year she has to see her family, given that part of her family lives in Italy and the rest are scattered throughout the East Coast.

Foote explains Thanksgiving as one of the only times of the year where the only thing that matters to the family is how many movies they watch, how good the food is, and who wins the family board games – such as Scrabble.

Given Foote’s international family background, she is more prone to acknowledge the importance of Thanksgiving, as well as understanding how hard it can get for those international students that don’t have the opportunity to fly home for the break, and are forced to stay around the area by themselves.

To avoid letting international students feel like they have nowhere to go, Foote has hosted students in the past and has tried to make them feel like they were part of her family. Foote admits that when she hosted, she put more effort into making the holiday extra-especial – by cooking more traditional meals and doing more fun things rather than just watching T.V. and sleeping after eating.

Diwali Festival of Lights brings a new perspective to the Hindi culture at UNH

On the last day of International Education Week at the University of New Hampshire, the DESI Student’s Association put together a show in representation of the Diwali Festival of Lights that happens across India every year.

DESI is a term that embodies the people, culture and products of the Indian Subcontinent. However, the student organization is not only filled with students from said part of the world. The Executive Board of DESI –  directed by three upperclassmen – encourages students from all around the world to join them not only in their events but to also partake in their weekly meetings.

“[This event] is all about honor, kindness. It’s about good against evil. It is all for us, and we’re glad you came to join us,” said Vice President Sriyaa Shah.

Throughout the event, which went from 5:30 p.m. to 8:30 p.m., students performed different types of traditional Hindi dances and songs – all of which symbolized the good and the evil, love, praying to the Gods, etc.

Shivani Sudan, a student part of the Association started off the event by doing the Welcome Dance with a hint of Bollywood to “put everybody in the right mindset.”

More than 200 students attended and, though many of them were family members of the performers, many others were students or members of the Durham community that didn’t necessarily form part of the Hindi culture.

Junior Catie Sirois is not related to the culture at all, yet she felt like the Diwali Festival of Lights was a good way to show this culture to other students that, like her, were not familiar with the traditions. “It helps for other people around [Durham] to learn what this is about and get a good understanding about it,” said Sirois.

Dancing and signing, however, were not the only star performances of the night. A fashion show was also put together by all the student performers, as well as the choreographer, to show the culture at another level. This also contributed for the students to see how much it differs one culture from another even in the simplest things, such as clothing.

Towards the end of the night, DESI provided the attendees with a typical Hindi dinner. It consisted of dishes some people knew – such as Chicken Tikka Masala, Samosas, and Naan along with rice, – but it also provided more diverse choices such as Aloo Tikki (seasoned potato patties), Rasamalai (homemade fresh cottage cheese in sweetened milk) and Mango Lassi (a mango and yoghurt drink typical of India).

The Diwali Festival of Lights was interesting and appealing for many students like Grace Canavan, who explained her experience at the event as “a way to see many different cultures that I hadn’t seen nor thought about before.” She enjoyed her time at the event learning about all the other students that she shares a campus with and, ultimately, coexists with.

International Bingo is back at UNH with more students attending

Several times a semester, CAB – the Campus Activity Board – organizes a night of bingo. Every time it holds a different theme, though the most successful one across the student population tends to be Sex Bingo. On November 15th, CAB held an “International Bingo” which tried to plan and guide it from a broader perspective. This “around the world” oriented event was part of the International Education Week that has been happening this week throughout the campus of the University of New Hampshire. CAB’s goal through this event was to bring everybody in the student community closer together by giving them the chance of enjoying the night with people they wouldn’t interact otherwise.

If you want more information on how was the event and what it entailed, click here.

North Carolinians come to N.H. to unite the community through African music

April C. Turner is a performing artist that travels around the country, and sometimes around the world, sharing her knowledge of the traditional West African dances and music. Though she spends most of her time in North Carolina, along with her team of drummers and performers, she enjoys traveling to share her ideas on how these dances and art forms can be used to show community-wide concepts such as working together, integrity, and perseverence.

Turner explained how in several traditional communities of West Africa, music is a key part of their society. Music and dances are used in different events: if somebody is born there is a dance for that, and so there is for a wedding, a funeral, a graduation, and even to plant the farm or give grace.

During her visit to New Hampshire, Turner and her team exhausted the importance that traditional african music has in itself, and everything that it symbolizes. She compares it to today’s modern music and the use we give to it, admitting that she believes “music can tear whole communities apart nowadays.”

Lastly, Turner and her team of performers, put a lot of emphasis on the importance of the instruments and the part that every member of society is given once a dance or music starts playing. They highlighted how a community comes together through these events because everybody is celebrating and assisting to the creation of such rhythm and ceremony.

Furthermore, you’ll be able to find a clip with the sounds of three traditional African drums playing in harmony.

International parade at UNH to bring awareness across campus about diversity

The International Education Week at the University of New Hampshire is famous for its variety of events held throughout the assigned week, which normally falls in mid-November. Some examples of past year’s events are “Chinese names: how do you pronounce them” and “International Humanitarian Response to the Syrian Refugee Crisis,” the seminar.

This week is devoted to raise awareness among the entire campus about the diversity and amount of different nationalities that the University holds. OISS’ staff agree that this is a week where everybody comes together as one – no matter their differences in beliefs, religion, or political mindset.

The first event of this year’s celebrations was the International Flag Parade, which called many campus residents’ attention. “Our goal this year is to give everybody a flag, any flag, in order to show that diversity we hold here at UNH,” says Academic Transition and Integration Advisor Gillissen ‘Gigi’ Green. (Photo/Chiara Vercellone)

The parade begun at Thompson Hall Lawn, located next to the Office of International Students Services. Other entities from the University took part as well –  such as the music band and other non-international students. The parade ended at the Strafford Room, located in the Memorial Union Building.

At the Strafford Room, students were able to visit many tables that contained typical food and other items from different countries of the world. These countries were marked on a map with stickers from different colors to represent where were students from, where they have been and where they want to go or are going in a future. This idea, the students mentioned, made them appreciate more the international community and the rest of the students on campus.

However, the event didn’t solely aim to bring students together. In the past few weeks, the OISS has collected donations that are now part of a “silent action” that will happen on Friday’s luncheon.Among these items, real antiques can be found – like a Japanese Sake Set, a Jordanian hand-painted plate or a set of traditional Egyptian jewelry. “All profits from the auction will go directly to Puerto Rico’s survivors of the hurricane, in hopes that it will help them recover quicker,” says Immigration and Academic Advisor Sarah Miller.

UNH: 90% Americans vs. 10% International

“You are going to the U.S. by yourself? But you look so young!”

“Hi Mrs. …. Um, sorry how do you say your name? It just looks so foreign, ha ha.”

“If you look to your right you’ll see the United States, the land where dreams come true.”

“Hope you enjoyed your flight with us. The airline thanks you and hopes to see you flight with us again.”

“Your room is at the end of the hall. I hope you enjoy orientation!”

“Is that an accent I hear? Where are you from?? TELL ME!!!!”

These are common phrases that most international students seem to have heard at some point in their back-and-forth journeys to college abroad.

At the University of New Hampshire, the international community is bigger than what most students realize. With more than 1,000 international students – almost 10% of the University as a whole, – the University keeps growing every year not only with the admission of American students, but also with the addition of more than 200 students from across the world that decide to attend this campus every fall.

Thuy Nguyen, Senior Immigration and Academic Advisor at the Office of International Student Services, admitted that there isn’t an explicit number of how many students join UNH every year, but agrees that this international community has been rapidly growing for the past couple years not only in New Hampshire, but around the nation.

Studies from the Institute of International Education have concluded that, compared to 2014, in 2016 baccalaureate colleges – such as UNH – have experienced a 7.5% increase in the enrollment of international students.

This increase means more than 2,000 new students in most colleges, which keeps surprising the population throughout the nation – as these numbers haven’t been so high in a long time.

“I think the University really prides itself on creating that diversified learning environment – whether is racially, economically, etc.,” said Nguyen. “This diversity enriches what any student takes away [from college] at the end,” she added.

There isn’t one reason as to why international students decide to come to the little town of Durham to study: there is many. A Voice of America (VOA) article states that the academic institutions in the United States offers some of the best academic programs, as well as career-minded learning opportunities and varied resources archives for research purposes.

Gillissen Green, Academic Transition and Integration Advisor at UNH, believes that though the academic excellence is one of the reasons, the involvement of sports teams in recruiting abroad is a factor that also has a lot of weight in these recent changes.

“This is an effort from the whole University. For different reasons, athletic teams obviously want to get a stronger team, but different departments are trying different things to try to bring [international students] to their department,” said Green.

It is very common for these students to feel homesick or not fully comfortable in such a different place from ‘home,’ but the OISS has created, over the years, a set of different programs to make both American and international students connect and share their different cultures and traditions.

“We are hoping by creating these platforms for people to meet up, the students will feel more inclined to initiate and get people talking and doing fun things,” said Nguyen.

Programs like Buddies without Borders or the different organizations – such as MOSAICO or the Asian Students Club – have made a big difference for these students, as they make them feel at home away from home.

After all, being international is hard: you are away, it is not your language, etc. However, nobody said it would be boring. More information about the OISS provided services and programs can be found here.