February 21 , 2006
NEWSGroup helps foreign students feel at home
New international students received a warm welcome in the Kirk Student Center’s Kiva Room on February 6. The International Student Association, a club at MCC that promotes unity and fellowship among international students, hosted the event.
Robert Decker, ISA’s advisor, kicked off the event by explaining to students why the reception was being held.
“A student called me looking for fellow students who are from his home country. This is his first time away from home and he was feeling lonely,” Decker said. “The problem was that because of student privacy issues, I could not give out contact information.”
“This meeting is so that you can meet other students from your and other countries and local students as well,” Decker explained.
Mixer games with door prizes were played. Through the games, students were able to intermingle and ask questions about each other, such as where they were from and what brought them to MCC. Students from Bulgaria, Brazil, Mexico, the Philippines, China, Japan, Iran and other countries were present at the event.
Francia Lucas, a nursing student from the Philippines, explained that the reception was a way for her to meet with other international students.
“It’s tough being new here in the States. It’s nice to meet other students who you can relate to,” Lucas said. Lucas said she was glad to attend the informational reception.
Ali Fini, president of the ISA, explained that the association was beneficial for a common feeling among international students: homesickness.
“When I first arrived here from Iran, I was alone,” Fini said.
Fini is a global business major who has been studying at MCC for three years. He explained some of the difficulties international students face.
“A lot of us come here alone, without family, and feeling homesick happens. Through ISA, I was able to find friends who could relate to me,” Fini said.
A concern international students deal with includes tuition and work.
“As international students, our tuition is much higher. We can pay up to $5,000 or more,” Fini explained. “We also have to be fulltime students. We are also limited as far as working since our student visas only allow us to work on campus. So the ISA provides a nice support group,” Fini said.
The club offers peer support for foreign students, but they also set aside time for recreation. Fini announced to the group that they are planning group trips to the Grand Canyon and San Diego.
ISA also welcomes non-international students.
“As international students we want to show fellow local students at MCC that we’re the same as them. We want to bring cultural awareness on campus,” Fini said.
Jennifer Golab, a local student, attended the ISA reception after hearing about it in her Spanish class.
“My Spanish teacher mentioned the reception. I thought it was a great opportunity for me to meet native Spanish speaking students who I can practice with,” Golab said.
The club meets every other Friday at the International Student center. Aside from club meetings, the club also keeps in touch with members via a Yahoo Groups message board.
“ISA is a club where we recognize, support and celebrate students from other countries,” Fini said. “We welcome everyone, international or not, to come learn about other cultures from a student’s point of view.”
Volume 43, Issue 10. Today is
Robert Decker, International Education adviser (right),
facilitated a meeting on Feb. 6. which helped MCC international students meet
other students from their home countries.