Being an international student in the U.S. is, at times, like drinking from a fire-hose. You feel a mix of emotions rise as you get off the green Peter Pan bus, half-confused and half-amazed. You feel it when the International Students Orientation Committee (ISOC) members greet you and lead you to Blanchard to obtain the key to your first college room, or when you see your first U.S. tax forms. The funny thing is, you don’t even know when American culture starts to permeate your life through the most obvious way—holidays.
As the old Vietnamese saying goes, “When a river joins a bigger one, it follows the stream. When you join a family, respect that family’s traditions.” In the context of such a diverse cosmos as Mount Holyoke, understanding and respect for differences are central to the life of every student. As international students add American holidays to their personal calendars, they integrate themselves into the bigger campus community.
Many U.S. holidays and traditions have become popular around the world. Mother’s Day, first celebrated by Anna Jarvis of West Virginia, has spread to as far as Southeast Asia as a day to honor motherhood, even though there are many variations in celebration dates (Belarus, for instance, celebrates Mother’s Day on Oct. 14). Yet, some American traditions are not well known to many international students as they require some historical knowledge. But whether you are passionate about different cultures or not, it is always best that you know the origin of a holiday rather than merely feeling satisfied with getting a day off from school or work.
Before boarding the flight to Boston as a first-year student, I acquainted myself with American culture through Wikipedia. However, my idea of Thanksgiving dinner didn’t take shape until I listened to Thu Quach ’12 recall her memories of Thanksgiving dinner with a South Hadley family, and until I attended one myself.
The Thanksgiving hosting program for international students, which has existed for years, offers two alternatives—a dinner at a local family’s house or a stay with an alumnae for the whole or part of Thanksgiving. Donna Van Handle, the Dean of International Students, said that around 30 students participate in the local families’ dinner event and 15 students visit alumni in the New England and New York regions. This past fall, three international students spent their Thanksgiving breaks at the house of our President-elect Lynn Pasquerella ’80 who, as Van Handle said, “always welcomed students to come and stay.” The program helps international students appreciate a very traditional American holiday and gain insight into the life of a typical American family.
Van Handle recalled with a passion other cultural programs that the McCulloch Center has organized for international students in the past. In February 2008, a dinner for international students featured conversations about American historical issues such as civil rights. At a similar event two months later, domestic and international students got together to share their experiences and insights about one another’s values. Some interesting cultural issues emerged. Growing up in different environments, many international students did not have the same knowledge about American traditions and did not share the same understanding about the States’ multicultural society.
On March 30, 2008, a generous Inclusiveness Initiatives Fund (IIF) grant allowed the spring and fall international entrants of the class of 2011 to appreciate the immigration history of the United States via a trip to Ellis and Liberty Islands in New York Harbor.
Efforts have also been extended to faculty and staff to introduce them to the unique challenges that international students may face in an American classroom environment. Last fall during finals week Van Handle organized the faculty viewing of Culture Shock, the same movie that international students of the class of 2013 watched shortly after they entered Mount Holyoke. “Many faculty members want to find out how they can best approach international students,” Van Handle said. “Sometimes it is just the most basic thing, like how to say hello and what kind of food their students like.”
This spring, international students received an invitation to an alternative spring break program, consisting of an educational trip to Boston to explore U.S. immigration issues. Daniela Pila ’12, organizer of the IIF-funded trip, wants international students to know more about U.S. immigration policy and multicultural issues. “As I see in my immigration politics class, many problems within this area do affect them,” Pila said. A native of the Philippines, Pila found inspiration from her experience helping to renovate playgrounds in Fishtown, Philadelphia. She hopes to continue the alternative spring break program in the future.
It’s hard to characterize an international student’s “American experience” at Mount Holyoke. Sometimes, you unknowingly learn from your classmates, roommates and floormates. Sometimes, you get your feet wet by jumping aggressively into a cultural ocean you have never known. You drink, you eat, you laugh your way through. There are times when you may feel isolated and welcomed simultaneously. But by your Commencement, you will have learned something about the American culture that has entered your life and stayed there.
Related posts:
- Is immigration next on Obama’s checklist?
- International students celebrate their holidays away from home
- Joy to the World: December holidays around the globe
- Migration scholar addresses ethical issues in American policy
- Leadership conference unites Asian-American students
