As senior Jennika Jaison looked around the room with microphone in hand, all eyes were on her. Some eyes from Ghana, some from Spain, England, Germany, Canada, Argentina, the Bahamas and even others from her native country of India.
And by the end of her speech, some of those were beginning to water with tears.
“We only have 25 people left in our international community — 25 people who left our families, our countries and everything familiar to start over in a place we’d never seen,” Jaison said as she addressed her fellow international students, along with several staff members who were in attendance at Averett University’s annual international student reception on Wednesday night in the Main Hall lobby.
“I remember how strange it all felt at first—the food, the accents and the time difference that made calling home so hard,” recalled Jaison, a biological sciences and sports medicine major from Mumbai, India. “The people in this room became the ones we called when we were homesick, the ones we celebrated the holidays with and the ones who understood everything without needing an explanation. And now, next semester, most of us will graduate. For the second time in our lives, we’re ready to leave home. Only this time, home is here. We’ll scatter across the world again, but we’ll carry this place and each other with us. So to my fellow international students, thank you for being my family here.”
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Averett hosted its international student reception on Wednesday, followed by a Diwali celebration on Thursday as lead-up events to its International Education Week held Nov. 16-20. It’s a special occasion to celebrate an international culture at Averett that dates back more than four decades. Averett has welcomed international students to campus regularly since the late 1970s after establishing pipelines to countries such as Finland early on. Since then, those ties have expanded to produce alumni from more than 60 countries spanning six continents.
“I often think about how fortunate we are that these students have chosen to make our campus their home, even if only for a few years,” said Tammy Jackson, Averett’s dean of students and director of international student services and cultural awareness. “While we hope they leave here with wonderful memories, lifelong friendships, and a meaningful education, I know that they leave something lasting with us, too. I know they have left something lasting with me. I am forever changed, and better for it, because of the opportunity to know them, learn from them, and share in their journeys. That, to me, is one of the greatest gifts of an international campus community.”
International Education Week events
Averett will be hosting multiple events open to all members of the campus community in celebration of International Education Week:
- On Monday, Nov. 16, an International Week kickoff event will be held in the Cougar Den from 11:30 a.m.-12:30 p.m.
- On Tuesday, Nov. 17, Averett will host an International Men’s Day Luncheon in Carrington Gym at 11:15 a.m.
- On Wednesday, Nov. 18, come for the Paint & Sip event and sample drinks from around the world from 6-8 p.m. in the MPR.
- On Thursday, Nov. 19, Averett is hosting an International Game & Craft Night in the Student Center Lounge (fourth floor of the Student Center) from 6:30-8:30 p.m.
- On Friday, Nov. 20, there will be a Pop the Balloon collab event in Blount Chapel from 6-9 p.m.
Jackson encouraged non-international students to come be a part of the International Education Week events. A number of students, faculty and staff attended Thursday’s Diwali celebration, which gave attendees the chance to try Indian food and learn more about the Hindu festival of lights.
“Through cultural celebrations, food tastings, traditional clothing, music and shared experiences, they open doors to parts of the world that many of us might never otherwise have the opportunity to experience,” Jackson noted. “They challenge us to look beyond the boundaries of our own communities, broaden our perspectives, and recognize just how much bigger and more connected our world truly is.”
Student experiences and community
Although the international student population has fluctuated in numbers in recent years, current international students have treasured their academic and social experiences while at Averett.
“It’s the people. Here at Averett, no matter if you are international or American or even a commuter, everyone is just so interested and also there for each other,” said senior Sunna Maas, a business administration major from Berlin, Germany. “I just love how everyone is interested in your story and your background, but at the same time, we’re all Averett students. That’s what makes us one community. No matter who’s from what background, we all go to the same classes, know the same people, know the same professors, eat at the same place. So no matter what your story before Averett was, this is our story now and it’s what we bond over. And that’s why I think we all support each other.”
Building that sense of community on campus and a sense of family within the international student population makes the transition of coming to the United States to study abroad much easier, Maas noted.
“We all choose to leave home, leave our comfort zone, our house, people we love, friends,” Maas said. “We come here knowing literally nobody. Most of us hadn’t seen the university and hadn’t ever met a person here. Maybe you texted a few times with someone, but apart from that, nothing. So having other people in that same situation is very comforting, and you bond over the same things.”
Averett being a smaller school also helps build those connections within the international student population.
“It’s a small school, so you get really familiar with everyone,” said junior Roger Pamies Petit, an aerospace management major from Reus, Spain. “We get really welcomed at this school … so I really like it.”
Senior Cassidy Lewis, a senior from Nassau, Bahamas, who is majoring in psychology, currently serves as the president of Averett’s International Life Club. Lewis said coming to Averett has been life-changing for her, and she wouldn’t change her decision.
“Having international students here from all around the world helped me to learn different cultures and how to communicate in different styles,” Lewis said. “That’s always good for when you go out into the world. You need to learn how to communicate with different people who come from different backgrounds. It’s not just going to be people from your own background. And that’s going to help you become a better person because you now know you can communicate and work with these people and live among these people without it being a problem.”
Lewis hopes that Averett’s campus community will come take part in the many events scheduled for International Education Week.
“It’s not only for internationals,” she said. “It’s for everybody to come. It’s an easy opportunity to learn about different cultures.”
