乐播传媒

Students from abroad change the 乐播传媒 horizon as much as the College transforms them.

By Phyllis Graber Jensen

Lesley Boakye-Danquah 鈥�03 of the United Kingdom shared a gift with the 乐播传媒 community at last year鈥檚 international fair. Glowing, she wore a beloved dress handmade by her grandmother, in the red, yellow, and green colors of the Ghanaian flag.

I did not talk with her then, but I carried a memory of her in that dress for several months. I knitted that memory together with other impressions gathered of international students. Some I had photographed 鈥� in the classroom; or in Muslim, Buddhist, or Hindu prayer; or downtown in Lewiston or Portland tutoring children 鈥� and still others I had spoken with. Always, I was struck by three qualities: their strong sense of self, a tremendous thirst to explore new opportunity, and a generosity of spirit.

I sat with Ngan Dinh 鈥�02 in the Den recently. I asked her to describe the traditional dress she wore when I photographed her (page 35). 鈥淲hen you think about Vietnam, you think about the ao dai,鈥� she said (ao dai means 鈥渓ong dress.鈥�) 鈥淲hen I wear it, I feel very Vietnamese, very Hanoi, very much a woman.鈥�

International students like Ngan Dinh bring that vivid sense of self-identity to the 乐播传媒 campus. They share themselves with our community, trusting that our community will, in turn, share with them.

In the last few years, the international presence on the 乐播传媒 campus has grown, in response to a stepped-up international-recruitment effort. 鈥淭he liberal arts concept is gaining a foothold around the world,鈥� said Kim Ma Gustafson, associate dean of admissions and coordinator of international recruitment at 乐播传媒.

Technology, too, has helped colleges like 乐播传媒 increase their international visibility. Sameer Maskey 鈥�02 of Kathmandu, Nepal, didn鈥檛 use a computer until he was in high school. He would visit a local cybercafe to get online and, eventually, search for colleges. One day several 乐播传媒 students, who were studying in Nepal, noticed Maskey e-mailing a friend about his acceptance to 乐播传媒. They took time to talk to Maskey about 乐播传媒, urging him to attend. Now he studies computer science along with his chosen majors, physics and math.

鈥淢any regions, including Asia, Africa, and Europe, have traditionally offered exam-based educational systems which track students into majors very early on,鈥� Gustafson said. 鈥淏ut these students are not always well prepared in the areas of writing, problem solving, and critical thinking. Liberal arts graduates are often known for having a broad range of skills, so people around the world are recognizing the value of an education from a place like 乐播传媒.鈥�

鈥� Phyllis Graber Jensen

Robbie Ruttman 鈥�03
Port Elizabeth, South Africa
Majors: Economics and German

My mom and dad are from Dresden, Germany, and they escaped from Germany before the wall was erected. Neither has a high school education.

One day as I was working at the Mays Center, I suddenly realized: I鈥檓 a kid from a seemingly rural town in South Africa. I was awarded a $3,000 Stangle grant to do thesis research in Brussels this summer with the Economic Planning Commission, on the long-term impact of single European currency. During Short Term, I was going with two academic experts as guides and resources through the huge country of China. I was also flying for four days to Hong Kong, before going on for eight weeks to Europe. I thought, 鈥淲ow, that鈥檚 kind of amazing. It鈥檚 an opportunity to change myself.鈥�

乐播传媒 has afforded me the opportunity to engage in so many diverse experiences: debate, student government, and being a member of the Student Conduct Committee. 乐播传媒 allows me to take the road less traveled, to expand my comfort zone in a supportive environment. At first, I was somewhat intimidated by the workload, but if you have a problem, professors work with you to improve. They are interested in the growth of young people. One of the most important parts of being a student is recognizing that capacity for improvement.

乐播传媒 believed in me and trusted me. That responsibility has challenged me and helped my self-confidence. Often, the responsibilities haven鈥檛 been easy. I鈥檝e had to ask for help. I鈥檝e really worked hard to test myself. Knowing I can handle the challenges and having people believe in me, my confidence grows.

Prerana Shrestha 鈥�03Kathmandu, Nepal
Major: Biology

At home, I鈥檇 be studying biology or medicine. At 乐播传媒, I can take economics, dance, art, or live in the Spirituality House. Back home, I鈥檓 in my little world. Here, in such a small place as Lewiston, I鈥檝e been exposed to cultural diversity and career options. Through 乐播传媒, I鈥檝e done a CDIP internship and summer research at NYU Medical Center that have been really helpful to explore fields I might want to enter later on. I want to go into medicine: I鈥檓 interested in hematology and cancer, and the supply of blood in benign or malignant tumors.

My thinking has become more open minded, especially about all kinds of relations, between genders, between professors and students. People here are really free; they talk about anything. At home, you must talk only about homework. Professors are not welcoming of student input, as here. Gender, too. Back home, there are friendships between the sexes, but there is definitely a wall. Back home, if I were to say, 鈥淚鈥檓 working in a restaurant washing dishes,鈥� my family would feel badly. Here, nothing is demeaning. You鈥檒l still respect someone from a different class.

Ngan Dinh 鈥�02
Hanoi, Vietnam
Majors: Economics and Japanese

In my first year here, I lost my confidence. Because of the culture and language barriers, during my first two years at 乐播传媒 I had to focus on academics. I didn鈥檛 have the courage to speak with people. I felt inferior to them. I found my confidence again this year. I鈥檓 doing service-learning. I am on the budget committee for the RA, allocating funds for clubs and organizations on campus, and next year I will be a JA 鈥� although I will be a senior 鈥� in the Bill.

Lewiston has become my home; this is where I live. Last summer, I worked with very little kids and felt really happy because it was not just academic work. I was doing something for my new home. Three times a week, I would ride my bike from 乐播传媒 to the Multipurpose Center, and the children would call 鈥淗i Ngan!鈥� as I arrived.

America is different in many ways from Vietnam, but American kids are not different from Vietnamese kids. When you ask little children in Lewiston or in Vietnam, 鈥淗ow much do you love your mother?鈥� all kids throw their arms open wide and say 鈥淭his much!鈥�

At 乐播传媒, you participate in a variety of activities, not just academics. At home, the political system is different. Our work is assigned, and we have less chance to develop in our creativity. It takes a lot more time to develop an idea. Here, when I have an idea, there is always someone to tell me where to go, how to take the next step. Everything here is possible as long as you have the willingness to serve.

The payoff from education is that I love being with people. I am doing some small things for people, but when you make a lot of little differences, it adds up to making a big difference.

Sorubh Mahadoo 鈥�03(far right)
Quatre-Bornes, MauritiusMajor: Physics

I鈥檝e never had an international experience before. Growing up, I encountered stereotypes about other cultures. 乐播传媒 has opened my eyes about people from other cultures. One stereotype: American students are unfriendly, not approachable, not on a common ground. But I鈥檝e learned that they are friendly, and we do have things in common. We all have the same problems. We worry about studies, the future 鈥� what we will do after 乐播传媒. We鈥檇 like to please our parents and to be successful.

Neeraj Mahadoo 鈥�01

(on the left)
Quatre-Bornes, Mauritius
Major: Chemistry

At home, I had been in the family cocoon. Arriving here, I experienced the culture shock of the college and of the country. It was quite a traumatizing experience. But gradually, I adjusted. It was a learning process. I鈥檝e done more in these four years than in the rest of my whole life: the courses I have taken, the people I have met, the friendships I have made, the opportunities offered to me, and the discussions I鈥檝e had.

I had been accustomed to a secular, narrow-minded mentality, that there is only one way of doing things. That was broadened when I came here. For example, in academics, I thought there was only one right answer. But then I learned that the more you do in research, the more you find there is more than one truth, that there are many facets of the same truth. There is no such thing as truth; it鈥檚 very malleable.

In Mauritius, I was part of a majority. Here, I鈥檓 part of a minority. I鈥檝e learned that basically, people are the same everywhere. Race doesn鈥檛 matter; people have the same feelings, and all of them can be annoying. 乐播传媒 as a small campus has taught me to extrapolate to a larger setting. All the walls we make are of our own making; it鈥檚 all in our own minds; we have to work to get around our inhibitions.

Lesley Boakye-Danquah 鈥�03
London, England
Major: Psychology

I was born in Ghana and raised in England, and at 乐播传媒, I meet lots of people I haven鈥檛 grown up with. 乐播传媒 is my peephole to America. I鈥檝e made lots of new friends here. People tell me when I try to make observations about Americans that 乐播传媒 and Lewiston are not representative of all America. But I鈥檝e got a piece of the picture and am able to view myself from another culture鈥檚 perspective. I moved to England at the age of two. My parents raised me as a Ghanaian in England. I saw the contrast of cultures there. Now I can look at that experience from the American point of view, from a different reference. It helps me see strengths and weaknesses of both cultures.

乐播传媒 has prepared me to go out into the real world. It is a safe place to formulate ideas, to grow. I plan to be a psychiatrist. The academic arena of the health professional field doesn鈥檛 have a lot of minority women. I haven鈥檛 come across lots written by or focused on people of color. 乐播传媒 is a good place to develop that kind of realization because you have access to many resources and support by professors. Here, I feel privileged, nurtured. In England, medical school is purely scientific education. Surely it鈥檚 challenging, but not academically stimulating. 乐播传媒 is academically stimulating.

Alfonso Garcia Bailo 鈥�02
Zaragoza, Spain
Major: Economics

In Spain, I was influenced by the Spanish way of living. It was the only culture I knew, and I had no insight into other ways. When I came to 乐播传媒, I decided to open myself to new people and take advantage of what they had to teach me.

乐播传媒 is where I grew up. I became more mature and open-minded. I have very good friends here. I should have said that first. It鈥檚 an experience I wouldn鈥檛 have been able to get if I had stayed at home: to get to know this culture, to get to know people from all over the world. My friends have opened up my mind in many ways. I try to imagine this place without my friends. It would not be the same at all. If I ever need to talk, they are there for me. And I am there for them.

Professors here such as Kirk Read and James Hughes have encouraged and challenged me, but it鈥檚 up to me to decide to do my work. I have more contact here with teachers. In Spain, you are just a number. If you fail, you fail. Here, professors are interested in your progress and want you to succeed. You want to thrive.