[Kabar-indonesia] Indonesia day an example of what foreign students offer

[Joyo at aol.com]

The Athens News [Athens, Ohio USA]
Septermber 1, 2006

Indonesia day an example of what foreign students offer

By Ernest Waititu
Athens News Writer

After slicing down and consuming the cone-shaped mountain of steamed yellow 
rice and a number of other Indonesian delicacies lined up by the Indonesian 
Students Association at Richland Avenue Park, it's time for play for party 
attendees.

In one of the games, a sack race, after the players get into large plastic 
bags and hop in competition, the audience cheers elatedly. A flurry of 
activities follow as the students and faculty members take part in celebration of the 
61st Indonesian Independence Day on Saturday, Aug. 19.

This is just one of the many activities that incoming undergraduate and 
graduate students both local and international quickly acquaint themselves with 
when they set foot at Ohio University.

On this particular Saturday, the celebrations had been pushed forward from 
Aug. 17, the actual Indonesian Independence Day, to allow a sizeable number of 
the OU community to attend. And to be sure, dozens of students, faculty and 
Athens residents gathered to enjoy the summer evening in Indonesian style.

"I'm interested in other cultures, if I hear of opportunities like this I 
attend," says Satoko Tsunoda, a master's student in international development 
from Japan. Attending such celebrations "helps me to understand other people and 
their cultures," adds Tsunoda.

Festivities like these, organized by different student organizations in 
Athens, make OU a melting pot of many international cultures.

"We are a rural Midwestern university, and it would be very easy for us to be 
isolated from the rest of the world," says Don Flournoy, the faculty adviser 
for the Indonesian Students Association at OU.

Having student organizations formed by different group of students from 
different parts of the world serves to enrich the international scene in Athens, 
notes Flournoy, a professor in the School of Telecommunication who has lived and 
worked in Indonesia. A ceremony like the Independence Day of Indonesia gives 
people in Athens a glimpse of what goes on elsewhere in the world. It provides 
part of international students' contribution in educating the Athens 
community, says Flournoy.

The Independence Day celebration is one of the activities that make the 
presence of the Indonesian Students Association felt at the OU, says Ahmad Thohir 
Yoga, president of the student group. "Our presence as an association is 
important because it proves OU is diverse," says Yoga.

Ruben Dlamini, president of the International Students Union (ISU) at OU, 
says that organizations formed by international students on campus help in 
"promoting cultural understanding among international and domestic students." This 
is important in a school like OU that's situated in the Appalachian region 
where many people do not have resources to travel widely, according to Dlamini.

By attending numerous events organized by international student 
organizations, residents are able "to enjoy the food, experience the languages and other 
things that international students are doing on campus," he says. "This opens 
the world to the people in this region; this way, they do not think locally, 
they think globally."

According to the ISU Web site (http://www.ohiou.edu/~isu/,) ISU acts as the 
umbrella organization for 23 international students organizations at OU. In 
addition, ISU members represent the collective educational, cultural and 
developmental interests of more than 100 countries

Basetsana Maposa, president of the Africa Students Union (ASU) at OU, says 
ASU holds numerous events, which besides other objectives help to reaffirm the 
African presence on campus. "In collaboration with the Center for African 
Studies at Ohio University," she explains, ASU "tries to make Africa part of the 
agenda at Ohio University."

However, most central to these organizations is their efforts to help new 
international students cope with life thousands miles away from home and the 
resulting culture shock. "There is a lot going on here that is different from what 
we experience in our countries," says Maposa. "This plus school work can 
overwhelm new students. Student organizations step in to help students by 
providing a sense of belonging and a support system; giving them rides, helping them 
get housing and on-campus jobs."

And the support system starts even before the students arrive at OU. Dlamini 
says that the ISU organized the pickup of more than 25 students from Port 
Columbus this year. "We realize that most of these international students do not 
have money to spend on cabs," says Dlamini. "They have spent a lot buying plane 
tickets from their countries. That is why we offer to meet them halfway by 
picking them from the airport. We also take this as an early chance to welcome 
them to their new home."

When they arrive at their new home, they are initiated into activities that 
keep them reminded of their original homes. "Holding events like Indonesian 
Independence Day is very important; this is how we remind ourselves that we are 
from Indonesia," says Yoga.

And truthfully so, these students remain well reminded of their home. When a 
tsunami hit parts of Asia and Africa in December 2004, the Indonesian Students 
Association at OU helped raise more than $7,000 to help relief efforts in 
their homeland.

It's part of the dual mandate of the international student organizations to 
help students acquaint themselves with the American culture while at the same 
time keeping them true to their original homes.

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Joyo Indonesia News Service
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