{"id":1977,"date":"2018-09-23T02:50:54","date_gmt":"2018-09-23T02:50:54","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/www.missouriwestern.edu\/yearbook\/?p=1977"},"modified":"2019-11-08T15:12:53","modified_gmt":"2019-11-08T21:12:53","slug":"international-fair-2017","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/www.missouriwestern.edu\/yearbook\/2018\/09\/23\/international-fair-2017\/","title":{"rendered":"International Fair 2017"},"content":{"rendered":"

By: Lindsey Gomez<\/span><\/p>\n

L<\/span>oud music blared throughout the Fulkerson Center as students came together to create a special evening at the 2017 International Fair.<\/span><\/p>\n

Twenty-nine countries were represented the day of the international fair; each country\u2019s flag was standing tall on the stage. To the left, international students from Spain were telling stories of their country and on the right, international students from India were dancing to Bollywood music. <\/span><\/p>\n

Ann Rahmat, director of international student services<\/a> at Western, has been involved with the international fair for three years. Rahmat assists the students by preparing them to present their country and said the international fair is an open door for conversation from the international students.\u00a0<\/span><\/p>\n

\u201cWe want to expose American students to a world outside of St. Joseph and add value to their education,\u201d Rahmat said. \u201cInternational students are the experts to get to know about the other cultures which develops students attending Western.\u201d<\/span><\/p>\n

Oganya Agbaji, a junior at Western studying psychology, is from Nigeria. Nigeria is in Southwest Africa with a warm climate all year. Agbaji said the weather in Missouri is quite different from her home country.<\/span><\/p>\n

\u201cI can walk out my door every day and be surprised by the weather here in Missouri,\u201d Agbaji said. \u201cIt\u2019s good to be here at Western though; it\u2019s really a family out here with the strong sense of community on campus.\u201d<\/span><\/p>\n

Walking from country to country at the international fair, one constantly learns new facts. Buddha is from Nepal, Japan is an island and in Spain futbol<\/a> is the sport of the country. The world is full of many cultures and students were able to embrace many of them at the fair.<\/span><\/p>\n

Fumi Cheever, Assistant Director of International Student Services at Western, said all of the countries have much to offer. The international students make up two percent of Western\u2019s student body. The international fair allows many students to learn and welcome the international students which in turn will help Western grow. <\/span><\/p>\n

\u201cWestern has a manageable number of international students which allows me to grow personally with the students,\u201d Cheever said. \u201cThe university is open to new ideas, flexible to moving forward and I have support from other departments.\u201d <\/span><\/p>\n

Students walked away full of delicious food, full of knowledge and most importantly, full of new ways to integrate with international students.\u00a0<\/span><\/p>\n\n\t\t