An international welcome dinner was held last Friday in Mansheski seminar room to welcome and bring Quinnipiac’s international students closer together. The event was sponsored by the International Club, and supervised by its adviser Michael Clear from Career Services.
“Everyone here is from a different background, everyone is bringing something different,” said Aisha Khan, president of the International Club. “People are talking to each other about their cultures and their countries.”
Anjali Desai is from India and is the secretary of the club. She said the purpose is to get the club’s name out and let people on campus know there is an international club and that everyone is welcome, not only international students. In fact, there are several members from Connecticut in the club.
“Everyone here is really open minded and they all want to learn about different cultures,” said Desai.
She said she has personally received many questions about being a vegetarian, and that all international students are usually willing to talk about their experiences.
“It’s the first time we’ve tried this in such a big group,” said Desai, but added that she is very happy with the outcome of the event.
Freshman Christopher Lloyd is originally from South Korea, but was adopted at six months and have lived in the U.S. since. He usually attends the International Club meetings because he likes the atmosphere.
“It’s good to see the different backgrounds and the diversity within the school,” Lloyd said.
Desai mentioned that 77 people signed up during the Organization Showcase, and she believes the people who came to this welcome dinner are those who were really interested, and their friends.
“The International Club is important because it proves to people that diversity can be a good thing,” said Khan. “People from different backgrounds get together and are very creative, they come up with a lot of new ideas.”
Desai said the club is working to be more service oriented. They plan to visit the elderly home Laurel Gardens to hold an ice-cream social and a fashion show this semester.
“We also plan to have a movie night in Buckman [Theatre] with a good international movie,” said Desai.
Last week the club visited Yale University’s international dinner, and many members from the club attended, something Desai was happy to explain:
“If you say free food to these people, they’re there.”