Saint Mary-of-the-Woods College (SMWC) students won’t have to step foot off campus this week to experience a new culture.
The College hosted its fourth annual Woods World Fair on Wednesday as part of International Education Week, Nov. 17-21. Students, faculty and staff participated in a table display event in the Woods Student Center, where flags were displayed recognizing the campus’s 36 international students from 18 countries.
“Everyone has their own individual culture, and this is a way to bring them all together in one room,” said Ethan Johnson, a freshman Sport Management major from England who worked the Canadian table with his friend, Andoni Ybanez, a sophomore Kinesiology major from France who has spent time living in Canada.
SMWC is among many higher education institutions celebrating International Education Week. It is an initiative by the U.S. Department of State and the U.S. Department of Education to honor international collaboration in education and showcase programs that prepare individuals for the global environment.
“SMWC’s participation in the worldwide celebration of International Education Week demonstrates our shared commitment to promoting and celebrating international education, cultural exchange and valuing diverse perspectives,” said Kim LaComba, Ph.D., director of the Ph.D. in Global Leadership programs and associate professor. “I hope each of us learns from one another through diverse cultural perspectives that enrich our knowledge and prepare us to collaborate effectively in our globally connected world.”
The SMWC community explored cultural displays, learned about student global projects, sampled sweets from around the world and discovered more about the different cultures of the students at The Woods.
“In America, I find a lot of people don’t know much about South American countries,” said Santiago Abraham, a freshman from Buenos Aires, Argentina, who is double-majoring in Sport Management and Kinesiology. “I brought food and tea from my country that are traditional things we enjoy, and I hope the people here do, too.”
On Wednesday, there was an international trivia night where students earned prizes for correct answers.
In addition to campus events, daily lunch options featured a different country. The week’s menu included:
Monday – French
Croque monsieur with french fries and parsley buttered baby carrots
Tuesday – Italian
Pasta al ragu alla bolognese with garlic bread and stewed green beans
Wednesday – Traditional Thanksgiving
Roasted turkey with mashed potatoes and gravy, stuffing, green bean casserole, etc.
Thursday – Samoan
Pisupo stir fry with steamed white rice and pani popo
Friday – Serbian
Potato musaka with kiflice and roasted broccoli