They Get By with a Little Help from Their Friends
Homesickness. The cultural shock of being in the United States. Trying to figure out where your culture fits into this culture. That is what Cara Dai says she was feeling when she arrived at Loomis Chaffee as a freshman.
Now she is a senior leader — a head International Student Ambassador (ISA). “I thought as a head ISA I could bring my experiences, my opinions, to make this process smoother for other international students,” said Cara, who is from China. “To be there for others.”
Junior Alex Shymkiv, another head ISA, is from Ukraine. His sister Kate is a 2022 graduate and twin brother Misha is a junior. When Alex first arrived at Loomis, Vlad Miloserdov ’23 was an ISA who helped Alex feel comfortable. “He really helped me, ate lunch with me, ate dinner with me,” Alex said. “I felt being an ISA I could contribute but being a head ISA I could contribute even more. I just wanted to follow in the steps of the people before me that helped integrate me into the community. My situation was hard. I came from a country with war and was scared for my parents every day. Homesickness, new language, and everything. So I just want students to feel someone has their back and is there for them.”
Senior Laura Phyu, from Myanmar, also wanted to give back.
“I applied to be a head ISA because the ISAs helped me my freshman year to navigate a new culture and a new school,” Laura said. “And I was inspired to do the same for current and incoming students. Being an ISA means working with people from different countries, different cultures.”
Laura also sees the ISA role as important for encouraging students to learn about each others’ countries. “If you have questions don’t be afraid to ask. There is no harm in asking people about their cultures,” she said.
Seniors Laura Phyu, from Myanmar, and Cara Dai of China are two of the head International Student Ambassadors.
Each of the head ISAs is immersed in the community. Cara is a Writing Studio intern and is involved in the Community Engagement program. Laura is president of South East Asians at Loomis (SEAL), dances hip-hop and jazz, participates in Model United Nations, and enjoys painting. Alex is involved in track and field and community engagement.
Head ISAs are selected by the current group of ISAs and must be in their second or third year as an ISA. A head ISA is responsible for supporting the ISAs, whose role includes checking in on the international students in their cohort. Head ISAs also are liaisons between the ISAs and Molly Pond, the director of international student support. The ISAs, in turn, serve as liaisons between their cohort members and Molly. This year there are 23 ISAs and three head ISAs.
There are many sophomore ISAs, which Molly said is “a really good leadership training program.” Molly said many go on to become prefects or a resident advisors (RAs) in their dorms. “Some might say that’s too bad; you spend a year with them, and they go do something else, but what that means is we increase the international perspective and point of view among our prefects and RA population,” Molly said.
Junior Alex Shymkiv, another head ISA, is from Ukraine.
Over the course of the year, the ISAs are involved in multiple events. Two of the biggest are Lunar New Year celebrations, spread over a few days in late January and early February, and Cultural Outburst in the spring.
There are five Lunar New Year events on the schedule this year:
Tuesday, January 28: A skit during the all-school meeting in the morning and a special Lunar New Year's menu in the dining hall. The skit will involve ISAs dressed in costumes of the 12 animals of the Chinese zodiac cycle. This is the year of the snake.
Friday, January 31: An evening cooking class with sophomore Alyssa Ji in the new classroom kitchen in the Clark Center for Science & Mathematics, held in conjunction with the Norton Family Center for the Common Good. Alyssa is a Norton Center intern.
Saturday, February. 1: An evening celebration, 7:30–10 p.m., in the Scanlan Campus Center. Asian Performing Arts will present a show and workshops in calligraphy, decorative arts, Tai Chi, and dragon dance. Multiple dishes and desserts will be served.
Sunday, February. 2: Chinese dance workshop, 4–5 p.m., in the Athletics Center dance studio, with junior Clair Cen. All experience levels are welcome.
Cultural Outburst, which takes place on April 26 this year, is an evening of ethnic food, performance, and a fashion show of native dress. Last year for Cultural Outburst there were about 24 food booths staffed by students and about 12 cultures represented in the fashion show.
There is, of course, a learning curve when entering boarding school from another country, made easier when you get involved in extracurricular activities and meet more people. The transition is made much easier by the ISAs, who have journeyed along a similar path, and by events such as the celebration of Lunar New Year.
“Very often, food and authentic flavors help students feel connected to home,” Molly said. “The decorations are familiar. ... There are some very traditional decorations — in the same way that Western cultures might identify a turkey with Thanksgiving and a tree with Christmas — that just say Lunar New Year.” For students who have grown up celebrating Lunar New Year, Molly said, the familiar decorations and traditions and the shared celebration of the occasion “can go a long way to saying ‘I belong here. This is my school. ... This is my home.’”