Residence Hall Travels the Globe
Anchor Intro: Students traveled around the world, but without leaving the comfort of their rooms. Reporter Lauren Stebelton found how one residence hall explores the globe every day.
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Residents of Koonce Hall can travel the globe, without ever leaving the building.
Koonce Hall Council held an “Around the World” event March 18, each floor representing a different country.
Italy, England and the Netherlands were just some of the countries presented.
Students experienced traditional dishes and participated in different activities, from playing British football to making Jamaican hacky sacks.
This is just one example of international diversity in Koonce Hall.
“Koonce Hall is the International Village Experience Building, so on the ninth and tenth floor, we have students from all around the world,” said Vice President of Hall Council Virginia Ashley.
As a part of this community, the hall council believes they should represent their international residents’ countries for other students to understand their cultures and the way they live.
“I did notice a few international students around and it did seem like they really enjoyed to go around and see the different countries, especially the one’s that they aren’t from,” said Ashley. “Not only are they here in America to learn about our culture, but they got to learn about other countries as well.”
One of these international students is even a Resident Assistant on the ninth floor.
“By interacting with each other, international and domestic students learn about each others’ homes, how things are different and interesting facts about where they’re from,” said senior Resident Assistant Joy Yala.
Yala houses residents from countries such as Puerto Rico, Brazil and China.
“There’s a lot of very interesting international students from different countries with different experiences,” said Yala. “You never know what you can learn from them, because I’ve learned a lot from my different residents.”
This community may inspire other residence halls to do the same.