The International Advisory Committee

Could you all introduce yourselves and what you do in IAC?

SN: My name is Silma Nurfadhilah I’m an international student from Indonesia, and in IAC, I am the Creative Chair.

AM: My name is Arine Mkhitaryan, and I’m from Armenia I am the Public Relations Chair of IAC, so I do all of our media

Could you briefly introduce IAC for us?

AM: IAC is the umbrella organization of all international organizations here at OU You know how there are organizations like the India Student Association and the Vietnamese Student Association? All of those organizations fall under us. Well, not under us exactly, but we're helping them to find community within the international and multicultural people here are OU We are super fun and like organizing events

SN: We also supervise international students because we work closely with International Student Services.

AM: We’re trying to bring out the voice of international students here. To emphasize that, “Hey, we're here and we have a voice too.” If I'm not mistaken, there are more than 2000 [international students at OU], for sure. Around 3000?

What are some goals of IAC as an organization?

AM: We are trying to empower the international communities here I asked a lot of the presidents of the international organizations that are in IAC, “What do you think IAC does for you?” And I think they started from like, very practical answers, like, “IAC helps us to the budget stuff with SGA,” to “It helps us to actually connect with people who share similar backgrounds on how we appear in the US and what are we trying to do with our voices ”

SN: We're trying to advocate also because in the US, people have a hard time understanding the difference between international people who have residency in the US, and international students who don't have residency and are just here for college. That's a big distinction that a lot of Americans don't really understand. We're trying to say, “Hey, we're on F-1 Visa. We don't have all the privileges that someone who has residency here could have ” That’s the distinction we're trying to emphasize

AM: IAC could also be the first place where international students may want to contribute to the college, but don't know where to start They feel like they don't belong here or like they must fit in the society here – especially because of culture differences. I feel like that's a big mission of IAC. To give international students a platform and a voice.

How did IAC create a sense of home for you?

AM: Personally? I think it's individual connections within the organization We're all friends and we all do things together. I know that if I have a problem, I can just go to any of the people in the organization and they will listen. They will try to support me. We also all understand that this is voluntary basis. We do it with passion, not just because we have to do it That makes it better

SN: I feel for me, IAC is the first organization that I'm going to go to, because I feel like I don’t fit into other organizations. Not because I’m really scared, but I just feel kind of awkward, you know? Because I’m not sure where to start or how to interact with all of these different cultures With the people in IAC, I feel like I don't need to start building that first level of understanding because we're international students. Because it's like a shared experience.

How does your identity fit into your organization?

AM: The moment I came to the U.S., I had a huge identity crisis. People would ask me, “What’s your new state, what’s your ethnicity?” I didn’t know what to answer because I know my country and my nationality, but it’s not a big factor back home. IAC is nice because it’s not ethnicity-based but nationality-based. You feel better because you’re not put into a box.

A while back, Erik [the AASA Creative Director] mentioned, “You’re Asian” for “APIDA-MENA.” That was the first time [I had heard that], since not even Asians think I’m Asian and Europeans don’t think I’m European. So, I’m like, “What am I?”

SN: That’s a big thing. It’s not that we don’t think about it, but it’s not really discussed back home.

AM: And people don’t believe me when I tell them that back home, it’s not that important. Everyone has a similar background, so you’re not questioned.

Is this struggle for identity common among international students?

AM: Yes. At home, we have an idea about different cultures and different political systems. When we come here, they want to put you in a box, but you don’t fit in

SN: Here, I’m not American, but when I go back home, I don’t feel like I grew up together with my family. For example, I already grew apart with my international experience. I’m not up to date with my country’s news, and here, I don’t know much about anything So, I don’t know, “What am I?” That’s the identity crisis for me.

With that in mind, how does IAC foster a home away from home for the international community?

SN: As an organization, one of the biggest parts is organizing events, like cultural events. I think that's a big part of it.

AM: We also support each other by going to each other's events and experiencing each other's cultures Everybody supports everybody's diversity

We want to celebrate that diversity here I think that's what makes people feel like they’re at home. They know they can be the way they are and that is going to be celebrated.

SN: Yeah, More than that, we also do discussions regarding events that happen around the world If you see our Instagram, we post live statements. I feel like we want to make a platform where we see you.

What are some of the other struggles that international students go through, that we may not be aware of?

AM: Our frustration level was at its peak when the SGA candidates came to campaign at our GBM.

We asked them about what solutions they had for international students, and they said, “Oh, we’re thinking of cooperating with the government to make work-study better for you.” We can’t do work-study because we don’t have residency. Even though we’re being informed about what’s happening around us, we can’t really change much because we don’t have the right to vote

There are also international students who also have monetary issues, since it’s very hard to change currency from your home country to here. It’s a big difference, so there’s the monetary struggle.

Thirdly, the student organizations here are very U.S.-oriented or Oklahoma-oriented, so you feel left out. You’re like, “I wasn’t raised here, I didn’t grow up here, I’m only here for two years so I don’t know how much I can contribute to the issues that you’re bringing up ”

SN: Some people have a visa, like me, I have a five-year student visa. After I graduate, I have to get a job to extend this visa, but some people don’t have that privilege They have to reapply and if they don’t get that visa or get work, they get kicked out.

As a multicultural and international student organization, how does IAC encompass all these different cultures and countries into one organization?

AM: For our bigger events, we want to give a platform to everyone. The first one is the International Bazaar, where specific organizations represent their culture and have a platform to fundraise. All of these organizations gather together to appreciate each other, and it works very well. The second one is the Gala, which is like a prom. We want everybody to experience the American prom, but it’s also a way to bring out international music and let people dance to their music

SN: And in the spring, we have the International Royalty Pageant. It’s nice to have that international student representation and to help their platforms impact the student body.

AN: We also have the Eve of Nations, which is the biggest multicultural event here in Oklahoma. We have a big stage, and everybody is given the opportunity to contribute in any way We have added new things like a fashion show and guest performers. Everybody has that platform to represent themselves. We have food, we have music, we have every aspect of culture represented at Eve of Nations

What would be some events that you would hope to have in the future, if there were available resources?

AM: I have several answers that come to mind. First, it’s so silly, but a field trip to the World Cup Final. We would do that because I feel like it’s the thing that distinguishes international students – “football” versus “soccer.”

SN: I remember when we had the World Cup, everybody was watching it. Many organizations were screening it and watching football – oh, soccer

How do you hope to see IAC evolve in these next few years?

SN: I wish IAC would not only be used for representing international students, but also representing international students’ interests I think that’s a really big difference

Sometimes, international students are being used for advertisements, like, “Oh, we’re really into DEI at this university ” I wish that I could see OU work to actually provide international students with what they need.

AM: We emphasize the idea of representation and amplifying voices, but sometimes, it becomes kind of like, “We’re so diverse ” Every time IAC tables, they come to take a video of all the flags we have, and that’s it. Also, there are a lot of students from other countries who are never empowered enough to open up their organizations and create a “home away from home” for themselves. I would like for us to empower other people and other groups to establish their own organization and become a part of IAC.