The Patriot - October 19th, 2022

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October 19, 2022

Diversity and Inclusion on Campus

Letter From the Managing Editor

Building Bridges in Diversity One Conversation at a Time

BY M addie Furtick

Editor-in-Chief Lacie DeGough

Staff Writer

Managing Editor Summer Mills Faculty Advisor Jeremiah Massengale

Photo by Elizabeth Spires

Hola Patriotas, How is everyone doing? The staff of The Patriot sincerely hopes that everything is going well. We hope that you took all of our finals tips and tricks into account. This week is a fresh start for those on bi-term schedules. It will be strange having to adjust again, but you guys got this. Take those classes and run. Start the new bi-term out great with a fresh look, especially if your last one did not go as expected. If it did go great, push yourself to do even better than before.

We are so excited to highlight our international students this week. The University of the Cumberlands has students from over 40 countries in our graduate and undergraduate programs. Many students come from all over to play sports and join our superior academics. This diversity is why it is so important to celebrate our differences. We all come from various economic, cultural, and religious backgrounds, yet we are all still human beneath all these things. We should be treated as equals because God made us all fearfully and wonderfully.

This issue gives insight into the world language department and diversity club. A peek into the international food night gives us many dishes from all over.

We get to see what people are homesick for and why, along with translated words through our word search. Our goal is to shine a light on everyone. For so many, the campus has become their home, but without the diverse group of people here, it wouldn’t feel like one. Williamsburg is a safe space for everyone; we love meeting new people from all walks of life. It makes our small town so much more special.

Remember Ephesians 2:19.

All the love, Summer Mills

Staff Izabella Buck Erica Dick Nathan Evans Maddie Furtick Anthony Cage Grubb Tony Hensley Cassidy Howard Alyssa King Ashlyn Liddle Amber Simpkins Hannah Mae Sizemore Elizabeth Spires

Front cover photo by Elizabeth Spires Back cover graphic by Cassidy Howard Email comments, concerns or tips to: thepatriot@ucumberlands.edu or call us at 606-539-4172 7000 College Station Drive Williamsburg, Kentucky 40769

The Patriot is the student publication of the University of the Cumberlands. Our goal is to provide timely and original content by highlighting campus news and views.

Award-winning member of the Associated Collegiate Press and Kentucky Press Association.

Photos courtesy of Jerton Evans

Jerton Evans made the University of the Cumberlands history in August of 2020 when he was named the university’s first Director of Diversity and Multiculturalism. Since 2020, Evans has made significant strides in an effort to connect with students and to open the minds of students and faculty alike on UC’s campus. Evans states that his goal is to foster “open and honest conversation for students [while] building a bridge between two different people with two different cultures and backgrounds.”

Evans has organized events like Karaoke nights and back-to-school bashes, which have brought together students and faculty from different countries and cultural backgrounds to help build a community on campus.

Students from countries such as Tanzania, Gauna, New Zealand, Spain, France, Germany, Mexico, Puerto Rico, and the Dominican Republic have participated in these events and have shared their own traditions. One such event took place online in 2021: an event where different students were able to share how they celebrate Christmas in their culture. Students were exposed to other cultures’ Christmas traditions. For example, one student came from a culture where giftgiving is not a tradition; instead, they celebrate Christmas with singing and dancing.

Conversations like these, which present students with opportunities to learn from others, is the goal of the Diversity Leadership Council. Martize Smith, the Diversity Leadership Council’s president, wants to use the group to build “connections between different groups of people and ethnicities of people.” Now, as a senior at UC, he reflects back on his time with the Diversity

Leadership Council and claims that the group helped him build relationships and “opened [his] mind to how to greet people and how to treat people.”

The UC Diversity’s official statement on the University of the Cumberlands website reads: “To progress beyond our prejudice and bias so that our vision is not limited nor inhibits our opportunities to grow personally, professionally, and spiritually fostering further equitability and inclusivity at the University of the Cumberlands.” The most significant outlet in which UC Diversity works to implement this statement is through their monthly Table Talks. During these Table Talks, one topic of discussion is chosen, and participants split up at tables to discuss that particular topic while keeping in mind their varying cultures and backgrounds. One student who attended the most recent UC Diversity Table Talk described it as “getting different perspectives on different questions that we had to dig deeper into.” Anne Ngharsta came to UC Diversity from Africa and joined UC Diversity a little over a year ago. She believes that “you must come to a conversation with an open mind, not a closed mind. That is not a two-way conversation. That is a one-way conversation.” The Table Talks help students to maintain two-way conversations so that they can learn from and grow with each other.

Evans has previously stated that “a simple conversation can change anything.” Through deep, honest conversations, UC Diversity gives every student and faculty a space to voice their opinions with the opportunity to enrich their cultural understanding.

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UC Takes on World Languages

Food for the Soul

Meet the Staff

The World Languages Department Specializes in French, Spanish, and More

International Food Night Brings Students Together With Delicious Food From Around the World

Introducing the Next Member of The Patriot’s Staff

BY Alyssa King Staff Writer

By Hannah M ae Sizemore Staff Writer

Photos by A lyssa King and Erica Dick

Dr. Laura Dennis and Ms. Jennifer Marsh are professors in the World Languages department at the University of the Cumberlands. Dr. Dennis—the department chair—teaches French, Spanish, and world language and culture courses. Dr. Dennis began to want to speak Spanish and French in middle school. Even though she teaches only Spanish and French at UC, she dabbles in other languages, like Russian, Latin, Hindi, and Irish. Dr. Dennis has been to almost forty American states and ten different countries. Her favorite place to visit is South France. She is fond of France because she loves the art, literature, and food there; spending time in that country also helps her connect with her French/Canadian ancestry. When asked her favorite part of learning a language, she replied, “I love how it helps me meet a more diverse group of people than I would have just speaking English.”

One of Dr. Dennis’ students, Erica Dick, is a junior at UC majoring in English. Her favorite part about learning a new language is studying the culture behind the people who speak it. She explains that sometimes in her FREN 131 course, they have homework assignments on the culture of the language rather than the language itself, which provides her with a new perspective. She further explains that it is common for authors to incorporate French sayings in their works; learning the French language and having basic cultural knowledge has helped her to decipher what the authors are trying to convey. Erica Dick wants to travel the world, which is why she became interested in learning French. She has no immediate plans to study another language but can see herself doing so in the future.

Anthony Grubb is also a junior at UC, currently studying Spanish. He loves history, literature, culture, and language, and knew from the moment he arrived at the university that learning a second language was something he wanted to do. He says that his experience with learning a new language has been wonderful. He notices that, while learning Spanish, his memory and understanding of his native language have drastically improved, giving him a

Graphic by Lacie DeGough

better grasp of English grammar. Anthony Grubb explains that his favorite part about learning a new language is the challenge; he likes to challenge himself with the Spanish language because he believes the results are worth the hard work. He plans on traveling the world and possibly teaching abroad, and he points out that knowing a second language would be very beneficial in preparing him for such an occupation.

On May 15th of 2023, Dr. Jefferson Calico and Ms. Jennifer Marsh will lead students on an eight-day trip to the Dominican Republic: a small Caribbean island. During this trip, students will be able to explore the area as well as learn about the culture presented there. Ms. Marsh explains how the Dominican Republic predominantly has Spanish and Caribbean cultural influences. Slavery in the area also led to much African influence. The trip’s primary purpose is to work with children in disadvantaged communities. This motive is Ms. Marsh’s favorite part of the trip; she enjoys playing, singing, and learning with the Dominican Republic’s children. As an added benefit, this trip grants twenty hours of community service hours, which is half the UC requirement for graduation. This trip costs $3,599, including meals, travel, and housing. There are scholarships available to help cover the cost of this trip; Ms. Julie Deyrup is the ideal contact for more information about the scholarship opportunity. It is not necessary that you understand Spanish to join Dr. Calico and Ms. Marsh on this adventure!

Learning a new language benefits everyone by helping you to communicate with others, increasing your vocabulary, and helping to spread cultural awareness and diversity. The World Languages department is always looking for new students, so if this article piques your interest, reach out to any of the professors for more information about getting involved. Dr. Dennis offers a few words of encouragement to students as the semester continues: “Bon courage! Buena suerte!”

Photo by Skyler Plementosh

International Food Night is a night unlike any other. Students from all over the world gather together to share food from their home countries.

These people take their time to share a little bit of what they call home with the other students here at the University of the Cumberlands. Held in the BCC, International Food Night is a delicious experience that nobody should miss.

Love, care, and time goes into every dish prepared for the event. In simple terms, International Food Night is tables and tables of different and intriguing dishes from around the world.

Political Science and Government major Anne Ngarhasta has been attending and participating in this event for several years. She is a junior here at the University of the Cumberlands, but she was born in Chad, Africa. According to Ngarhasta, “International Food Night is a form of building a community with individuals from different parts of the world and the exploration of different cultures.”

The amount of time and effort that goes into this event is tremendous.

Ngarhasta states that set up for the event is “quite straightforward because Campus Ministry organizes it with the great help of Mr. Jacob Ratliff. We have a team set up, and everyone is given a specific group to address and follow up on.” She says that her experience with the event involved “communicat[ing] with the other Africans to come up with the main dish we would like students to taste.” She then goes on to say that everyone “takes a trip” to various stores to purchase supplies, and after buying what is needed, they come back and “send the different groups to different kitchens, where they prep the food.”

Ngarhasta brought food to the most recent International Food Night, including mandazi and chapati, served with “a traditional tea.” Something that she would like to bring to the event in the future is ugali.

Keep an eye out for the next International Food Night!

Tony Hensley

Photo by Elizabeth Spires

Sta ff Photographer

1. What year are you in college?

I am a freshman this year.

2. What is your major/minor, and why did you choose this/ these program(s)?

I am majoring in Psychology. I chose this program so that I can help people who are struggling with the things that I needed help with as a child.

3. What do you do outside of school?

I enjoy playing video games like Overwatch. I also work at McDonald’s, and I hang out with my friends in my free time.

4. What three words describe you?

I would say that I am caring, helpful, and kind.

5. What would you do if you could be doing anything right now and money was not an issue?

I have always dreamed of renovating a school bus and using it to travel all over North America. I would love to get the chance to experience all of this with my partner.

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Far Away From Home What Our International Students Miss Most Back Home

BY A mber Simpkins Staff Writer

Around the World Playlist

Wanderlust Word Search Experience the World in Six Different Languages

BY Elizabeth Spir es Staff Writer

Wanderlust. This English word is one example of many loanwords or borrowed words in the English vocabulary. If one were to trace its etymology – the study of words’ history and their evolution in language – one would discover that English speakers borrowed the word wanderlust from the German language, with its German root words describing what its present-day semantics intend.

Johanna Beckman is a German student who came to the University of the Cumberlands to study Business Administration and Strategic Communication and play tennis. Beckman explained that the German verb wandern means “to hike” and that the German noun Lust (note that nouns get capitalized in the German language) is “desire.”

Combine these words, and you have wanderlust: “an eager desire or fondness for wandering or travelling,” according to the Oxford English Dictionary, Online.

With that pinch of linguistic knowledge in your back pocket now, enjoy this Wanderlust Word Search, entirely travel-themed, with words from six different world languages, including three Romance languages (Italian, Spanish, and French), one North Germanic language (Swedish), one West Germanic language (German), and one East Slavic language (Russian).

Graphic by Elizabeth Spires

Moving far away from home can be an exciting new start, but many people still miss home while they are gone. Homesickness sets in quickly. The UC campus has many international students who moved miles away from other countries to be here. In this article, three of UC’s international students talk about what they miss the most back home.

Leon Tan (Malaysia) “I miss the food back home the most. Family comes second, but we don’t have to talk about that.

Growing up food was always a comfort, and the toughest part of coming to America is giving up all the delicious cuisine offered in my country.”

Eva Liu (Taiwan) “The thing that I miss the most from back home is food, especially boba milk tea and my mom’s cooking. Even though Taiwan has a lot of delicious food, the ones sold by those stores can’t compare to my mother’s cooking. Although I try to learn how to cook every time I go home, I still can’t cook like my mother.

“Sometimes, when I am hungry, I will turn on my phone and look at my Instagram feed. My feed consists of various types of food from home. When I go to the cafeteria, I will look at my Instagram feed while eating the cafeteria food. This will make me not miss the food too much.”

Chiara Michieletto (Italy) “I think that my family and my friends are what I miss the most from back home. Between busy schedules and the time difference (six hours), calling and staying in contact with my loved ones is hard. We usually text, but it is not the same as talking. I miss quality time with them. The first semesters away from home were tough, but now I am more used to it, and I have learned how to deal better with these feelings.”

Feeling homesick is common when you are far away from home. Moving far away from home can make students miss things such as the food they used to eat and the time spent with family. That is the case for Leon Tan, Eva Liu, and Chaira Michieletto, and most likely, for many of our other international students on campus. But international students also have the opportunity to find a new home here at the University of the Cumberlands with their new friends and peers! The homesickness may not disappear, but it is possible for students who are far away from home to find joy here on campus.

Graphic by Lacie DeGough

We asked UC students for their favorite songs in their native tongues, and they delivered!

This playlist includes songs from 10 different languages: Russian, German, Swedish, Dutch, Italian, French, Spanish, Portuguese, Mandarin Chinese, and Malay. The result? Nearly three hours worth of international top picks!

Key Spanish Italian dinero (money) turista (tourist) boleto (ticket) macchina (car) German French Erinnerungen (memories) plage (beach) Museum (museum) avion (plane)

Russian suvenir (souvenir) puteshestviye (travel) Swedish karta (map) flygplats (airport)