Coffee and conversation for international students

Aziz Muqaddam, MA '15, at the International Coffee and Conversation event on January 29, when international students were encouraged to talk about anything that was on their minds. (Photo by Tyler McAndrew '16)

Several of Emerson’s international students participated in the International Coffee and Conversation event in Common Ground, a new community space in the Walker Building, on January 29, where they discussed everything from snow to the Super Bowl in an informal setting with hot chocolate, coffee, and healthy snacks.

Ilse Damkoehler, the administrative assistant in the Office of Internationalization and Global Engagement, said about 20 students from China, Uruguay, Venezuela, United Arab Emirates, Saudi Arabia, Iran, and other countries participated in the informal monthly event to promote dialogue.

Xiao Huang, MA '15, speaks with Susannah Marcucci, program coordinator for Internationalization and Global Engagement. (Photo by Tyler McAndrew '16)

Damkoehler said snow was a big topic of conversation given that the event was the students’ first day back to campus after the Blizzard of 2015.

“Most of them had seen snow before, but it was their first time shoveling,” Damkoehler said.

The students also discussed the Super Bowl and the recent “Deflategate” controversy—an interesting topic because football is largely an American sport.

“We compared it a lot to soccer,” Damkoehler said. “They all seemed really excited about it, and we encouraged them to talk to Americans about it as a great way to start a conversation.”

Ilse Damkoehler, administrative assistant for Internationalization and Global Engagement, with department intern Sage Levy, a student at Suffolk University. (Photo by Tyler McAndrew '16)