Welcome to the LSU International CUltural Center

I am a graduate student majoring in chemistry with specialization in polymerscience. Besides my academic research, I have had some experience getting involved with social activities around campus. Serving as the Vice-President for the International Student Association was an experience worth remembering that I will cherish throughout my lifetime.We organizedvarious events this year attracting different groups of people including showcasing of Ph.D comics movie and organizing a campus wide sports tournament. The sports tournament was a success and upcoming event International Fusion Festival will be a great fundraiser. The funds from these events will be used to provide scholarships for international students.

My main agenda, if elected President, will be to try to promote the well-being of our international students, and promote better friendship, interaction, and understanding among international students from different countries around the world and between international students and other groups at LSU.If elected, I plan to use the role of President in a responsible and effective manner. One of my main goals would be to increase the presence of ISA and ICC on campus, whether that is through events, giveaways, or other means. This includes increasing the influence that ISA and ICC has on the administrators of the campus. With this increased influence, students will feel more compelled to voice their opinions to ISA because they know that they will be heard, and that we can help them with whatever it is. As a result, this will help build unity in the student body, since the students know that ISA isn’t just another organization; it’s an organization that is here to help improve their lives.

Throughout this letter of intent I hope I have shown you who I am, what makes me qualified for this position, and what I plan to do with this position if elected.

I have some experience in the organization of activities. In addition, I like to take the initiative and prefer innovative ideas to repetitive tasks. I value participation and like to promote teamwork as working in a group stimulates creativity. Finally, I adore making friends from all over the world and learn about their cultures.

Secretary for non-profit organization AASTHA at New Delhi. To teach and train students of slum-dwellers of nearby regions. We accumulated around INR 50,000 with group of Students to give free books and clothes.

Experience in student organizations:

Vice-President, International Student Association at LSU.
Captain, St Xavier’s School.

Major program of study : PhD in Chemistry, Program Entry - Fall 2010,Expected graduation in Spring 2014

I am a PhD student in Department of Computer Science, Louisiana State University. I am interested to serve my fellow international students as the President of International Students Association (ISA) and the Governing body of International Cultural Center (ICC) at Louisiana State University. My focus as a president would be to raise concerns on behalf of international students and channel them to the appropriate organizations on or offcampus. More importantly students consider ICC to be a venue with exciting events and socials that provide relief from academic stress and alleviate the pain of being away from home. Therefore, I would put effort in coordinating such events. In addition, I would approach Friends of LSU to organize events where international students and locals could mingle.

Senator, Student Government, Louisiana State University, Baton Rouge, Louisiana, Jan 2010 – Aug. 2010.

Web-Coordinator, Nepalese Student Association, Louisiana State University, Baton Rouge, Louisiana, 2010.

Project Coordinator and Treasurer, Engineers Without Borders Nepal, Kathmandu, Nepal, 2006 – 2007.

President, Engineers Without Borders Nepal, Institute of Engineering, student chapter, Kathmandu, Nepal, 2005.

International Community Development Officer, Rotract Club of Mount Everest, Kathmandu, Nepal, 2004 -2006.

Vice President, Leo Club of Kathmandu Balaju Height, Kathmandu, Nepal, 2004 – 2006.

PhD student in Department of Computer Science, Louisiana State University. Program Entry - Fall 2007. Expected Graduation in Spring 2013

My experience with ISA and ICC has always been full of fun, relaxation and sense of home away from home. At ISA and ICC, I met many exciting individuals from different corners of the world and learnt a lot about various cultures. I would want our new and current international students to share similar experience.

I am a PhD student majoring in plant pathology, and I am from Shandong province, China. I am running for the president of ISA and ICC. I have been a part of many of social activities hosted by ICC, especially during my first year at LSU, and that was when I made some very good international friends from the parties in the Hall of Cultures. These experiences are very precious to me. I love foreign cultures, and I am always amazed by the intelligence of my international friends. I am very lucky to be welcomed into a place like this; 1500 students from over 120 countries have come here, become friends and had happy times together.

I have been receiving help from ISA and ICC since I first came here, and I always wanted a chance to work with the people who have helped me. At same time, I think I also have some good ideas for the future work of ICC/ISA to serve better as a place for international students to call their home away from home. If I am appointed, I will do three things that may improve the current work of ICC/ISA. First, I will organize more theme activities which are not costly, like fishing, bike riding, or potlucks. Second, I will establish good contacts with the people from other non-profit organizations or local groups who are willing to invite international students to their American social occasions. This can help improve our English and social techniques, and help us adapt to the new life here. Finally, I will try to raise more funds by organizing activities that can bring mutual benefits to students and the sponsors. For example, according to my old experience, we can do some talent shows/competitions in the name of the sponsors, or set up some more scholarships provided by some companies with a lot international employees.

I was the vice class president and secretary of University Student Autonomy Committee when I was studying in Shandong Agricultural University. In 2010-2011, I was in Plant Pathology & Crop Physiology graduate student association governing board bulletin committee, in LSU.

In college, I have helped organize many events such as monthly hiking group, campus talent show, freshmen field and institute tour, and some of the classmates’ birthday parties. I was also in charge of the internship program between our department and many pesticide companies in Shandong province. In graduate school here, I have participated in the preparation for the some department parties

Biographical Sketch:

Undergraduate college: Shandong Agricultural University, Taian, China. Department: plant protection. Major: plant protection;

Master: Louisiana State University. Department: plant pathology & crop physiology. Major: plant pathology;

PhD: Louisiana State University. Department: plant pathology & crop physiology. Major: plant pathology.

Year I entered the program: 2008, fall. Expected graduation in 2013, summer.

My name is Adetutu Abimbola. I am very much interested in becoming the ICC Vice President, Programs because I believe my talent skills and experience in event planning and logistics would be fully utilized as an asset to the organization. I have gained two years working experience in event planning and public relations and I strongly believe this is what this position entails. In addition to my ability to successfully co-ordinate the logistics of an event, I have strong multilingual communication and interpersonal skills. I am an efficient team player with the ability to work well with a diverse team. I bring to the table exceptional time management skills and a proven capacity for meeting organization objectives and demands with a high degree of tenacity, coupled with a flair for creativity and the ability to examine issues critically. I am a very enthusiastic, open minded and outgoing person and I can easily manage complex issues creatively and effectively. I am one who thinks out of the box and beyond it. I am very passionate about event planning and co-ordination. I pay attention to little detail and make sure I leave no stone untouched. In everything I do I seek utmost perfection. If i am elected I would be ever willing and ready to listen to your suggestions to organize memorable events that can respond to your needs and aspirations.

My main mission during my tenure would be to unite all the various diverse cultures and countries present on campus as well as to promote understanding and acceptance of different cultures and my goal is to promote togetherness, unity, friendship and diversity.

1) Be responsible for the coordination of activities and conduct cultural, educational, community outreach, fundraisers and volunteering activities
2) Establish and maintain a working relationship with local media (Daily reveille, KLSU radio etc) in bringing the organizations events into limelight
3) Lastly, I would like to ensure that we all are unified and can establish mutually beneficial support and motivation for, by and from one another.

Freshman, International Studies Major; Program Entry - August 2011, Expected Graduation in May 2015

My interests outside of studies lie in music( I play the guitar and have written lots of original material), travelling, sports and other adventure related activities. I have never been shy to pursue my interests and from this I have gained many valuable experiences. I like interacting with different people, learning about other cultures and sharing my own experiences with other people. I consider myself very outgoing and amiable. Through my experiences I have learnt to adjust to different situations. I have taken various official and unofficial leadership roles in the past and I feel I am well capable of serving as the Vice President of Administration of ICC. To name a few interesting leadership roles, I have led various group trekking expeditions in the Himalayas of Nepal, been captain of soccer and cricket teams, been a front man in many musical performances etc.As a matter of fact I was the captain of the Nepalese Soccer Team that won the soccer tournament organized recently by ISA.
I have always had interest in ICC and the programs it does. However, because of other commitments and preferences, I have not had the chance to be a part of the ICC governing body yet. I would love to do so now! I am done with most of my coursework and therefore will be able to put in the required time and effort needed by the post.

I am confident that I can bring something new to the table if provided with an opportunity serve in the governing body. As my personal interests are in music and sports, I will give my best to facilitate musical events in the ICC and sports events for international students. I believe this will help bring the international student body at LSU more closer, which I feel at the moment, seems very disjointed! I am running for the post of administration because I have always had an interest for organizing things.(Although my bedroom might suggest otherwise!!) I used to be the one to organize and keep details of any activity that needed planning. Be it a gig or be it a trek! I have had some office related administrative experiences in the past and I feel it will help me a lot during my tenure if selected.

Pursuing PhD degree in Electrical Engineering at LSU. I joined the program in Fall 2009 and I am planning to graduate within the next 2 or so years.

I want to offer my abilities to help other international students, I also want to have more experience and challenge myself through applying for these positions. I haven’t held any leadership in LSU. Besides LSU, I work voluntarily for Saint Anthony Catholic Church as a Vietnamese teacher and Bible instructor.I don’t have specific experience in student organizations but I will try my best to work it out.

Petroleum Engineering Major, Undergraduate, Program entry year - 2010, Graduating in 2014

As an international student, ICC is the first place where I’ve found students from other countries. During my first year, I spent a lot of time coming here to partake in the fun events, meet with new students, and make friends. This place is like the home to some of us. However, due to this and/or other reasons, some students are not coming back, and some are too busy to show up. But this doesn’t mean students are not in need of help. This doesn’t mean we can solve all our issues just by ourselves. On the contrary, ICC/ISA is not playing as big a role as it should be. Now, it’s time to unite all the international students, to make ICC a more influential student organization, to let our voice be heard by more people, and to devote ourselves to the need of all international students. We can help them. We can change their life at LSU. All we need is to do it. That’s why I want to apply for this position.

I have enjoyed the time when I went to ICC for friendship and fun in the first year, no matter what events ICC is holding. It was part of my school life and I would definitely say that the time you spend there would worth it. However, students are always distracted by new stuff and they seldom come back. Recently, when I asked my friends if they had any news about ICC, the most answer was no. And they didn’t even know who the leaders of ICC/ISAwere. I felt sorry for that. I wanted to do something to change this situation. I wanted to let more international students get involved. I would like to share several ideas that might work for ICC in the near future.

International students are always working hard. Many of them work more than 20 hours per week. This is an issue we should pay attention to. Let them know their right and give proper guidance of how to fight for their rights.

Although working harder, they find it more difficult to find a job position than USA citizens. I have encountered a bunch of times in the Career Expo when the companies/organizations turned me down because of my non-residency. I felt discriminated, but it was a fact we could not change. However, we could find some help from students who do succeed in finding a good job. We can organize some casual meetings with these students, to learn their lessons and get ourselves prepared as early as possible.

I started my PhD program in 2010 fall at the Department of Civil and Environmental Engineering. My research direction is watershed water quality modeling. It’s a four year PhD program.

My name is Roshan Pandey, currently a Junior in Chemical Engineering under the College of Engineering. I would like to run for the Vice-President of ISA. I joined LSU in Fall 2010 as a transfer student. During my Sophomore Year at LSU, I got chance to see and learn about many organizations at LSU. Ultimately, I decided to join Golden Key because of its commitment to leadership, service and academics. I loved this organizations and I involved myself in various service activities held through this organization. I helped raised the books and helped ship it to Better World Books, an organization that donates the book to someone in need. I also volunteered in many events organized through campus life. For instance, I went to New Orleans in a service trip to help make house for the people that were affected by Hurricane Katrina. I was committed to provide my service to LSU community. Therefore, in my Junior Year I got a wonderful opportunity to join International Students Association at LSU as a Fundraising Chair as proposed by Nina, the current president of ISA/ICC and a good friend of mine.

I have been actively involved in most activities organized through ISA this year. I came up with an idea of organizing car wash and the event was successful even though we did not get so many people as expected. I believe that I can make a big difference in the LSU community if I am given a chance to be the Vice-President of ISA at LSU. I want to make sure that every international student at LSU gets chance to be the part of this organization. I would also like to make sure that these students here not just get involved in the class but rather be part of our global community and share their experiences with us. Therefore, for this I have many creative ideas which I would like to implement by moving hand in hand with the President of the Organization. One of my ideas is to make sure that from the next academic year, whenever we conduct meeting, we call all other international students that are interested in joining the organization to our club meetings and make their voices be heard. I would also like to take the opportunity to help international students network through our organization. Moreover, I would like to make sure that our international students at LSU visit the local schools in here and share their experiences and culture at those schools and tell those students the challenges that they faced while embracing American culture.

Undergraduate, Dept. of Chemical Engineering, Junior. Program entry - Fall 2010, Expected Graduation in May 2013

Petroleum Engineering Major, Undergraduate, Program entry year - 2010, Graduating in 2014

I am an international student from Colombia, enrolled at LSU for the Fall 2012 and Spring 2013 semesters and a cumulative GPA of 2.8. I am currently unemployed and therefore willing to devote any time necessary for the treasurer position. I want to serve in the position of Treasurer of the ISA because I would like to help my fellow students, and , being an economics major, feel this is the position best suited for me. I am an undergraduate student, studying economics in the department of business, I entered the program in fall 2011, and will be a sophomore next semester, expecting to graduate in Spring 2016. I have not held any leadership positions in the past, but I am a driven and passionate person willing to devote my time to make the best of the ISA.

Maintain current position as Treasurer to serve and provide for international students at LSU who may have limited or constricted opportunities. I hope to assist to enhance the college experience for international students that come here, away from home to get their education.

LSU Honors College Advocates, LSU Honors College Student Council Class Representative, LSU International Student Association Treasurer, Millennium Volunteers of LSU President, Rotaract Club, National Society of Collegiate Scholars, Alpha Lambda Delta

I am doing my Masters in Electrical Engineering and I joined LSU in the Spring 2012 session. I am interested in getting along with international people and I am interested knowing more about different cultures. I feel that this kind of student organisation like ISA is good platform for me to interact with internationals.