Last in a series
DICINSON - It's easy to see what students are talking about on the Dickinson State University campus.
On a Friday afternoon, just about the only people wandering the campus are freshmen or international students.
International students complain the domestic students don't stick around on the weekends. The United States students, however, said there are times they feel like the minority on campus.
A recent walk through the Dickinson State University campus provides a more general feel from the student body on the concerns about the global awareness initiative.
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Student thoughts
"I don't think it has slowed down education at all," business administration major Jennifer Rogers said.
Her classes generally have a lot of international students, and oftentimes they try harder than the local students.
Rogers said the only way she has noticed classes slowing down is because of the language barrier, as international students ask questions to clarify. Rogers, a sophomore, said it is not a noticeable problem.
She said there are a lot of benefits to having international students on campus. Because students don't often get out of their comfort zones, she enjoys classes when she is forced to interact with the international students.
"It has not slowed down greatly," DSU freshman Holly Jordan said of the classes. "The article sounded more drastic than it is."
As a student in the ag department, Jordan has learned a lot about agricultural systems in foreign countries from the international students.
She said, though, she doesn't have too many classes with foreign students. Jordan can understand how professors and students have a difficult time communicating with each other.
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"They're not taking that into perspective, how we live," Jordan said. "If we went over there, they would expect us to use their culture."
A Lemmon, S.D., native, DSU student Montana Barnett said she enjoyed coming to a campus with a lot of diversity.
"When I first came here, I can't say I was comfortable, but I know it's good for me," Barnett said.
Barnett hasn't noticed classes slowing down, but she does notice the atmosphere is different.
"They're really awesome people," Barnett said. "I learn so much."
She said it's one thing to learn about China in a textbook and another thing altogether when she hears it firsthand from her co-workers.
DSU freshman Brianna Cross, a Nebraska native, said she has not noticed a problem in her classes because of the international students.
"My classes don't have a high ratio of international students, most of them," DSU sophomore Amanda Morgenstern said.
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Morgenstern, a Zap native, said she still learns a lot about the Chinese culture from her roommate. She said not all Chinese students interact as much as her roommate.
Freshman Jordan Collingwood said he doesn't have many international students in his classes.
"I have some in my calculus class, but they're generally pretty smart," Collingwood said.
He also interacts with many international students in his sociology class.
Like Morgenstern, Collingwood has learned more from international students outside of the classroom, where he has made friends with foreign students.
Foreign perspective
Nepalese student Prabal Dhakal said he hasn't noticed the classroom standards slipping because of international students.
"It's crowded, but it's all right," Dhakal said.
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He said the domestic students should consider the feelings of the international students when they raise concerns.
Dhakal, an accounting major, said he has enjoyed his time at DSU.
"Yeah, definitely; it's a home environment," Dhakal said. "I love it."
Two Chinese exchange students, Wenjuan Li and Nili Zuo, said the classroom atmosphere is different.
They said they had learned a lot from U.S. students, but they had less interaction with some of the other international students.
