NAFSA Advocacy Day

Before I came back to the States, I knew I wanted to do something more with my international experience. At the end of my time in India I would have spent five transformative months in India studying and learning about the South Indian culture. I applied to be an AIFS Alumni Ambassador with the intentions of promoting studying abroad on my campus and never saw myself traveling to Capitol Hill to talk about the significance of American college students going abroad. In December I was notified that I was selected as one of two AIFS Alumni Ambassadors to attend NAFSA Advocacy Day in Washington D.C. that following March. To prepare for Advocacy I thought about why I chose to study abroad, what I learned and why it truly was such a formative time in my life.

Fast forward a few months...

This past week I was able to attend NAFSA Advocacy Day in Washington D.C. to share with Congress the importance of welcoming international students and scholars and encouraging American students to spend a semester abroad.

I flew into Ronald Reagan Washington Airport early Sunday morning excited to be in D.C. I had been there a few summers ago and loved the city. Sunday afternoon was spent exploring D.C. and enjoying the beautiful spring weather!

For dinner we ate at Supra, a delicious Georgian restaurant located just east of Downtown. We had khachapuri, kebabs and tried the Supra Tasting Board which included: seasonal vegatable pâté pkhali, eggplant nigvzit, spreads "makho", georgian cheeses, house-made breads.

Monday was Advocacy Training Day in preparation for the Hill meetings. The training consisted of sessions to discuss the importance of welcoming international students and scholars to the United States. NAFSA divided its attendees by State, because as a group we would meet together as constituents with our respective Senators and then split off for our House of Representative meetings. The Minnesota group was quite small and consisted of the Associate Director of the Global Programs at the U of M and the Vice President, Director of University Relations for Customized Programs of a national study abroad company and myself, a college senior and study abroad alum. While our group was quite small compared to other states --it gave all three of us the opportunity to speak up in our meetings.

I learned so much from the sessions and I will share with you one of my takeaways!

One session was on the Senator Paul Simon Study Abroad Act—which seeks to ensure that U.S. graduates are globally competent amongst their international peers. As a study abroad alum, this session was a time to articulate the ways in which study abroad shapes one into a cross-cultural learner through their experiences of problem-solving day-to-day, living in a high level of ambiguity and empathy for one's host cultures. For me, this Act was a way for our nation to tangibly live out the goals of my peers and I who had previously gone abroad, while connecting with higher education institutions who, in hopes would include study abroad in their curriculum and advise students from all backgrounds of study to participate.

After months of preparation and a day of training 200+ advocates of international education headed to Capitol Hill and met with Congress. I started out my morning in the Senate building and moved over to the House in the afternoon.

During the meetings with the Minnesota Senators I was selected to share a personal story with the staffers. This meant I was able to share just how important my time in South India was to me and why other students should be encouraged to have a similar opportunity. I discussed the cross-cultural competencies a young adult has after living in an unfamiliar place and learning how to navigate a new place on your own.