International students cope with staying over the holiday break

~ For some the university can seem a lonely place.

Most Southeast Missouri State University students go home over Christmas break leaving behind a nearly deserted campus.

But some of the school's international students stay on campus or in local apartments with friends during the month-long holiday break.

"It's lonely," said Shu Lin, 20, who is from Jinzhou, China, a city of more than half a million people northeast of Beijing.

Southeast has about 180 international students enrolled in classes this school year.

Many international students travel around the United States during the holiday break or visit friends elsewhere in the country. But an estimated 50 to 75 students are staying is the Cape Girardeau area, said Adelaide Parsons, director of international programs.

Only 10 international students are staying in campus residence halls. The rest are staying off campus with friends, school officials said.

The campus dining centers are closed during the holiday break. But Cheney Hall, New Hall and Myers Hall -- where international students are staying -- all have full kitchens which the students can use to cook their meals, officials said.

Residence halls can be noisy places during the school year. But things are different over the Christmas and New Year's holidays.

"It is very quiet," said Bruce Skinner, associate director of residence life at Southeast.

Lin arrived in Cape Girardeau four months ago, enrolling in the intensive English program where students receive five to six hours of English instruction each school day.

She lives in Myers Hall when school is in session. But during the holiday break, Lin in staying with friends in a house about a block away from campus.

Fall-semester final exams ended on Dec. 16. Spring-semester classes start on Jan. 17.

Lin plans to spend Christmas Day at the Cape Girardeau home of her intensive English instructor, David Price.

Price invited four of his students to celebrate the holiday at his home. "I don't want to see students sitting in their dormitories with nothing to do," he said.

Juliette Domagni, 25, is one of the international students staying in her home-away-from-home during the winter break.

This is her third year at Southeast. She lives in Wesley House, a United Methodist Church student center on Pacific Street bordering the campus.

Domagni is from the Ivory Coast, a country of about 15 million people located along the Gulf of Guinea on the west coast of Africa. The country received its name in the late 1400s when French sailors started trading for ivory.

Domagni, who speaks French, traveled in past years. "I have never stayed here for Christmas," she said.

But Domagni, who attends Cape First Church across town, said she's staying this Christmas to attend a friend's wedding and witness the Christmas service at her church.

She and her brother, Jean, 21, who is also a student at Southeast, plan to celebrate Christmas at a friend's house in Perryville, Mo.

Jean Domagni plans to spend part of the holiday break visiting a cousin in New York City. "I like to travel a lot," he said, breaking into a broad grin.

This is his second year at Southeast. "When I first came here, I was kind of lonely," he said.

But like his sister, he's readily made friends. That makes it easier to cope with the holiday break, he said.

mbliss@semissourian.com

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