International Students & Scholars Affairs

Sammy loves helping people and is very social; he likes to meet with people from other countries. Sammy enjoys playing soccer, singing, and talking about his culture. He enjoys meeting new people and learning about other countries.

Sammy was the coordinator to the program Signs of Hope International (SOHI) which raised funds to manufacture tables for Deaf schools in Ghana. He has also volunteered with the Monmouth Christian Church and the Salem Rotaract Club. Sammy has excellent woodworking skills. He was a teacher at a school for the Deaf in Ghana.

“My country is unique as far as hospitality is concerned. We have different cultures and a variety of festivals. I cannot describe everything on paper but I will encourage you to come and witness this wonderful hospitality.”- Sammy Aggro.

He is interested in talking about the culture, dances, music, food and unique hospitality of Ghana.

Samrid is a very friendly and an easy going person. He is studying in the Information Systems program. Samrid is interested in making new friends, getting involved in events and activities, playing soccer, basketball, cricket, and trying new sports. He enjoys outdoor activities such as camping, hiking, and snowboarding.

In the past Samrid has worked organizing entertainment activities for Tapasthali Old Age Home in Kathmandu, Nepal. He also worked in Spice Nepal Pvt. Ltd. as a cellular data network assistant. Currently he is employed at the WOU Hamersly Library Information Desk. He organized the “Help Haiti” relief campaign through WOU International Club as an effort to provide relief to earthquake victims in Haiti.

“Nepal is a country of diverse culture, beautiful landscape, and friendly people. It’s a country with the birthplace of Gautam Buddha and Mt. Everest (top of the world). I would like to give lots of interesting facts and knowledge to those who are interested in knowing about it.”- Samrid Aryal.

Antoinne is a friendly, outgoing guy who loves sports, music and dancing. In his free time he plays basketball, listens to music, and writes poetry. On more adventurous days, he cliff dives, does downhill mountain biking, and sky diving.

Antionne has experience working as a cashier and as a grounds assistant. He would like to volunteer with all age groups, and with Christian churches. 

Biraj is an outgoing person who likes to learn about different countries and share about Nepalese culture. He enjoys participating in outdoor activities such as hiking and snowboarding. He also likes to read, listen to music and play soccer.

Biraj has been a part of “Student Partnership Worldwide” in Nepal, which is now called “Restless Development.” It is a youth-led development agency that works for the progress of young people in eleven different countries. He is a New Student Orientation Leader (Plus Team) at WOU and President of International Club for the 2010-2011 year. Previous employment includes working for a monthly business magazine in Nepal and as the Director of the Book Exchange for ASWOU, the student government on campus. He feels comfortable working with adults and the elderly. However, he is keen on working with teenagers and children as well. He also went to school in India for nine years, and he likes to share that experience.

Biraj is interested in presenting about Nepali festivals, cultural differences, and political struggles in Nepal for the past ten years. He will also present on other topics regarding the Nepal and Indian subcontinent if requested.

Jing is very outgoing and likes to talk. She enjoys hearing personal experiences and stories from friends. She also likes music and reading because it stimulates the imagination and creates another world with different emotions, beauty, and different points of view. Her dream is to read all the books in the world because she believes that knowledge has the power to improve and change the world. She loves playing and working with children.

In the past, Jing has volunteered in the Chinese Spring Festival, International Night, Child Development Center, Conversation Partner Program, Seek Program, Monmouth Elementary School, and by teaching Chinese. She is comfortable working with all people, but likes volunteering with children most because she feels children are very pure, just like cute angels.

Jing has many ideas about what to teach about China. China is a big country with a long history of over 5,000 years. There are 56 nationalities and each nationality has its own culture, food, and traditions. The Chinese language also has a long history and is growing in importance since Chinese is second largest language used in the world. 

Xiao is a very responsible, intelligent person. She likes to meet new friends, and is very happy to work with people from different countries and backgrounds.  

She likes to learn languages and is currently self-learning a third language. In her spare time she reads and watches movies.

Xiao participated in the Alternative Break Program last winter where she went to Food Lifeline to feed nutritious food to hungry, low-income people in Western Washington State. She has shared her love of reading and education by volunteered at the Dalian International Book Fair and tutoring in the Learning Center for about two years.

She would like to each about Chinese cooking, and Chinese language to all age groups.

Hilda describes herself as being a very friendly, caring and outgoing person with a passion to make a meaningful contribution to the lives of people with disabilities. Her hobbies are dancing, cooking, singing, and shopping.

Hilda has volunteered at the Red Cross in Ghana, and with the Girl Scouts. In the past she has worked within the business industry, specifically in an external audit company. She has also worked with the elderly and people with disabilities.

She would like to present about Ghanaian culture, music, traditional festivals, food, politics, geography, and dance.

Zihan is a positive person who likes to learn about new people and new cultures. She likes to talk, read, play piano, and speak Spanish.

Zihan worked in the residence halls for a year and a half as a resident assistant. During the summer, she worked as a conference assistant. She has volunteered in pre-school daycare, the retirement village and with Rotaract Club to do community service.

She can talk about cultural difference between Chinese culture and American culture. Fall term she studied abroad in Spain and is excited to share her experiences.

He has volunteered with Highland Elementary School, Salem Public Library, Salem Senior Center, Monmouth Public Library, and Leslie Middle School in the past. His work experience is working at the Children’s Palace as a teacher, in the China Information World as a journalist and at ShiZhi Ji Guan Elementary School as a teacher. He enjoys working with children and seniors.

Reiko is an outgoing person who loves to communicate and share thoughts with people from various backgrounds and cultures. She depicts herself as a responsible and hard-working person who likes to set concrete goals and makes an effort to achieve them.

Reiko’s hobbies are doing creative things such as making art and playing music. She is a member of a Japanese drumming group and enjoys sharing her culture with different audiences through performances.

Reiko has experience working in an English conversation school as an assistant in children’s English classes for three years in Japan. She has also taught Japanese to children, translated English into Japanese, and helped with events for people in a retirement home as a volunteer.

Reiko would like to tell people about Japanese culture, customs, and traditional events. She would also be very happy to share her knowledge about the differences between Japanese and Western art.

Yongshun works at the Dining Hall at WOU. He volunteered at a Social Welfare Institute in West Salem in fall 2010. He is comfortable working with teenagers because working with them makes him feel full of vitality because they are young and filled with enthusiasm. He is open to working with other age groups too.

Yongshun would like to tell people about unique traditional celebrations and festivities. When he presents about Chinese events, he will choose traditional foods, arts and music related to the presentation as an example to deepen the impression of that event for listeners.

Akaanchya is currently working at the WOU Valsetz Dining Hall, as a Special Events staff, and as a Camera Operator for the Digital Production Services.

Akaanchya has volunteered as a teacher in the past. In high school she was in charge of a program for the Red Cross Youth Club in Nepal. She volunteered as a teacher for kinds in primary schools in Nepal. She likes working with children and teenagers but would also love to work with elderly people.

Takae is an artistic person who loves talking with people about art (among other things of course)!

She enjoys making art, singing songs, taking a walk, and communicating with people from all over the world. She participates in Japanese traditional drum club and would love to perform or teach about it.

In the past Takae has worked at an event hall and hotel as a receptionist. She has volunteered at a pre-school, school for handicapped children, and nursing home for the elderly.

Sheng is an easy-going, accommodating person. If someone needs help, she will try her best to assist them.

She has many hobbies, such as playing the piano, reading books, watching movies and cooking during her spare time.

Sheng has worked at the Dining Hall at WOU and did an internship as CPA assistant in Seattle. She has volunteered at WOU Childrens Center, Child Day Camping, International Night, and in the Conversation Partner program. She is comfortable working with children and teenagers because she can easily communicate with them.

She would like to tell people about Chinese foods because it is very different from American foods. She also would like to tell about Chinese culture since China has long history and the Orient is interesting and mysterious.

Haiyang describes herself as being a friendly person with a strong work ethic. When other people ask her to do something, she is responsible and seriously works on it until it is done.

Haiyang’s hobbies are playing basketball and ping pong; she also likes listening to music and watching movies.

Work and Volunteer Experience:

Haiyang has taught Chinese in school and likes to informally cook Chinese food for her American friends. Since Haiyang is a music major, she can tell people about Chinese music and introduce some Chinese traditional instruments by performing. She can also teach piano to various skill levels. She is comfortable working with teenagers because they have creative thoughts and interesting ideas.

In China, Shanshan worked in a kindergarten. At the WOU Learning Center, she was employed as a math tutor. She has volunteered in the Monmouth Senior Center, Dallas Retirement Village, WOU Child Development Center, Chinese Spring Festival, International Night, Talmadge Middle School, Alternative Break, and as a Conversation Partner. 

Cheng grew up in Dawan which is a coastal city in China and has studied for two years in Dalian Polytechnic University.

She is an optimistic girl who loves to make friends and has a wide range of interests. Her hobbies are photography, painting, and swimming.

In the past, Cheng has volunteered at the Dalian Summer Davos World Economic Forum. She would like to teach about Chinese calligraphy, traditional food, Peking opera, and traditional Chinese festivals especially to teenagers. 

Luqi describes herself as being a very nice person and easy to get along with. She likes becoming friends with new people and exploring different cultures.

Her hobbies are swimming, Guzheng (a traditional instrument),dancing (she is currently taking “Hula” class) and playing with dogs.

Luqi has worked in Shenyang at QiQi Business Trade Co. Ltd-Marketing, at LinXin Business Trade Co. Ltd-Marketing assistant, and at the WOU Physical plant, dining hall and tutoring center. She has taken her business learning to the next level and has been a member in the WOU Business and Economics Club.

In the past she has volunteered in the WOU Child Development Center, Salem Senior Center, Monmouth Elementary School, and the China Shenyang Institute of Aeronational Engineering as a Chinese tutor and assistant.

Luqi would like to teach about traditional Chinese music. She can play and teach about Guzheng (a large stringed instrument) which has a beautiful and unique sound. She can also teach about the different styles of food found in China, and about traditional Chinese holidays and their meanings. She enjoys working with people of all ages but especially children.

Huachao Zhou describes herself as being a funny person, who loves traveling, and making friends from all around the world. She enjoys the arts such as music, art, drawing, painting and sculpture.

Her hobbies are sports such as snowboarding, traveling, skydiving, bungee jumping, and yoga.

Huachao has previously worked for an advertising company as a media buyer. At WOU she has volunteered at the Children Development Center.

She is interested in teaching about Chinese pop songs, music, culture, and art to all age groups.