Want to enjoy a casual evening social hour while learning interesting facts about other cultures? Look no further than the Auburn University International Student Organization.
The ISO has been promoting relationships between different cultures on Auburn's campus for more than 20 years, said Mary Tinkler-Burgess, the ISO office graduate assistant.
"The purpose of the ISO is to provide a 'home away from home' atmosphere for the international students," said Muralidharan Venkatasubramanian, president of the organization.
Any international student that enrolls in Auburn is automatically a member of the organization, but anyone interested can join. There are more than 90 countries represented in the ISO, including China, India, Chile, Italy, Nepal, and many others.
Many student athletes are also members of the ISO. The organization has members of the swim team, track team and tennis team, to name a few.
The organization currently has about 1,000 members, but is always looking for new faces.
However, students do not have to be from another country to become a member of ISO.
"We are trying to make it a way for Americans to expose themselves to different cultures and people," Tinkler-Burgess said.
The organization has many ways for international students to interact with one another. During the school year the ISO meets every Friday at 4 p.m. on the third floor of the new student center for a "social hour" during which they enjoy free food and drink and discuss other cultures and plan the events they organize during the year. The meetings continue during the summer, but decrease to every other Friday.
Another way the organization encourages interaction among cultures is with its "Family Friends" program. International students who are new to Auburn are paired with American students who can help them practice English, show them around town and generally get them acquainted with the Auburn lifestyle.
This includes introducing international students to Auburn football, which the ISO also tries to do by hosting one tailgate per year.
"The Family Friends program is really one of the key parts of our club," Tinkler-Burgess said. "When international students come to school at Auburn, it is often their first time out of their home country, or even out of their small home village."
While any international student new to Auburn is encouraged to join the Family Friends program, the majority are graduate students. Any Auburn student who would like to participate in the program as a guide may fill out an application in the ISO office on the third floor of the student union. Though applications are accepted all year, the matching process occurs during the fall.
The ISO hosts several other events throughout the year, including foreign film nights, a peace dinner in the fall and a multi-cultural talent show. To see a schedule of upcoming events, check out the ISO's Web site at http://www.auburn.edu/academic/international/iso.
"The great thing of being part of ISO is that I feel this is the only organization on campus where if you sit around a table at any of its events, you could talk to a person from every continent on the planet except for Antartica," Venkatasubramanian said.
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