Campus Bridging Initiative at St. Kate’s, Day Two

I'm Chelsi from the Dominican Republic, and I’m a first-year international student at CSBSJU, (the College of Saint Benedict and Saint John's University). Recently, I had the opportunity to participate in the Campus Bridging Initiative (CBI) of the organization Civic Bridgers. The purpose of the program is to enable students from rural and urban colleges to understand each other better while working on common concerns. The first part of this program took place at St. Catherine University in St. Paul, Minnesota, and I was unsure about what to expect, so I felt mixed emotions of nervousness as well as excitement. But within a second, I felt I belonged and was a part of something as I entered the place.

We had some inspiring sessions at St. Catherine University over the weekend, for example, "Urban/Rural Narratives – Debunking Stereotypes", where we talked about the presumptions that people sometimes make about others. I shared some of my experiences, and what was most touching was to see how others identified with my feelings of misunderstanding others, even if they had different life stories. We also went to the Como Zoo and the institute of arts of Minneapolis, which were extremely pleasurable and quiet. We bonded more when we left the session room and wandered the gardens and inspected the animals. Some of the spots we visited were also new to me, and I relished the time to loosen up, have a good time, and frankly, just be ourselves.

This experience has completely changed me. Sometimes it is difficult to get along as an international student in the first year of college, especially when you have a language barrier. But a couple of hours we spent together during this weekend made me realize that if we are willing to listen, we are more similar than different. Now I feel safer asking questions and expressing my culture. I had interesting talks and found new friends that I will never forget. I'm thinking about the future and want to use all of the experience I got from CBI to connect more with others–not just students from rural and urban areas, but also people from my community, people from other cultures, and even other nations.