Several exchange students often find difficulty in adjusting to a new country. Not only must students cope with the language barrier, but also customs and food.

In an effort to unite foreign students, campus pastor, Scott Falk, organized the Asian Club for students to gather and gradually understand the American culture.

?There has been more Asian students this year, than any other year,? Falk said. ?I am very fond of the Asians and I wanted to give them an opportunity to gather outside of school.?

Falk invites the 15 Asian students once a month to his house. Falk serves hot tea and each person brings a traditional dish from his or her country. Ie Run Jung, ’08, came to the US seven years ago, after living in Korea her whole life.

?In Korea they offer some English classes,? Jung said, ?but the classes are very basic and teach the alphabet and greetings.?

Upon arrival in America, Jung felt confident in math, which helped her adjust and socialize with other students.

The Asian students come from a variety of cultures, such as: Korean, Chinese, Vietnamese and Indonesian. With most of the foreign students speaking different languages, there is often an opportunity to share different aspects of their language and culture.

In 2006, Peter (Po-Sen) Yang, ?09, moved to America from Taiwan and was surprised the campus formed an Asian club.

?This semester there were more Asians than last year,? Yang said. ?Mr. Falk started the Asian club because he likes the Asian culture. As the time passes we begin to learn things from the other Asians. We like going to Mr. Falk?s house and having Asian dinners, because we have really fun times playing card games and talking about our culture.?

During Christmas break, Falk plans to host a Christmas lunch for the participants. They often discuss different aspects of their culture with one another.

?It is really cool to see at the dinners when they are all talking,? Falk said. ?They are from all different countries and it’s just really cool to listen to them all sharing different parts of their own language with each other.?