The International Club is a new club/organization on the campus of American International College (AIC).

The club’s constitution was approved last month by Zachary Beaver, Director of Engagement, Leadership, and International Student Life. On Wednesday, March 16, Rushawna Elliott represented the new club in front of Student Government Association (SGA), which also approved the formation of the new club.

The purpose of this club is to promote and enhance the rich cultures abundant on the AIC campus, to provide the international student community with formal representation within the college and the surrounding communities, to explore and exchange different cultural experiences, to expand the American experience beyond the classroom to foreign students and to raise awareness of international issues at AIC.

The name of the club may cause people to think it would only be open for international students. However, Viktoriya Maklakova, a freshman at AIC, informed otherwise.

“Any member of the American International College student body who is interested is eligible to become a member of the International Club. Non-international students are encouraged to become members so that a reciprocal exchange of cultures occur. So I encourage everyone to become a member,” Maklakova said.

The club is finally approved. However, it still needs some time to build up and grow. The first step to achieve this goal for the International Club is to find new members.

“We don’t even have a President yet, so we’ll need some interested people who want to be a part of the club and be a member of the Executive Board (e-board). To become an e-board member, students need to have a 2.5 or higher GPA. Since my major is Accounting I would love to be the treasurer of the International Club. Our first official meeting should be about voting for the e-board members and to get the club get started,” Maklakova explained.

The club is planning to meet once a week. First, to find the e-board members, and later, to talk about different cultures, have discussions about different topics, guide and help each other, organize events and maybe even do field trips together.

“One of my ideas for a club meeting is to share traditional food with each other. People bring in something typical for their own country and other people can taste it and see if they like it,” Maklakova said with a smile.

The club is run by students like every other student organization on campus. Every club has an advisor who supports the existence of the club. An advisor must be an employee of American International College. This staff member serves as the primary advisor to the student organization. The advisor does not have any voting rights. In this case the advisor of the International Club is Lesley La Marche.

Marie De Vroey, an international student from Belgium, said, “I read about the international club and it sounds very cool. As an international student I like to hear about a club like that and I hope the club can get started soon.”

“I like the idea of having an international club on campus and I would love to be a part of it,” Anna King, another international student from Scotland said.

If YOU like to hear and talk about different cultures and be a part of a student organization, join the international club. If you want to become a member of the international club, contact the advisor Lesley La Marche ([email protected]) or Viktoriya Maklakova ([email protected]).