Conversations Between Cultures: Program Links International Students with Locals

Felipe Guilherme Melo is a junior at UW-Milwaukee through the Brazilian Scientific Mobility Program. When he came to America, he didn’t know how to speak much English.

“If I wanted to stay here, I had to learn English,” Melo said. “And then I was trying to find ways to learn English faster. And I didn’t know anything when I got here. Kind of just, you know, ‘hello’ and ‘thank you’.”

Enter Conversation Partners, a program devoted to helping international students learn English, and English-speaking students learn more about another culture. The concept: Pair an international student with a non-international student and hope that learning – and maybe even friendship – ensues.

The program, sponsored by the UWM English as a Second Language Department, has existed for 30 years. However, it just became a student organization this year, and that’s largely due to the experiences of Melo.

When he met his conversation partner, Austin Krogh, Melo found out that Krogh had lived in Brazil for two years, so he understood the culture as well as the language. Melo would bring his homework to their conversation meetings, and Krogh would tell him how certain things in English were similar to Portuguese to help Melo learn better.

Krogh joined the program because, after returning to the States, he had no one to practice his Portuguese with. Krogh and Melo were relating well and soon became good friends who saw each other more regularly than the standard hour a week. When Austin got an internship at Johnson Controls, he helped Melo with his resume and the application, and the two of them ended up working together over the summer. Krogh and Melo are still meeting after three semesters, even though they both had new Conversation Partners. Krogh has since graduated.

“When I first heard of the program, I thought ‘It’s not going to work’, and then when we started to meet and get along with each other, I was like ‘Oh my gosh, this program is amazing. What can I do to help?’” Melo said. “And then I came to Ellen, and she’s was very open to that.”

Some of the International students involved in the program are homesick or have trouble making friends, and this is a great way for them to reach out and practice English, organizers say.

The new student organization is run by Melo, and the faculty advisor and coordinator Ellen Nuss, as well as four other organization officers.

“I think that the opportunity to practice a language and meet someone from another country is really attractive to many students,” said Nuss. “…A pretty cool experience that can happen right on the UWM campus.”

Melo was so happy with his success in the program that he wanted to help other students have the same kind of experience that he did. He came to Nuss, and they decided to work out a position for him—President of the program. They also decided to make the program into a Student Organization. This is their first year as such, and they sent out their first newsletter last month as well as scheduling events for students to participate in.

All Conversation Partners are volunteers, but a lot of students end up returning to the program each semester. Chinese International student and Sophomore Architecture major Yunjie Lu (she goes by Claudia) says that many of her friends have been in the program a while, although this is her first year.

“For international students, it’s a great opportunity to practice English speaking and learn about America culture,” Lu said. “The majority of [my friends] enjoy it very much. For American students… they also seem to like it because it makes the learning easier.”

Founders say Conversation Partners is a great way for students both American and International to meet people and gain knowledge about a new culture.

Nuss is also an ESL lecturer and learning about American culture can only go so far in the classroom. This program is designed as a hands-on way to not only get information but also experience. Students generally meet for coffee of lunch, but once they get to know each other they go out to movies or hang out with each other’s’ friends.

“Sometimes, students do decide to stop participating in the program. The most common reasons are because of a schedule change or a heavy class load that doesn’t allow them to meet with their partner,” Nuss said. “In some cases, partners don’t feel like they have much in common, so we’ll work to find another partner who might be a better fit.”

When students first sign up for the program, they take a little survey of what their hobbies are, when they can meet and what language they are interested in learning so that their partner can be better selected for them.

In the beginning of the year, there is a social event that both International and American students are encouraged to attend where they will meet up with their conversation partners. They can play games, socialize, and get to know their partners as well as other students in the program. In addition to the meet-ups that students will do one on one, there are events planned and attended by the entire program in both Fall and Spring semesters.

Students are invited to attend things such as a group outing to Discovery World and the Milwaukee Art Museum, a Milwaukee Bucks Game, a Six Flags day-trip, a Boat Tour of Milwaukee, a Brewers Game and much more. These outings give students the chance to interact with students that speak another language. This also gives International students another frame of reference for American culture.

For any questions or to join the Conversation Panthers Organization, you can contact Ellen Nuss at convpart@uwm.edu. You can also sign up for the Spring 2015 semester on the ESL homepage.