McKissick photo exhibit gives voice to USC's international students

A photography and creative writing exhibit focused on the experiences of USC's 1,000-plus international students goes on display April 6 at McKissick Museum.

USC PhotoVoice International will offer visitors an insider's view--through the camera lenses of several international students--of the challenges and cultural perspectives of USC's international student community. The PhotoVoice method was created by Caroline Wang, a public health faculty member at the University of Michigan.

The exhibit is sponsored by the Arts Institute with support from Student Health Services, International Programs for Students, Study Abroad, the Arnold School of Public Health, and the English and art departments.

Students whose photographs will be featured in the exhibit hail from India, Syria, Nigeria, Ghana, and Uganda--USC's overall international student body comes from about 100 countries. Romel Lacson, a Ph.D. student in anthropology, has guided the project with Ashlee Watts, program coordinator and health educator of Student Wellness Promotion.

"Stress is the No. 1 impediment to academic success, and international students often deal with a lot of underlying stress--transportation, language, and cultural differences," Watts said.

"Putting a camera in these students' hands to document their experiences here isn't just about a photo exhibition," Lacson said. "It's about giving them a voice to be heard."

Pat Willer, director of International Programs for Students, is looking forward to the exhibit opening. "I think it's an exciting concept and am delighted that students took this on," she said. "International students are often here for a relatively short time and don't always have the opportunity to participate in University affairs. I think we can learn more about meeting students' needs when they have an opportunity to talk about their issues."

In preparation for the exhibition, the international student participants met every two weeks during the fall 2006 and spring 2007 semesters, discussing their digital camera images and the stories behind them. Each student then culled hundreds of photos to choose three for the exhibit.

"When I had to narrow it down, I wanted to get across what international students go through that most U.S. nationals wouldn't ever know about," said Neha Shrikani Nakim, a native of Ahmedabad in western India who is earning a master's in mass communications.

Credit cards, which are difficult for international students to obtain, and commuting have been two of Nakim's most nettlesome issues and the focus of some of her photos. A credit card would make financial transactions such as tuition payment far more convenient. The lack of a car or extensive public transportation in Columbia has hampered her ability to complete an internship.

Soubhi Haddad, a native of Lattkia on the western coast of Syria and a business undergraduate, talked about becoming a different person since moving to the United States.

"You have to transform yourself--the way you deal with people. I realized that I'm not the same person I was in Syria, and if I go back there, I would be different because of my experiences here. In a sense, I'm an alien in both cultures," he said.

Naveen Kumar Santhapuri, a Ph.D. student in computer science from Visakhapatnam in southeast India, concentrated on shooting images that showed the differences between home and here.

"We have no family here and very few friends--they are your support when you're home," he said. "You're basically cutting yourself off [when you seek a degree in another country] so you have to be adventurous."

But in spite of whatever negative issues international students might face at a U.S. university, "there are so many things we have learned here--managing time, finances, and food teaches you a lot," Nakim said.

"You grow as an individual and in the way you look at things and become a better person," Santhapuri said.

Haddad concurred, but with a slightly different twist: "You learn to take care of yourself and become another person."

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