MSU
Daniel Ortega-Pacheco heard a bundle of stories about international students' struggles as an MSU International Students Association board member last year.
Ortega-Pacheco, an agricultural economics graduate student from Ecuador, said Americans don't often understand the difficulties international students face.
"What people don't see is these international students are running short on money, just like any other college students, they're homesick and they're miles and miles away from their families," he said.
A series of meetings between international students and local businesses look to strengthen the connection between the business community and MSU international students.
Led by the MSU Office for International Students & Scholars Director Peter Briggs, the meetings are part of the OISS effort to ease the struggles of international students coming to a new country, school and home.
"We want to make sure our international students feel welcome here and that we improve some of the entry pathways for these students into more aspects of the community," Briggs said.
International students contributed more than $90 million to Lansing's economy in 2006, according to the Institute of International Education.
Last week's meeting was a brainstorming session between international students and CEOs of six local companies, he said.
