By LYNN YANG
Tiger Media Network
Cory Cimaglia is a 19-year-old American student majoring in “Tourism and Hospitality Management” as an undergraduate at FHSU. From the beginning of his campus life, he chose to serve as a global ambassador in the International Office, aiming to help students from different countries, showing international students the campus, and helping to solve some difficulties. Cimaglia’s daily job is to get along with people from different countries and have cross-cultural communication.
Lynn (TMN Reporter)-Why did you choose this job? What’s your usual job?
Cory (global ambassador) – I’ve wanted to be exposed to different cultures since I was in high school, and when I found out that this school had a position for students, I applied for the job. My normal job is to shoot videos and post them on Instagram, Facebook and YouTube to let people from different countries know about our school. I also help the international students on campus with their problems.
Lynn– What influenced you to want to be exposed to different cultures?
Cory – Because there are many things in other cultures that we don’t hear about in the United States. I’m very much about convenience in life, whatever makes my life easier going forward, like just little things that might change if you could change different things. I try to take the best from each place and apply it to my own life. When I was young, I traveled and went to a lot of states in the United States and I experienced a lot of different things. I also got to know some people from other countries. During the communication process, I found their stories and culture very useful, and from then on, I knew that I wanted to work around this, learn different things and meet as many different people as possible. Basically, I learned that different things can help different people.
Lynn – What did you learn?
Cory – There are many. My Thai friend has certain things that helps him. Like, herbs that he took when he felt sick and then he felt better. Then, I just integrated him into my life and did what he did. While I was sick, I started eating herbs to feel better. It’s just little things that people do in their everyday lives, and I’ve tried to bring it into my own life and everything has been made easier. Like my Chinese friends, I like their daily culture. They always put study first, make sure to have a good grade, they always study in the library. They also eat healthier, and then I apply them to my life. A lot of my Chinese friends also talk about skincare and things like that, which I haven’t mastered yet, but it helps.
Lynn – Do you have any difficulties at work? Is language communication a problem?
Cory – I wouldn’t say there’s a whole lot of difficulties for me personally. For international students, they can use a translator or let their friend help them. Also I can speak slowly and clearly to let them understand. Language communication is not a barrier. I have a lot of projects and I have to use my time wisely. I need to find a balance among classes、schoolwork and office work. I use Google Calendar to remind myself what I need to do, to prioritize my time first, and to do what’s important.
Lynn – Does the International office often hold cultural exchange activities?
Cory – Yes, we have International Week, and that’s just to welcome the international students and make sure that they’re comfortable with us and with campus. Answering any questions before the semester starts, and then we also have a lot of activities. Lunar New Year, which a lot of people had a lot of fun with that, just celebrating and having a good time. We also have food and fashion festivals. You get a dress up and you exchange your culture, like outfit and cook culture dish. We have people from all over the world, which is very fun. Most recently, Ramadan is coming.
Lynn – Do you have any fun at work?
Cory – Nothing special, but it’s something new every day, which we just have so much fun and just so many stories. We share about each other’s culture and learn new things every day. It’s kind of interesting because walking into the office, you never know what’s gonna happen or who’s gonna come in that door. lt’s something new every day.
Lynn – Have you noticed any similarities and differences between different cultures?
Cory – I think something similar we share is just kind of our love and passion for certain things like food. lt may not be the same food, but you know, we all love food. And then just kind of enjoying each other’s company, whether it be playing card games. Participate in various activities and share with each other, it is fun. The difference is that we come from different countries
Lynn – How do you open up topics when you communicate with people from different cultures?
Cory – Definitely finding out something that they would understand and they would feel comfortable with. I’ve had so many conversations with so many different people. l could relate to them in some way. For example, if I’m talking to somebody from Nigeria maybe l would bring up like soccer or a jala for rice, which is a common rice they eat there. So just asking about the culture. Learning about the culture.
Lynn – How do you break the ice before connecting with a stranger?
Cory – It’s not very difficult to break the ice. You just have to show you’re friendly. Participate in the conversation. It doesn’t matter what you say, just try to participate. I have met some exchange students who are shy. They may not talk to you at first, but you just need to keep talking to them. You can’t give up on this person just because they are too shy to talk to you. You have to keep coming back to them, keep asking them questions, and over time they’ll start to get back into it. It takes time.
Lynn – Have you had any interesting experiences interacting with people from different countries at work?
Cory – There are so many interesting things that I don’t know which one to tell first. When you communicate with people from other countries, you will always find something interesting or gain some new knowledge. What impressed me most was my colleague’s wedding, which happened last semester. It was so much fun to celebrate the most important day of my friend’s life with traditional Nigerian costumes, traditional dances and eating. I’ve been to a lot of American weddings, but a Nigerian wedding has more energy; it’s like a party. Crystal, my Chinese friends tell me that Chinese weddings are very different, they invite a lot of people and have five outfits, it’s crazy. It’s fun. You learn that the same thing happens in different ways in different countries.
Lynn – Were there any experiences that made you grow up suddenly?
Cory – These experiences are cumulative. I didn’t speak much before, and after I started working on campus, I think all the people, the global affairs team, helped me a lot. I was almost the youngest employee in the international office, and understanding their priorities in life and their approach to doing things has made me a better person and more mature.
Note from the writer
This conversation with Cory has been very rewarding for me. In the pursuit of exchanges and understanding with different countries, friendliness is our best companion. Don’t be afraid to throw up topics, actively participate in conversations, let each other’s cultures collide, spark, and there will be unexpected gains. You may encounter rejection, but don’t be afraid to be rejected, brave to take the first step, to explore and learn, will always gain some inspiration, growth and friendship.
Everyone’s life is a book. I want to collect interesting stories. If you have any interesting, fun and meaningful stories that you would like to share with me, I am very glad to record them! Contact: m_yang35_sia@mail.fhsu.edu
You must be logged in to post a comment.