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Conceived three years ago, the program connects international graduate students with people of the Greater Boston community during the holidays and beyond.
Vaishnavi Choukwale, an information systems student from India, was new to the Boston area. She was introduced to Deborah and Peter Reinhart, who live on the Atlantic coast north of the city.
They were brought together by “Home Away From Home,” a program that connects Northeastern international graduate students with people of the Greater Boston community — residents who often have no connection to the university.
Those connections are especially meaningful during the holiday season.
“It was a new thing for me,” Choukwale said. “I had no friends or family here, and I did not know anyone who is local.”
She momentarily had second thoughts — “I was actually going to bail on the program” — before deciding to meet with the Reinharts.
“We found out we have the same interests, we like to do the same things — and then it was like a meant-to-be kind of thing,” she said. “I was so glad I got matched with them because we are having so much fun and we can’t wait to see each other.”
That initial connection was made a year ago. When the Reinharts and Choukwale re-enlisted this fall it was with the idea of deepening their connection. Last week they reconnected at a “Home Away From Home” kickoff event at Curry Student Center.
“We learned about each other’s families,” said Peter Reinhart as he turned to face Choukwale with a matching smile. “We learned about your dad, your brother, the traditions, the religions. The tradition that astounded us most was that aunts get to name the firstborn niece or nephew, right?”
Choukwale nodded. “I named her Arya,” she says of her niece.
The idea of helping international students feel at home was conceived three years ago by Amy d’Ablemont Burnes, a resident of Boston’s South End (near the Northeastern campus) and a friend of John Tobin, vice president of city and community engagement at Northeastern. With the help of Mallory Pernaa, Northeastern’s director of off campus engagement and support, they identified community residents who were interested in connecting with the students.
“It creates a cross-cultural opportunity for people traveling from around the globe to get to know people who live in Boston,” said d’Ablemont Burnes, who participates as a host. “This fills in that connectedness and joy factor for students.”
Last week at the meet-and-greet, some of the international students made arrangements to participate in the American tradition of a home-cooked Thanksgiving meal. But “Home Away From Home” transcends that singular holiday: The program is meant to create opportunities for students and residents to connect multiple times throughout the academic year.
Last year eight events were organized for participants, including a theater production, an ice skating event and a Northeastern varsity game.
Daren Bascome is among the 30 community residents who have signed on as hosts so far this year.
“I was a foreign student [from Bermuda] when I came to college, as was my sister, as was my father,” said Bascome, founder and creative director of Proverb, a branding and advertising agency in the South End. “The unmet needs that something like this, as casual as it is, can help address — it makes a lot of sense.”
Hannah Wisawayodhin-Andrews, a graduate student in global studies and international relations, is new to the program. She said her family is happy to hear that she is making inroads in the community.
“My mom was an international student,” Wisawayodhin-Andrews said. “She knows how it can get quite isolating when you’re away from home and your family.”
Theo Pai, an information systems student from Taiwan, has returned to the program after enjoying it last year.
“As an international student, it’s very hard to get to know the local people,” he said. “So I think it’s a very cool idea to match the locals and the internationals to hang out and do some fun stuff.”
The joy was obvious as Choukwale reunited last week with the Reinharts. They smiled and laughed like longtime friends.
“I’ve learned about their culture, I’ve learned about the people and how welcoming they can be,” Choukwale said. “They declared me as family, basically. So it wasn’t even a question that I was from somewhere else. They made me feel right at home, quite literally.”
“And what I’ve learned,” responded Deborah Reinhart, “is that it doesn’t matter where you’re from. It’s the connection that you gain in getting to understand another human being, and then feeling how much you have in common.
“It doesn’t matter that you’re from India and I’m from the United States. I’m not saying that’s irrelevant. But it’s really about connecting person to person. It’s about humanity.”