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<p>This is one of the biggest things I love about Duke. Never before have I had friends from almost every corner of not only the United States, but also the world. A lot of the students living in my hall are international students, and I’ve never had friends of so many different ethnicities before. Being Asian and growing up in a predominately Asian community in California, the overwhelming majority of my friends were also Asian. But being at Duke, I finally have non-Asian friends that I can call my best friends (sounds stupid, but this was so nice for me…). I absolutely, absolutely love it. I love being surrounded by so many different perspectives and languages and learning form my friends about their lives in Hong Kong, Korea, Singapore, Sweden, Spain, et al. Albeit, it’s painful watching them beast curves and complete an exam as if it were a piece of cake, but that’s also something we deal with. And hey, they learn from us too: it’s funny when they come across some seemingly “weird” American mannerisms that they had no idea existed hahah.</p>
<p>Duke has done a lot over the years to increase diversity on campus, and I feel that each step, while small, is helping change students’ experiences for the better. While there have been problems on campus due to budget cuts (e.g.; the International House and the Multicultural Center may potentially be merged, limiting benefits to certain groups), the way students stand up for diversity shows how important it is to Dukies and Duke life.</p>
<p>For exampleeeeeee:</p>
<p>[International</a> House to merge with Multicultural Center | The Chronicle](<a href=“http://dukechronicle.com/article/international-house-merge-multicultural-center]International”>International House to merge with Multicultural Center - The Chronicle)
Commentary: [Commentary</a> on the I-House/MCC Merger Duke Yellow Pages](<a href=“http://dukeyellowpages.■■■■■■■■■■■■■/2009/11/16/commentary-on-the-i-housemcc-merger/]Commentary”>Commentary on the I-House/MCC Merger | Duke Yellow Pages)
Outcry: [Int’l</a> House-MCC merger elicits student outcry | The Chronicle](<a href=“http://dukechronicle.com/article/intl-house-mcc-merger-elicits-student-outcry]Int’l”>Int'l House-MCC merger elicits student outcry - The Chronicle)</p>
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