In partnership with the Office of Graduate Diversity Initiatives, the Center for African Studies has created the ASX (African Student eXperience) initiative in an effort to create a safe space for our community of international African Graduate students specifically.
With the help and input from our current graduate students, it was brought to our attention that our African internationals had a very small support system at UF when it came to orienting themselves to campus life, and life in the United States. Making friends and connections with each other, on their own, was how our students were discovering helpful recourses and tips. They found informal ways to navigate the transition from their home country.
The ASX initiative is intended to create support for those informal connections as well as to formally encourage new friendship, connections, and offer recourses the CAS and UF has to offer.
ASX includes a Mentor/Mentee program for students seeking a closer relationship with a peer, a WhatsApp group, and newsletter, and a Monthly Meetup, where the group meets virtually or in person to get to know each other, or to have a discussion with a notable faculty member on campus on topics relevant to the group.
These meetups include introductions, icebreakers, and discussions surrounding subject matter chosen by the participating students. We aim to cover topics such as on/off-campus housing, transportation, research/library assistance, general experiences, etc. These meetups will be curated by the students, making them as relevant to their needs as possible.
We are excited about our new ASX focus and plan to sustain this initiative for years to come, well after our current students have graduated, and a new generation of internationals arrive.