At age 12, Sompasong Chanthavong ("Som") traveled by herself from Southeast Asia to the United States. The native of Laos knew English well enough to understand key ideas, but not well enough to speak the language. She carried a hand-printed note her father prepared in English with her name, flight information, destination, and family contacts in Minnesota. Som's American education started with that travel adventure, and her only regret is that she didn't save and frame the note as a keepsake.
Today Som is one of about 30 international students at Inver Hills Community College, and she says that her educational experience is still stimulating and positive. "Everyone is so friendly and interested. The college makes you feel like you can succeed."
With the equivalent of about 3,300 full-time students, Inver Hills is similar in size to most private small colleges where that individual attention is expected. "You're not just a number in a big class" she says. And that's what she tells prospective students in her role as a Student Ambassador for the college, speaking to groups, leading tours, and helping with orientation and other events. "It's fun. You represent the college, so you have to give people the feeling they're welcome here. It's a good experience getting to know people. Plus it helps me with my English."
Som's language skills now are very strong thanks to that first trip to America. She was in school here for about five years, starting in fifth grade but jumping to eighth grade the next year. She returned to Laos and graduated from high school, where she worked with her mother as a marketing representative for an orgnization that coordinates distribution of materials for and production of handcrafted items by villagers. Most are rice farmers, she notes, who want to supplement their income to help pay for medicine and education and to provide opportunities for their children.
For her own chance at success, Som says she knew she needed more education; she returned to Minnesota to study business at Inver Hills in fall semester 2000. Compared to others in her country, she says she is "lucky" because her parents can help send her to college, although not without some financial effort by everyone in the family, including her. College moms and dads anywhere would love the acknowledgement she offers: "It makes me appreciate my parents."