Current Student Spotlight: Kenya
Hello, my name is Ian Adipo, and I am from Kenya. Global UGRAD is an enriching experience that I have long wanted to be a part of. My dreams came true in January 2023, when I was selected for an interview out of hundreds of applicants. After successfully interviewing, I moved on to the next phase and completed my TOEFL exams. I anxiously awaited the next steps to determine whether I had been selected as a finalist or an alternate. On April 28, 2023, World Learning informed me that I had been selected as a finalist. Being selected as a finalist made me realize that I had done something different from the previous year when I was selected as an alternate.
The process of onboarding to the United States began shortly after. I was accepted to North Central College, a liberal arts college founded in Naperville, Illinois in 1861. It is located in the Naperville Historic District, just outside of Chicago.
North Central College has provided me with a competitive edge in promoting my cultural, professional, and personal perspectives. I’ve learned the value of diversity and inclusion in a wide range of settings. Global UGRAD provides a platform for people to engage and think differently. I met some wonderful people through the Global UGRAD Program who were also attending North Central College. We were all from different backgrounds, so our ideas and cultures were very different.
Opportunities to volunteer within the school provided a fulfilling approach to sales management. In this vein, I participated in the Coffee Lab, a faculty-student-partner collaboration focusing on direct trade and relationship-based social enterprises.
My involvement in school spirit was also recognized, as I volunteered and worked for WONC 89.1 FM, a student-run radio station at North Central College that has been serving Chicago’s western suburbs for over fifty years. My main responsibilities included reporting on the news and traffic updates on Tuesdays and Thursdays.
North Central College has inspired me to continue working on sustainable environmental practices. Taking a sustainability course has opened my eyes to a variety of ways in which I can emulate Naperville’s efforts to make its environment more sustainable in my home country. In line with my commitment to sustainability, I volunteered as a Winter Chloride Watcher with The Conservation Foundation, collecting water samples from the DuPage River in Naperville, IL to help understand the impact of chlorides on aquatic life.
I was a member of North Central College’s African Club, which promotes growth and learning among African students. We held our welcome mixer in February to kick off the semester and discuss how we will serve other Africans and present their perspectives to the administration. This was an opportunity to bond outside of class and welcome more people who desired to learn more about Africa and its cultures. There is a saying in my native language (Luo) that says, “No event should ever end without adequate food.” African food culture is deeply ingrained, and we decided to honor a centuries-old tradition by serving African cuisine.
Nelson Mandela stated, “A fundamental concern for others in our individual and community lives would go a long way in making the world the better place we so passionately dreamt of.” In reflection to this, my visit to the United Nations brought with it a more fire burning passion for promoting Sustainable Development Goal (SDG) 6 (ensuring availability and sustainable management of water and sanitation for all) and SDG 14 (conserve and sustainably use the oceans, sea, and marine resources for sustainable development).
In sum, Global UGRAD has provided me with invaluable opportunities for connection and growth. It has allowed me to meet 162 leaders from 53 different countries, as well as visualize and synthesize the magnitude of our work as young people to change this precious world we live in.