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Writer's pictureTatianna Wilkins

P.A.L Exchange Program: Move-in Day


The peer advisor liaison program (P.A.L) is where international students are paired up with UNCG students. During the move-in day event, I and other university students prepared for the international students' arrival. We created a clothes drive in one of the dorms where international students could pick up leftover materials, like lamps, bed covers, and hair dryers from previous students. This was very exciting! As this was our first interaction with each other, they were excited to see us as we were to meet them. I met students from places like Italy, Germany, and Japan.


Not everyone could meet the free materials giveaway; for those students, we headed to Walmart to pick up some dorm supplies. When we arrived, many of the students commented on the abundance of things you could find in one store in comparison to their home countries. I instantly became a Walmart employee. I had to relay off my memories to guide the international students to the location of the things they would need. Who knew that I would become a tour guide to a place I went to almost every week? I remember local citizens would overhear conversations, presumably easy questions (for Americans) like “what is detergent gel? And what is instant oatmeal?” and become filled with curiosity. It was so cool to see how the household items I knew were not universal. This trip to Walmart became an eye-opening experience to the delicacies we take for granted as Americans, while also seeing the excessive choices we have. Are all these options really necessary?





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