By: Sabrina Nkauj Nag Yang, Education Abroad Graduate Assistant
I began graduate school in the middle of a pandemic and saw the devastating effects COVID-19 wreaked upon the Hmong student population at St. Cloud State. COVID-19 has waged its wrath through many different aspects of normal everyday life. In this place, right here in the now, higher education has been greatly impacted.
Opportunities in higher education that were created to foster academic growth and leadership opportunities were cancelled. Departments, like Education Abroad, lost the opportunity to engage and interact with students. Students have lost their sense of belonging at universities due to the COVID-19 pandemic, they hardly know their professors, and they barely recognize various departments that can be utilized to support higher education success. This especially holds true for many of the Hmong students struggling to stay afloat in their undergraduate career.
HMoob (Hmong) around the World was brought to life to inspire, to ignite, and to reimagine the hope of education abroad opportunities for students in the near future. I hope you find courage, I hope you find strength, and I hope you study abroad. HMoob (Hmong) around the World will showcase a series of testimonials from HMoob alum who look like you, speak the same language as you, and may have experienced similar things as HMoob (Hmong) American college students. These are their education abroad stories.
Please fly safely, physical distance, and don’t forget to carry your hand sanitizer. We look forward to sharing the HMoob (Hmong) around the World Series with you!
Nyob zoo rau nej txhua leej txhua tus. Peb mam sib ntsib dua (Greetings to all of you. We will meet, again)
Sabrina Nkauj Nag Yang
Sabrina in Vientiane, Laos – Sabrina participated in the Laos, Thailand, Malaysia education abroad program during Winter Break 2018.