Big day draws relatives from across the globe
William Alix / KANSAN
Anna Gustavsson, Orebro, Sweden, senior, is graduating in May. Her parents will be here to see her walk down the hill.
By Olof Westerberg Special to the Kansan
Like other seniors, Anna Gustavsson is waiting for her parents to make the trip to Lawrence for graduation to watch her while she walks down the hill and to bring her gifts from home.
One big difference: They have to catch a plane from Orebro, Sweden, to get here.
Graduation is a big event to be shared with family and friends. It does not matter whether a student's parents are from Lawrence or London.
"It seems like cost doesn't matter," said Gerald Harris, director of the Office of International Student Services. "Parents come from Europe, Africa, the Far East and the Middle East."
The graduation party starts early for the international students. Together with their families, the students are invited to a reception in their honor from 4 to 5:30 p.m. May 13 at the Malott Room in the Kansas Union.
"The tradition of an international reception started two years ago," Harris said. "The first year, 250 people showed up. Last year, there were as many as 750."
Before the visiting parents from across the world enter Memorial Stadium on graduation day, they line up along Memorial Drive and take pictures of their graduating children. The parents then join the 35,000 visitors in Lawrence on graduation day which is May 15 this year.
"Ilike to stand upon the grass and see people walk down the hill," Harris said. "The feeling is always rather euphoric, but getting into the stadium seems to be an antici-
max."
Two thousand international students attend the University of Kansas, according to International Student Services. That is about 8 percent of the total student population. A few hundred of them are here as exchange students for a year, but most stay
for an entire academic program.
This spring, 372 international seniors will be graduating. There are also 580 master's candidates and 345 doctoral candidates from other countries, but it is difficult to predict how many of these students actually will graduate.
Carlos Loperena, a fifth-year senior from Mexico City, is looking forward to several of his relatives coming to Lawrence to celebrate.
"I have a very close relation to my grandmother, so I'm very happy that she could come here all the way from Mexico," Loperena said. "She is one of the smartest people I know, and she has influenced me a lot so far in life."
International Student Services offers a special service through which foreign parents receive help getting visas in time for graduation. They also send special letters of invitation to parents of international students who are coming to Lawrence for graduation.
Gustavsson also is waiting for her parents and her sister to come.
"It feels like I'm ready to leave Lawrence," Gustavsson said. "I've had a good time here, but after a while you reach a point where you feel like you want to move on."
Marcia Ramos, Rio de Janeiro, Brazil senior, will continue with postgraduate studies in the United States after graduation. However, before that, her parents and an aunt are coming to Lawrence to watch her walk down the hill.
"I'm looking forward to graduation with somewhat mixed emotions," Ramos said. "The good part is that it's going to be a big party and a lot of fun. Thereafter comes the sad part that has to do with leaving Lawrence, the campus and all your friends behind. I will miss KU basketball, that's for sure."