On-campus Violence Concerns Some International Students, Not Others
2023-04-02
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1Gun violence can happen anywhere in the United States.
2It can happen at a school for children, a holiday parade or a food store.
3It can also happen on college campuses.
4In February, a gunman came onto the grounds of Michigan State University and killed three people and hurt five others.
5Last November, three University of Virginia students were killed by a classmate as they returned from a group trip to Washington, D.C.
6Different kinds of violence can also strike universities.
7Last autumn, someone with a knife killed four students from the University of Idaho as they slept in their home near the school.
8Investigators are still working on the case in Idaho.
9In Michigan, the man who shot the students later killed himself.
10In Virginia, police arrested the student who shot his classmates.
11There have been nine mass shootings at or around American colleges since 1966.
12That information comes from the Violence Project .
13The group defines a mass shooting as one in which four or more people are murdered in public in a single incident.
14The deadliest was at Virginia Tech in 2007.
15In that attack, a student killed 32 people and wounded 17 others.
16Fifteen years later, some laws and rules have been changed, but shootings still happen.
17How does the risk of such violence affect international students coming to the United States?
18And how does it affect the people whose job it is to recruit such students?
19VOA Learning English spoke with two international students and a member of one university's international programs team to find out.
20Beau Benson recruits international students at Northeastern University in Boston, Massachusetts.
21The university has one of the largest populations of international students in the country.
22After a shooting like the one at Michigan State, Benson said, people thinking about coming to the U.S. for their studies have more questions about safety.
23Benson said worried parents ask: "Will my son or daughter be safe if I send them halfway around the world?"
24Benson notes, however, that the questions change depending on news events and international politics.
25Earlier in his career, international students and their parents were more worried about feeling welcome in the U.S.
26"And it's really in the last few weeks or months, I would say, that the whole topic of gun violence has come up again."
27Kartik Sundaram and Khushi Agnish are both from India.
28They currently are in school or work on college campuses in the United States.
29Sundaram studies the behavior of internet users at the University of Michigan.
30Agnish recently finished her studies at Quinnipiac University in Connecticut.
31She now works as a researcher at Yale University.
32Sundaram lives in Ann Arbor, Michigan.
33That is about 100 kilometers from the Michigan State University campus.
34He called the Michigan State shooting "tragic."
35"But it's kind of out of our control," he added.
36"There's nothing really I can do about it and there's no point in wasting my mental resources thinking about it."
37Sundaram said that if a person with a gun did come to his classroom, "then I'm dead."
38Agnish has experience at two American universities.
39She said the environment at Quinnipiac is very different than the one at Yale even though they are only 15 minutes apart.
40Yale is in the city of New Haven and people can walk onto the campus without much trouble.
41Quinnipiac, on the other hand, is in the suburban city of Hamden.
42It is next to a large state park and separated from homes and business areas.
43She said anyone who drives a car must show their school identification card in order to enter the campus.
44At Yale, people need a student card to enter buildings.
45Agnish said she worries about crime and sometimes feels less safe in New Haven than she did in India.
46"A lot of people know that India is not considered a very safe country.
47But to be honest, living in New Haven made me feel a bit like maybe I was safer back home.
48And I would say that because in India, the most that would happen is I could get kidnapped or something, right?
49Like someone could just pick me up, take me ,hold me hostage or something.
50"But in America I fear sometimes someone might just shoot me."
51Agnish said sometimes she worries she could be a target because of her skin color.
52"There's a constant fear - because of the gun laws in this country - that if someone gets mad at you, they can just shoot you," she said.
53Both the students and Benson, the recruiter, are unsure if the recent violence at American universities will make future students consider higher education in countries other than the U.S.
54Sundaram said he believes the benefit of studying in the U.S. outweighs the risk.
55"The opportunity to make much more money was the dominant factor," he added.
56Benson, however, worries that some international students may be turned off by the violence and the high cost of attending school in the United States.
57Universities in places like Canada, Australia and Northern Europe are considered safer and usually have a lower cost of attendance.
58He tells students that Boston is a safe place for international students and that Northeastern works hard to keep its campus safe.
59For Agnish, she said she only really learned about gun violence in America during her first year in the U.S.
60She said such events were not talked about much in the news in India.
61So, when she was considering coming to the U.S. for school, she did not think much about her safety.
62But, Agnish said, "If I was asked now, I might think twice before making a decision."
63I'm Dan Friedell. And I'm Dorothy.
1Gun violence can happen anywhere in the United States. 2It can happen at a school for children, a holiday parade or a food store. 3It can also happen on college campuses. 4In February, a gunman came onto the grounds of Michigan State University and killed three people and hurt five others. 5Last November, three University of Virginia students were killed by a classmate as they returned from a group trip to Washington, D.C. 6Different kinds of violence can also strike universities. Last autumn, someone with a knife killed four students from the University of Idaho as they slept in their home near the school. 7Investigators are still working on the case in Idaho. In Michigan, the man who shot the students later killed himself. In Virginia, police arrested the student who shot his classmates. 8There have been nine mass shootings at or around American colleges since 1966. That information comes from the Violence Project . The group defines a mass shooting as one in which four or more people are murdered in public in a single incident. 9The deadliest was at Virginia Tech in 2007. In that attack, a student killed 32 people and wounded 17 others. 10Fifteen years later, some laws and rules have been changed, but shootings still happen. 11How does the risk of such violence affect international students coming to the United States? And how does it affect the people whose job it is to recruit such students? 12VOA Learning English spoke with two international students and a member of one university's international programs team to find out. 13Northeastern University recruiter 14Beau Benson recruits international students at Northeastern University in Boston, Massachusetts. The university has one of the largest populations of international students in the country. 15After a shooting like the one at Michigan State, Benson said, people thinking about coming to the U.S. for their studies have more questions about safety. 16Benson said worried parents ask: "Will my son or daughter be safe if I send them halfway around the world?" 17Benson notes, however, that the questions change depending on news events and international politics. Earlier in his career, international students and their parents were more worried about feeling welcome in the U.S. 18"And it's really in the last few weeks or months, I would say, that the whole topic of gun violence has come up again." 19Student reaction to violence 20Kartik Sundaram and Khushi Agnish are both from India. They currently are in school or work on college campuses in the United States. 21Sundaram studies the behavior of internet users at the University of Michigan. Agnish recently finished her studies at Quinnipiac University in Connecticut. She now works as a researcher at Yale University. 22Sundaram lives in Ann Arbor, Michigan. That is about 100 kilometers from the Michigan State University campus. 23He called the Michigan State shooting "tragic." 24"But it's kind of out of our control," he added. "There's nothing really I can do about it and there's no point in wasting my mental resources thinking about it." 25Sundaram said that if a person with a gun did come to his classroom, "then I'm dead." 26Agnish has experience at two American universities. She said the environment at Quinnipiac is very different than the one at Yale even though they are only 15 minutes apart. 27Yale is in the city of New Haven and people can walk onto the campus without much trouble. Quinnipiac, on the other hand, is in the suburban city of Hamden. It is next to a large state park and separated from homes and business areas. She said anyone who drives a car must show their school identification card in order to enter the campus. 28At Yale, people need a student card to enter buildings. 29Agnish said she worries about crime and sometimes feels less safe in New Haven than she did in India. 30"A lot of people know that India is not considered a very safe country. But to be honest, living in New Haven made me feel a bit like maybe I was safer back home. And I would say that because in India, the most that would happen is I could get kidnapped or something, right? Like someone could just pick me up, take me ,hold me hostage or something. 31"But in America I fear sometimes someone might just shoot me." 32Agnish said sometimes she worries she could be a target because of her skin color. 33"There's a constant fear - because of the gun laws in this country - that if someone gets mad at you, they can just shoot you," she said. 34What's next? 35Both the students and Benson, the recruiter, are unsure if the recent violence at American universities will make future students consider higher education in countries other than the U.S. 36Sundaram said he believes the benefit of studying in the U.S. outweighs the risk. 37"The opportunity to make much more money was the dominant factor," he added. 38Benson, however, worries that some international students may be turned off by the violence and the high cost of attending school in the United States. Universities in places like Canada, Australia and Northern Europe are considered safer and usually have a lower cost of attendance. He tells students that Boston is a safe place for international students and that Northeastern works hard to keep its campus safe. 39For Agnish, she said she only really learned about gun violence in America during her first year in the U.S. She said such events were not talked about much in the news in India. 40So, when she was considering coming to the U.S. for school, she did not think much about her safety. 41But, Agnish said, "If I was asked now, I might think twice before making a decision." 42I'm Dan Friedell. And I'm Dorothy. 43Dan Friedell wrote this story for Learning English. 44_________________________________________________________________ 45Words in This Story 46campus -n. the location of a college or school 47parade -n. an event used to celebrate something special, such as a holiday, where many people walk in a line or a group. Often with musicians. 48recruit -v. to find people who want to come to a place such as a university 49mad -adj. a feeling of anger 50benefit -n. something that is positive or good 51opportunity -n. the chance to do something 52factor -n. something that helps produce or influence a result : one of the things that cause something to happen 53________________________________________________________________ 54We want to hear from you. How do you feel now about coming to the U.S. for school? 55We have a new comment system. Here is how it works: 56Each time you return to comment on the Learning English site, you can use your account and see your comments and replies to them. Our comment policy is here.