Lost and found in translations: The international student experience | Trisha Boodhoo

By

On March 25, 2025

In 2024-25, academics, residence life, student life

Philosophy books, lasting friendships, faint echoes of laughter, and the comforting scent of hot chocolate while rushing in the hallways…

As I make my way to my evening class on the north side of CMU’s campus, I let flickers of past and present memories wash over me. The castle building looms in front of me, still as massive and beautiful as the first day I saw it.  I get distracted by the beauty of the snow surrounding me, sparkling and looking like fairy dust in the faint light surrounding the pathways. I breathe out loudly to see the cloud made by the cold air and laugh childishly. Having previously lived on a tropical island where sunshine prevails for most of the year, winter is truly captivating, particularly to those who encounter snow only upon arriving in Canada.

Being an international student is no easy feat. Being away from your family and everything you know, while balancing part-time work and the pressure to excel academically, can be overwhelming. However, my CMU experience was transformed by its strong sense of community. I made a few friends within the first few days of university, not knowing that they would become life-long friends of mine. I remember the short presentations on how to prepare for the academic year and ensure success, along with the campus tours led by faculty members that helped ease the transition. Before long, I was familiar with all the buildings and rushing to my first few classes.

The small class sizes at CMU differ a lot from my previous schools. While my more popular science classes have around 40 students, my philosophy classes consist of ten students or less. Not only do you get to know and engage with everyone in the class, but the professors get to know you on a first-name basis. I am incredibly grateful for my professors, as they have all contributed immensely to my academic success so far.

I was not expecting that I would learn so much from my courses. I started the school year thinking I could be an English major. Then I attended my first philosophy course, The Question of Reality, and it was love at first class! Not only did I find it unbelievable that I was acquiring knowledge from an ancient Greek civilisation, but it was knowledge on how to be a good human being. Of course, once again, I firmly believe that the professor teaching the class impacted immensely my love for philosophy. CMU professors have not only provided me knowledge in the classroom, but I was also able to exercise their wisdom outside of the classroom and into my daily life.

I have been warned by many that the transition from high school to university can be hard. I do agree that it is challenging at first, but I can proudly say that I am now an academic weapon! The resources available at CMU, such as private study rooms, school events to connect with other students, and the beautiful library with large open windows, have certainly made a difference in my academic life. Moreover, the free peer-assisted learning and having tutoring sessions with Sam Friesen, a graduate student and a good friend of mine, have helped in my studies immensely. My best memories were made when I was drinking hot chocolate with Sam in one of the study rooms, debating whether Socrates’ arguments made sense or not.

CMU staff, including Ricah Ursos, Coordinator of International Admissions & Programs, and Sandra Loeppky, Coordinator of Accessibility Services, have helped immensely—whether it is to bring international students together or to provide resources such as how to dress warm in extremely cold weather. They have made my experience here incredible, and I am once more sincerely grateful for their help. In fact, once I got used to the cold, my friends living with me in the residence building soon dragged me along to go sledding or have random snowball fights in the middle of the night.

The reason I came to CMU was as random as finding a pair of well-fitted cowboy boots in your shoe size, abandoned in the streets. I typed “Hogwarts castle,” stumbled upon the university, and noticed there was a tennis court nearby. A couple months later, I was boarding a plane to study at a place where I knew no one. And right now, I am walking towards one of my coolest classes of the semester and mentally taking note that I would love to attend community chapel tomorrow and hang out with my friends afterwards.

Being an international university student means that you are undoubtedly going to go through a lot of personal growth. For me, CMU was the best place I could have asked for to grow emotionally, spiritually, and academically. I still have more growing to do, but I know I will be okay with the people I’ve met, the friends I’ve made, and the support I get from being a student at Canadian Mennonite University.

Trisha Boodhoo is a second-year Bachelor of Arts student, majoring in Interdisciplinary Studies—English and Philosophy—and minoring in Biblical and Theological Studies.

CMU: Where creativity and community thrive | Emma Williamson

By

On March 11, 2025

In 2024-25, student life

CMU prides itself on its tight-knit and welcoming community, with plenty of opportunities to interact with peers outside of classes, whether you live on campus or you’re a commuter student. One of the driving forces behind these events is the Arts & Entertainment committee.

As the title implies, the Arts & Ents committee is responsible for providing fun events all throughout the year for students to take part in at no extra cost to the students. One consistent event that has remained solid throughout the years is the coffeehouse, usually put on multiple times a year. Coffeehouses are a chance for students to showcase their music or any other forms of performance. As a university with a diverse demographic of students, it’s nice to see what kind of projects your fellow students have been creating in their free time.

Besides coffeehouses, Arts & Ents hosts at least two events per month. They’ve ranged from games nights to a professor PowerPoint night. “The PowerPoint night with the professors has probably been my favorite event so far,” says first-year student Paige-Elise Anderson. “A few students made funny PowerPoints and then the professors had to present them without knowing what they were beforehand. It was great! I’ve never seen the lecture hall so packed with students,” she continues.

Besides live entertainment, the artistic side of events often comes in the form of collaborative activities, such as painting on the lawn or tie-dyeing.

At the helm of the operation are Logan Nord and Aria Klassen, co-directors of Arts & Ents. Logan and Aria hold a weekly meeting that gives other students the chance to voice their ideas for events. This semester, the committee helped organize the annual sustainability festival. The festival runs for an entire week and aims to promote sustainable and environmentally friendly activities.

“We have a few [other] events we are looking forward to this year, including Film 60 and a mega coffeehouse. All are welcome to join our committee to see these fun, creative, and stress-relieving ideas come to life!” Aria explains.

It isn’t just the Arts & Ents team that provides entertainment for the student body. Among other groups, Hillary Jorgenson heads a film club with Dean of Student Life Charlie Peronto. Film club meets once a week in the Poettcker Hall residence building, using the TV in the basement lounge to watch movies. After the films, everyone spends time discussing them and the impact they had on them. “Charlie and I had been talking about it for a while because we have a shared interest in film…and I realized that watching movies in groups of people made me like [movies] more,” Hillary says. “I thought it would be wonderful for people to have a space to watch films they haven’t seen before.”

CMU student Hillary Jorgenson

One important mission for both the Arts & Entertainment committee and film club is the unity of students who commute and students who live on campus. “One side quest of film club was getting both commuters and residence students in one place together, where they could talk to people maybe they haven’t talked to that much before,” says Hillary. “Everyone brings their own interpretations and their own lives to film club, and it’s really eye-opening and rewarding to hear other perspectives. It connects you better with the people you’re watching with.”

For Hillary, her passion for film has led her to Letterboxd, an app used to connect with friends and fellow moviegoers where you can rate and review movies, and display your top four favourite films on your profile. “In no particular order, Fire of Love, Before Sunrise, Universal Language, and The Apartment are my top four,” she says. Her passion for film in general and film club is palpable in everything she says.

She pauses to clarify something about the moniker, film club: “The word ‘club’ can be misleading, and I just want to reiterate that this club is just a group of people who enjoy watching films. You’re welcome to join in at any time, and you do not have to come every week. So many people come just to listen and be with people.”

As CMU students continue to host fun and meaningful events, it’s clear that the spirit of creativity, inclusivity, and collaboration will always remain at the heart of campus life.

Emma Williamson is a second-year Bachelor of Arts student, majoring in English.

How do CMU students spend their reading week? | Emma Williamson

By

On February 11, 2025

In 2024-25, residence life, student life

Reading week is something that every student looks forward to. Whether you’re visiting home or staying on campus, it is a time for relaxing, hanging out with friends and family, catching up on sleep, having fun, and, well, reading. 

Emma Williamson (left) and Cloe Penner (right)

Good study habits are important, but what second-year student and Poettcker Hall resident Shusmita Shovona took away from the fall semester reading week was the chance to have a fun time with the different residence events that were planned out. “My favourite events were the movie screening and sleepover in the lecture hall, and gargon.” For context, gargon is a student-created game where you run around the north side castle at nighttime with an objective that changes every year, while being chased by enemies.

Shusmita valued rest and fun as equal to studying during the break. “I studied a lot, but I had to treat it as a bit of a break too. That way, I’ll do better after reading week. It helps you feel refreshed and maybe a little bit more ready for the exam season.” 

There were other events for residence students all week, including arts and crafts, an IKEA run, a trip to Pan Am Pool, and a scheduled cathartic scream in the Assiniboine Forest for those who just needed to let something out.

For some students, reading week does, in fact, include reading and catching up on assignments.

Trinity Kennedy, a second-year commuter student, spent her time catching up on some schoolwork and relaxing. “I love reading week. I got stuff done around the house, did some reading, and hung out with my friends a lot.” But how can a student make good study habits? Especially when there’s so many fun things to do and much more opportunity to relax. “I like to use the Pomodoro Technique. I set aside time in my day for it. Basically, you set a timer for 25 minutes and work until the timer goes off. Then you take a five-minute break. Repeat that four times and then take a bit of a longer break. I’ve found having a strict schedule like that works really well for me.”

For the upcoming winter semester reading week, student Cloe Penner has taken the initiative on a Mennonite Disaster Service (MDS) volunteer trip. Before the COVID-19 pandemic, these trips were held annually, organized between CMU Student Council and MDS. Cloe got involved through Residence Director Gibo Shim, and was asked if she would be interested in organizing a trip for the winter semester. “I had done a trip with MDS before and was excited to get it going!”

“MDS is an organization founded in the Anabaptist tradition that goes around North America, providing help to people and communities that have been hit with disaster,” Cloe says. With their Canadian offices being on CMU’s campus and with Cloe spearheading the trip, this volunteer opportunity has been accessible to many CMU students.

Cloe Penner volunteering for Mennonite Disaster Service

Cloe and the nine other students who volunteered, as well as the residence director, will be heading to Selma, Alabama in mid-February. “…A bunch of tornados and other natural disasters hit [Selma] a while ago. We are there for the entirety of reading week to help out in any way that we can,” she says. “For the most part, we will be doing house repairs, drywall, flooring, clean-up, that sort of thing.”

In conclusion, reading week at CMU is more than just a break from classes; it’s a time for students to recharge, engage with their community, and cultivate new experiences. Whether it’s participating in fun residence events, honing study techniques, or volunteering for a meaningful cause, students find various ways to balance productivity and relaxation. Ultimately, reading week serves as an opportunity to reset—physically, mentally, and emotionally—preparing students for the challenges and opportunities of the semester ahead.

Emma Williamson is a second-year Bachelor of Arts student, majoring in English.

Finding purpose through music | Ashley Kineshanko

By

On February 4, 2025

In 2024-25, academics, student life

If you would have asked me back in 2020 where I saw myself in five years, your guess would’ve been as good as mine. I’ve always been indecisive, but with the world in disarray, nobody knew what the future had in store. However, I do know my response would have involved doing something I’m passionate about, helping others, and making a difference. Still, I wouldn’t have believed it if you’d told me I would be back at school, studying music no less, and just ten minutes down the road from me. Yet here I am, a CMU student looking to become a music therapist.

“I made some great friends…without them I don’t know how I would’ve made it this far.”

I have always had a passion for music and art. My mom is an artist, so she raised us surrounded by all kinds of music and art. My favourite childhood show was The Wiggles—need I say more? One of the only after-school activities I was ever in was elementary school choir, and I sang in school talent shows even though my anxiety made it extremely scary. Looking back now, I realize I should have taken band in middle school. I was a bit scared of the commitment to something so foreign, since reading music wasn’t something I felt confident doing. Plus it felt like I didn’t have the time for the early mornings and late after-school practices. So, I just continued to sing literally everywhere I went, if I could, and I began collecting instruments in hopes of learning how to play on my own (unsuccessfully, I might add). Because when I sing or play, I feel something deep inside connecting me to the music.

Ashley Kineshanko is studying music at CMU.

In high school I was intensely focused on my studies. With my interests in math, science, and art, my school counsellor encouraged me to apply to the University of Manitoba engineering department. My grades got me a significant entrance scholarship directly into engineering and without knowing all my other options, I decided to go for it. First semester went well, but I wanted nothing more every day than to just get home, putting the huge crowds and long bus ride behind me. After second semester, I felt like I needed to take a break. Perhaps this wasn’t for me, and I didn’t want to push myself into something I wasn’t sure about. So, I decided to take some time off to work and gain life experience, in hopes that I would find what I was looking for.

“I am so grateful to be here. To have a school environment I feel so comfortable in…”

Now, after six years and four different jobs, my life has led me here to CMU. My most recent job as an educational assistant at a forest and nature school was one of the best experiences of my life. Being there felt like it reconnected me with nature, myself, and all the things I love. Some of my coworkers graduated from CMU and said I would love it here. So, when Beaver Creek Academy shut down, I decided to look into music courses. And just my luck, there was a music theory class starting that very week to prepare people for the CMU music program. It felt scary starting from the very bottom, but I reminded myself that I was there to learn—and it turned out to be a lot of fun! I made some great friends in that theory class and without them I don’t know how I would’ve made it this far.

Dressed and ready for a music performance!

I think that really says something about the people here at CMU. Not only have my friends been there for me, especially when I’m lacking confidence, but the general atmosphere is extremely inviting. There are people I see in the halls who I recognize and smile at. Even if I don’t know their names, I know they are part of my community and I am part of theirs, something I’ve never really experienced before. My professors have been so encouraging and it’s great getting to know them on a personal level. I have been learning so much. We’ve even started learning guitar and handbells in a new class, Ways of Musicking! Not to mention several of my classmates and I got the opportunity to share our final projects from music theory at a Taizé chapel service. Having never written any sort of music before, I felt very proud of myself. I even performed at our Christmas Gala Coffee House with a friend of mine, something so fun that I never could’ve seen myself doing so early on in this journey.

I have to say I am so grateful to be here. To have a school environment I feel so comfortable in is something I never expected from a university experience. These next years are going to be a lot of work, but I couldn’t think of a better place to be learning how to be a student again. Not to mention my fantastic job as a student ambassador, helping students just like me find their place and purpose here at CMU. My hope after getting a music therapy degree is to go to the WHEAT Institute here in Manitoba to receive my Art and Expressive Art Therapy certification. With this I would love to integrate all types of therapy with the natural world to help promote a happy, holistic type of living that is beneficial to everyone.

Ashley Kineshanko is a first-year Bachelor of Arts student, majoring in music.

How CMU made me enjoy living in Winnipeg | Emma Williamson

By

On October 24, 2024

In 2024-25

Growing up in Winnipeg, I always thought I would leave this wintery plain the moment I turned 18. University seemed like the kind of thing you had to move away from Winnipeg for, to have a good experience like you see in the movies. I had visited other universities around Winnipeg and had seen the thousands of students rushing around the overwhelmingly large and at times not-so-aesthetically-pleasing campuses, running to catch busses in the freezing cold. I thought, “Yeah, I might take my business elsewhere.”

Then I ended up at CMU by chance for a high school internship. The internship itself taught me so much and gave me the opportunity to work with a publishing company at 17 years old, but I was also enchanted by the architecture of the old castle building and the tiny classrooms compared to large lecture halls of other universities. This learning experience seemed to promise a more one-on-one approach.

I grew up in the North End of Winnipeg, which I found difficult for a plethora of reasons. When I moved to northern Manitoba, I made a promise to myself that when I moved again, I would never move back to Winnipeg. If you’ve ever seen the movie Lady Bird, I had sort of the same melodramatic line of thinking as the main character. As she says in the film, “I want to go to the east coast. I want to go where culture is.”

I took a gap year after high school and kept my options open. I remembered that internship at CMU I had when I was 17, where I got the chance to edit the works of published authors. I had no idea what I wanted to do with the rest of my life, but I knew I wanted to do that. I wanted to write, I wanted to read, and I wanted to have the space to talk about it with my professors and students alike.

Suddenly my promise to never move back to Winnipeg disappeared. How could I dislike a city I had hardly experienced? How could I ignore the experiences I’d had outside of my little bubble and disregard the new opportunities this city had to offer?

I moved back to Winnipeg to live with my dad (who, ironically, lives very close to a different university), ready to try going to CMU as an English student. I can very clearly accredit that moment in my life to when I started developing a love for Winnipeg and stopped longing to leave.

I believe that university is a time for learning how to be an independent adult and for gaining new experiences. That will likely remain true no matter which university you attend, but CMU specifically is the place that gave me a wholly positive experience of entering adulthood in Winnipeg.

From the people I’ve attended class with, to the people I’ve learned from, to the work I’ve done, CMU has fulfilled every romanticized ideal I thought university learning would be like—and I didn’t even have to leave Winnipeg for it.

Emma Williamson is a second-year Bachelor of Arts student, majoring in English.

Page 1 of 42

Next

Powered by WordPress & Theme by Anders Norén