USF’s Culture Exchange event is the embodiment of ‘edutainment,’ where students and USF World staff have fun, while learning about different aspects of world culture, including popular international cuisines, styles of attire, languages, flag emblems, along with sports and other entertainment pastimes. The event—attended by over 200 students—featured a variety of on-campus student groups, representing many different countries and cultures.
“This was a fun and interactive event that brought students together,” said Jiayi Zhang— a graduate student from Zimbabwe—majoring in music. “I didn’t realize that we had all of these student groups,” said Jiayi, referring to the groups tabling at the Culture Exchange event.
Gallow Jawneh, a graduate student from Gambia studying Sustainability Policy, was amazed by all the student groups and the number of USF students attending the event from different parts of the world. He said that he learned a lot, and was particularly interested in Junkanoo which is celebrated in the Bahamas.
“I learned an interesting fact about Brazil’s population and its biggest city,” said undergraduate Casey Gonzales. The event sparked their interest in global travel.
Denton Greenleaf, an undergraduate majoring in Architecture, said he enjoyed taking the quizzes administered by student groups at their tables. He was particularly intrigued by the Central Asian student group.
Aditya Kartikeyan, an undergraduate international student from India, majoring in Mathematics, said that he really enjoyed learning about Irish, Japanese, and Brazilian cultures. “Really, I was so happy to meet new people and learn about their cultures.”
“I gained an understanding of different cultures, and it was helpful to my understanding of the world,” said Favour Fidelis, a graduate student from Nigeria, studying Climate Change Mitigation and Adaptation.
Students attending the event seemed to share a common opinion: international cultures fascinated them and one of the ways they would enjoy learning more about countries and cultures is through international travel.
“I loved seeing so many people, their smiles and their different cultures on display at Culture Exchange..." said Student Experience Leader, Koki Wada.
The International Student Support (ISS) student team were instrumental in making Cultural Exchange an amazing success this Spring 2025 semester.
Koki Wada, a Student Experience Leader working with ISS, felt energized coordinating the event and witnessing such an impressive turnout. “I loved seeing so many people, their smiles and their different cultures on display at Culture Exchange. I enjoyed seeing not only the student groups that attended, but every individual student who took their time to attend!”
ISS would like to extend its appreciation to the following student groups for joining Culture Exchange:
- Japanese Culture Club (JCC)
- Japanese Language Study Club (Nihongo-bu)
- Latin America Student Association (LASA)
- Brazilian Student Association at USF (BRASA)
- Central Asian Student Society (CASS)
- Vietnamese International Student Association (VISA)
- Bahamas United & Impactful (BUI)
- INTO America
- Irish Culture and Language Club (ICLC)
- Asian Students in America (ASiA)