A month after the devastating tsunami that struck South Asia, UB officials said Tuesday it doesn't seem any of UB's international students or their families have been directly affected by the disaster.
"There was a lot of scrambling around trying to get in touch with people, and certainly a lot of concern," said John Wood, director of communication for the Office of International Education. "Fortunately, no one was in the region."
In the weeks leading up to the start of the semester, Wood said it was difficult to judge whether any UB students were impacted while either visiting home or studying abroad.
"Waiting until the semester starts is frustrating, but we're remaining hopeful that we've dodged a bullet," he said.
According to a story in the Buffalo News, UB dodged one bullet when engineering student Fredric Constantino was vacationing in Thailand from his studies in Japan, but avoided the tsunami.
Wood said there are bound to be international students who either have friends or extended family members affected by the disaster that took 150,000 lives, but UB doesn't draw heavily from the rural regions like Aceh, Indonesia that were struck.
Last semester, UB had 774 students from India, 48 from Indonesia, 167 from Malaysia, 23 from Thailand and fewer than 10 from Sri Lanka. Most of UB's students from Southeast Asia, however, are from the cities, not the coastal plains that were hit the hardest, according to Ellen Dussourd, director of International Students and Scholars Services.
"The tsunami affected certain regions, mostly coastal regions, and our Indonesian students come mostly from (the city of) Jakarta," she said.
With all the international students accounted for, the UB community is now shifting its focus to its own relief and aid efforts. Some community groups like the Indonesian Student Association have already starting taking donations, and the local Chabad House ran a "Wave of Kindness" table yesterday in the Student Union.
The main efforts, however, start today. For the next three days, donation tables will be set up in the Student Union lobby and Harriman Hall. According to Mary Clare Fahey, community service coordinator at the Leadership Development Center, all proceeds will go to UNICEF, and there will also be the making of "Remembrance Quilts."
On Jan. 24, students will be able to make further donations at various dining halls on campus. After that, students will still able to donate online, and can even use their campus cash.
"Most students that are going to donate are going to do it in that time period," Fahey said.
Next week there will also be two memorial services, one on Jan. 26 at noon in Harriman Hall and another on Jan. 27 at 2 p.m. in the Student Union.
Fahey said she was optimistic about the student response.
"I think it's going to be excellent, and the Division of Student Affairs has really come together in a phenomenal way," she said.
Fahey added she's been impressed with the way student groups of all kinds and various UB organizations like Counseling Services have approached her about helping out.
"That fact that students have turned around and said 'how can I help my fellow student from that area,' is really amazing," she said.
The Office of International Education will also be helping affected students with the Freeman Scholarship, which gives extra funds to international students facing trying times. According to Dussourd, many UB students were helped by Freeman Scholarships during the Asian economic crisis when their families could no longer afford to send them here.
"We had an Indian earthquake, a Turkish earthquake in the past few years, so this is not the first natural disaster we've had to face," Dussourd said.
Fahey stressed the fact that there are many ways to aid the tsunami relief efforts.
"People are going to be affected in ways that are not as obvious," she said. "It's difficult to say how different students will each be touched by this."
