On April 9, 2026, Southern Nazarene University’s International Student Society (ISS) hosted Passport to Culture, an annual event where international students showcased photos, artifacts, and traditional food from their home countries. Each attendee received a “passport” upon entering and could collect stamps from every booth.
ISS is a society within SALT’s Student Belonging team that meets twice a month to create time for international students to fellowship with one another. Its two large annual events are Passport to Culture and Futsal. This year’s showcase was planned by Student Belonging Lead Rachel Fonseca and ISS President Kee Lon. Students who collected a stamp from every booth were able to receive a Christian Formation Credit.
Sophomore Cosette Barnett, from Ukraine, used her booth to display traditional Ukrainian items such as a tea set, poetry book and hand-painted pieces. Barnett served Ukrainian candy, varenyky and pelmeni. “I got to share our food, which is cool because food is an important point of connection in Ukrainian culture,” she said.
She shared that representing her country through food and art helped her feel more connected to the campus community. She enjoyed learning about the diverse cultures of her peers while also sharing her own traditions.
Freshman Qaali Ali, from Ethiopia, created a booth serving chai tea, Milo candies and assorted plantain chips. She also presented a poster board showing traditional Ethiopian practices and photos of her home country.
“[Passport to Culture] is a chance for students to get to explore the various cultures on campus, meet students from different places around the world, and try yummy food while learning more about the world,” Ali said. Her favorite moments included connecting with new people and seeing their excitement to learn about new cultures.
Reflecting on the event, she added, “I realized how much more diverse SNU is and how willing students are to talk about their culture and places they come from.” Ali said she loved celebrating other students’ traditions and looks forward to continuing that work as the next ISS president. “I am excited to build on the foundation of the leaders before me and get to put my own spin on things to help more students get involved,” she said.
At Passport to Culture, students represented nations including Haiti, Mexico, Myanmar, Samoa and the United States, creating a celebration of community that reflected both global diversity and shared faith.
Photo credits: Trynitie Krout