Learning about a different culture can be a fun and interesting experience, but it can also be difficult. On May 4, the Office of International Studies and Programs (OISP) and Brooks Library held its quarterly Cultural Conversations, which offered students and staff the opportunity to learn about a new culture through storytelling.

The City of Bellevue launched Cultural Conversations in 2010 and it was developed to help create diversity within the community. CWU adopted the program in January 2019 in efforts to bring more diversity to CWU and the community of Ellensburg.

Student Engagement and Community Outreach Librarian Maureen Rust said before adopting this program there wasn’t a place for people to interact or experience other cultures, so this program gave the community the opportunity to hear other non-Ellensburg natives talk about their culture.

“A friend, who [used] to work at the Diversity and Equity Center, shared how difficult it was to live in this community as a person of color because of the reactions they would get from people in town,” Rust said.

The intent behind this program is to have a guest speaker tell their story and give listeners an opportunity to make a connection, have conversations, meet new people and broaden their experiences of the program, according to Rust.

The May 4 Cultural Conversation featured guest speaker Keiko Walsh. Walsh was raised in the Japanese prefecture of Tottori, she came to Ellensburg in the mid-’90s and has lived in Ellensburg for 25 years. At first, Walsh did not want to come to the U.S., it was her mother’s idea and her mother signed Walsh up to attend summer quarter at CWU, according to Walsh.

As an English as a Second Language student, Walsh learned English for three quarters through singing music, reading children’s books and poetry, as well as sports. Walsh said going from Japanese culture to U.S. culture was not hard at all. She did have some difficulty adjusting to U.S. culture, but it was not as difficult as some other Japanese people experienced.

In fact, Walsh found it funny and interesting. What was interesting to her is how Americans will say “excuse me” after sneezing, but when they blow their nose they don’t. In Japan, they don’t blow their nose in public.

“When in Rome, do as the Romans do,” Walsh said. “That’s not really all that true, in my opinion, I am representing myself, I am not representing Japan … when we meet people in a different culture you have to meet them as a person not the culture.”

Rust said this program has benefited the relationship between the library and OISP, as well as formed many friendships with international students.  

“Going virtual has really eliminated geographical borders which has been great, so we’ve had a lot of participation both from folks at the centers and then just people who are interested,” Rust said.

CWU Brooks Library was awarded a $3,000 grant from the American Library Association which will help fund the quarterly Cultural Conversations as well as adding books, aligned with the speakers’ home country, to both the Brooks Library and Ellensburg Public Library.