Different cultures interest Rowdy Frederiksen.

To explore this interest, the senior elementary education major followed an International student whenever he had time as part of the Conversation Partners program.

“I felt like I wasn’t in Charleston, I felt like I was in a middle-eastern country,” Frederiksen said Tuesday at the International Forum.

Frederiksen spoke about his experience with the Conversation Partners program sponsored by International Programs.

Conversation Partners is a program that matches up an American student at Eastern with an international student attending Eastern.

“It allows you to understand the world a lot better,” said Frederiksen.

Also highlighted at the meeting was Family Friends, a program developed to help international students spend time with an American family and feel more at home.

“Over 95 percent of all international students in the United States never enter an American home,” said Sue Songer, international student advisor. “We wanted that to be different here at Eastern.”

Jocelyn Phillips spoke about her experience with Family Friends.

“It’s an opportunity to learn what goes on in someone else’s culture,” she said.

Nami Yabee, a political science graduate student from Japan, said she found the meeting very helpful and plans on participating in the programs.

Elise Whitlatch also plans to get more involved with the Conversation Partners program. The senior sociology major has studied abroad, so she knows how hard it is to make friends. She thinks this program will make it easier for foreign students to meet Americans.

Chelsea Puzey, a freshman speech pathology major, attended the meeting after it was suggested to her in a class and because of her interest in studying abroad. She said the forum got her interested in Conversation Partners and made her more excited about studying abroad.

This year 61 new international students have chosen to study at Eastern.

Songer said this is the highest increase in international students at Eastern since Sept. 11 and credits the increase to Bill Elliot, from the International Student Office, who has been working diligently on recruiting new international students.