Since 1987, the India Students Association (ISA) has served as a voice, sanctuary, and vehicle into the social circle for Texas A&M University-Commerce students who are from India or have Indian heritage. Due to the large amount of Indian students on campus, the organization has grown and become very involved in extracurricular activities.
“One important purpose is to help new and current Indian students feel at home on campus,” Diane Downing, who has served as ISA adviser since 2001, said. “Each batch of Indian students that come into the organization bond with each other.”
Vamsi Krishna, an active ISA member, said that is what he got from the organization.
“As international students, we don’t know really what’s going on in here,” Krishna said. “So, the India Students Association helps a lot. When we come here, they help us to know what is going on at the college. They help us if we have any problems and we can’t go to anyone else.” According to the university website (tamu-commerce.edu), on the ISA organizational details webpage, there are an average of 50 active members in the organization. Downing said that number is an underestimate.
“There have been as many as roughly 300 Indian students on campus,” she said. “Of those, two-thirds, at least, participate in activities. It’s huge. Of all international students on campus, I’m sure Indian students make up at least half.”
Downing said the number and overall participation of students from India in the ISA has become more evident since she became adviser.
“The evolution of the organization since 2001 has grown by leaps and bounds, and we haven’t done that alone,” Downing said. She added that cooperation with other university organizations, such as the Morris Recreation Center, has helped make ISA events and gatherings better.
Another way the ISA contributes to the community, Downing said, is by sharing the Indian culture with the university and the city of Commerce. The best way to do that is through various events and activities.
The ISA traditionally will have a welcome party for new members at the beginning of each semester.
“The seniors put the party together,” Downing said. “They also try to involve themselves with the freshers (freshmen or first-years) in order to convince them to perform at the party.”
The next event this semester is the traditional Indian holiday Diwali, or Festival of Lights, on Oct. 5. In India, the holiday will be celebrated on Oct. 17, and it involves the lighting of diyas, cotton wicks submerged in oil filled clay bowls. In the Hindu religion, this signifies victory of good over the evil that lies within an individual.
On campus, Diwali will be celebrated in a different way. Members of the ISA will perform skits or traditional Indian dances. Indian sweets will be served, and there will be a disco open to all party participants after the individual performances.
Other events the ISA would like to hold involve traditional Indian games, such as a cricket tournament or a singing game called Antkashari.
Downing is particularly satisfied with the ISA’s activity with Relay for Life. Since cancer is an international issue, she said Indian students are also affected by the charity.
“I’m very proud of ISA involvement in Relay for Life,” she said. “It’s giving back to the community. Cancer research is an international concern, and these students do get involved.”
As for the future, Downing said she would like to see the ISA become more student run.
“I think we have to have a much more independent leadership,” she said. “I have become ‘mom’. They need to assume more responsibility for leading it forward. This is a great opportunity for them to learn how to plan and organize.”
Downing also said she would like to see some changes in the surrounding community, particularly involving places that organizations like ISA can gather. As the organization has grown, it has become more difficult to find a place where all event participants can fit.
“It’s so large that there is no room big enough to hold many events,” Downing said. “I wish Commerce would build a civic center.”
As the ISA continues to grow, they will undoubtedly become more evident and involved in the university. The organization seems to be moving in a positive direction, and it serves the Indian students who could so easily become lost in a completely new country and way of life.