A less obvious, yet still present form of diversity found in Rolla High School is that of the European attendees here at Rolla.  In many instances it’s difficult to determine whether or not a student was born outside the U.S. due to lack of accent or differences in appearance. However, on occasion that’s the intention.

“The only major change I had to do was the accent, because when I moved over here I didn’t hear myself with an accent I heard everyone else with an American accent, not myself with a Scottish one. So I worked for quite some time getting rid of that, which was a lot of work, and I make it way to difficult on myself I go into it every time I visit over the summer, so I use my Scottish over there and change it back when I come over here,” sophomore Tyler Fry said.

Then again, sometimes it’s a different language entirely.

“It was a big change, moving from Denmark to another country where they don’t speak Danish, and I’d say it’s nice,” sophomore Jeppe Soerensen said.

Or so you might think.

“I started learning English in third grade,” Jeppe Soerensen said.

In other instances the accent is not the difficult part of moving but instead having to let go of connections which have been built up for quite some time.

“I think it was kinda hard because I would move from my friends and family, but I think it’s nice over here,” sophomore Signe Soerensen said.

Some still visit their country of origin after the move, allowing them to still have a tether to the place they once called home. They also get to attend events every now and then during these visits letting those who moved at a young age find out at least a little bit more about where they were born.

“The Highland Games, oh 100% the Highland Games. I would compete, I still do. I mean not the official boom-badda-bang, I obviously wouldn’t compete in the official, like, national level. But we had a festival there, in Aberdeenshire which was the county more or less; but it’s not, I’m going to go into a little tangent here, it’s less of a county, a county is more of a state there. So it was kind of the “county’s” little thing which was always a lot of fun. Yeah, so the Highland Games that’s always a lot of fun. Which it confuses me why they call it the Highland Games, because I competed it, but I’m from Clan Fraser which is the lowland clan, but that’s okay,” Fry said.

School in America is quite different from other schools, and for students entering school here, it can be quite an adjustment from what they are used to.

“I think it’s nice living there. And the school is very different because you are in the same school every ten year and you don’t have to switch from elementary to high school. You also have the same classmates in every tenth year, so it’s not that you switch classes it’s the teacher that does that. And you need to bring your food every day,” Signe Soerensen said.

There are also occasions in which there is no major conflict that arises involving school life.

“I was at such a young age that most people when they move the biggest thing that they’re going to miss is friends, and at such a young age I had family friends and all that, but I had less devoted friends from school and such; then again I didn’t go to school I had private tutors,” Fry said.

Students come to Rolla for varied reasons, but the choice for many of our international students is made because of ties to the University.

“My dad got a job at the Missouri University of Science and Technology and he asked if we (Jeppe and Signe) wanted to come and we said sure,” Jeppe Soerensen said.

Others are returning to home where other family are.

“Family ties, my mother had family here,” Fry said.