Dispatches from Oxford: Arrival

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October 20, 2009

Anonymous The Laurel Leader-Call Tue Oct 20, 2009, 10:26 AM CDT

Immediately coming off the plane, I asked, "Where's the restroom?"

In reply, a startled voice asked, "The what (pronounced 'wot')?"

Such was my first experience in the United Kingdom. For the first twenty-two years of my life, I lived in Mississippi, growing up in Sandersville and attending college at Ole Miss. After graduation and a year of work in Washington, DC, on education policy, I was handed a once-in-a-lifetime opportunity to study in the UK at the other Oxford – the University of Oxford in England. Over the course of the next year, the Leader-Call has invited me to reflect on the social, political, educational, and cultural differences that I experience, and the first of which is key – there are no "restrooms" in England. One asks for the "gents" or the "ladies."

My experience with the Rhodes Scholarship started, oddly, outside of the UK, in Washington, DC. After the scholarship was established to give 32 Americans an opportunity to study in Oxford in 1904, a tradition was started – each class of men and women were shipped across the Atlantic on a cruise to help build some camaraderie among the group before arriving overseas for study. This tradition was continued for over seventy years. Paul Parish, a friend and former Rhodes Scholar from Mississippi often fondly remembers his cruise to me, as the class of 1968, which included future President Bill Clinton, had to endure choppy seas stemming from a hurricane during their voyage. The ride was so rough that Paul recounted that all the other scholars except himself (including a young Clinton, I assume) were seasick before being thrown into the new world of Oxford.

Today's classes of Rhodes Scholars need not worry about seasickness, though. The cruise tradition was ended some time ago, and today, Rhodes men and women (or "Rhodies" or "Rhodents," whichever your prefer) meet one another over the course of a Bon Voyage Week in Washington before boarding a British Airways jet.

Our Bon Voyage Week was filled with interesting experiences, including a reception and tour at the Capitol by former Rhodes Scholars Sen. Dick Lugar and retired Sen. Paul Sarbannes, a presentation on the environment at the World Bank by two of their leading experts, and a talk on the future of infectious disease prevention by a world-renowned public health expert. These events aside, nothing could hold a candle to the joy of meeting my new friends, 31 passionate young people, all intellectually impressive, well-rounded, and dedicated to making the world a better place. Our class includes a classically-trained pianist who also happens to be an expert in systems biology and mathematics, an education reformer that speaks five languages, an MIT graduate in civil engineering that started a business to help impoverished Sri Lankans help themselves through making jewelry, and an All-American football player from Florida State who wants to be a neurosurgeon. Nothing gives me more faith in the future of our country than these new friends.

Upon arrival, each Rhodes Scholar settles into his or her "college." These colleges provide housing, meals, a faculty advisor, and a new community for every entering student at Oxford. My college, St. John's, was established in 1555 by Sir Thomas White, a former Mayor of London who was, I'd like to pretend, a long-lost ancestor. St. John's ancient halls have been home to former Secretary of State Dean Rusk and Prime Minister Tony Blair, and it is a wonderful and beautiful place.

In these new environs, there are many adjustments to be made. The weather is colder, the food is blander, and everything is older. The common language continues to divide the Rhodes Scholars from our new British friends (Note: "Pants" is a word used to refer to undergarments in the UK, giving a problematic new meaning to the phrase, "It's raining, and my pants are soaked!" if one chooses to mistakenly use such a sentence). As the winter rain starts and I settle into academic, social, and athletic life here, I hope to share those experiences. Of one thing I can be sure, though: I'm not in Sandersville anymore.

Shad White is a 2008 graduate of the University of Mississippi from Jones County and a 2009 Rhodes Scholar studying Economic History at the University of Oxford.

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