Saudi Arabian students celebrate National Day

The Daily News

Nasser Alkhatani, a special education major, writes junior telecommunications major Nathan Wilson
Nasser Alkhatani, a special education major, writes junior telecommunications major Nathan Wilson

Saudi Arabian international students celebrated their 83rd National Day far from home.

More than 150 students and faculty members from BSU came to see the program hosted by the Saudi Students Club.

Scott Cantrell, director of international student services, said there are 277 Ball State students from Saudi Arabia, making them the second largest group of international students at Ball State.


The event offered a presentation, Saudi Arabian dance, henna tattoos, Arabic coffee and a free dinner.

“The purpose of this event is to show our culture, religion, history and [much] more to American as well as international students at BSU,” said Bader Alkahtani, president of Saudi Students Club.

Turki Alrashid, a public relations graduate student, said the group has hosted the event before, but this year’s was the largest thus far.

“Many people ask us what kind of culture, history and religion we Saudis have and this is a chance for them to see what we present,” he said.

The National Day of Saudi Arabia is one of only two official holidays in Saudi Arabia.

Jenna Feeback, a junior social work major, visited the event and said it was informative.

“Today I learned a lot about Saudi culture, people and how they work as a group and enjoy being around each other,” Feeback said. “I have never seen an Arabic dance before, and this was something interesting to see.”

Comments

More from The Daily






This Week's Digital Issue


Loading Recent Classifieds...