"...I was accepted and offered a scholarship." from Itty Chan '61
Title
"...I was accepted and offered a scholarship." from Itty Chan '61
Creator
Lesley University
Source
From 12:24 of Itty Chan's oral history.
Publisher
Lesley University
Rights
Transmission or reproduction of materials protected by copyright beyond that allowed by fair use requires the written permission of the copyright owners. Works not in the public domain cannot be commercially exploited without permission of the copyright.
Language
English
Type
Sound
Identifier
3.001 Lesley University Archives Oral History Collection, 2008-2010
Interviewer
Alyssa Pacy
Interviewee
Itty Chan
Transcription
AP: "Wow. And so what was it like for you to leave your family and travel halfway across the world.
IC: Very exciting because, you know, we saw like a huge adventure. And, of course, we miss our parents and our family but…but we also…because I always wanted a college education and finally the dream became a, you know, true, you know, a life experience so…I was very fortunate that I had Lesley because Lesley at that time was a very, very small college. I think counted 81 in our graduating class. So in…I think I was one of the very few foreign students…in my class."
AP: "Wow."
IC: "And all my classmates were really…well they really took good care of me so to speak. And when I first came, I could read English and write English but conversation and understanding is something else special. Going to lectures and if the professors male, you know, they had deeper voice, I had a hard time understanding them. I had a hard time. So my classmates always helped to, you know, copy their notes and try to help me out."
AP: "Wow."
IC: "And even how to dial telephone and make phone calls, stuff like that, all those things, I had to learn from the beginning."
AP: "And so why America? And why Lesley?"
IC: "Why Lesley…why America is because I think my family at the time in Bangkok was…things were not easy, I mean, financially, we had, you know, a very difficult time at that time because in…so we only went to take English classes at WYCA and among all the teachers I think we had more American teachers and we heard a lot about America. We learned about America. Also I don’t know when the people realized it or not, even nowadays, America still, how should I put it, is like a, you know, if you work hard, you can do it kind of place, you know. There’s, you know, there’s always land of opportunities and…and so I guess, you know, somehow, you know, college education in America seems to be my dream. You know, of course I’m lucky to have Judy Bolt to help me to apply to different colleges and one of them was Lesley. And Lesley, in the sense because it is smaller not like BU or something, you know, like big…big schools. And also…also I was lucky…they…in spite of my no high school diploma and all those, you know, qualifications on paper and I was accepted and offered a scholarship that’s the major thing, too, because otherwise we wouldn’t be able to afford tuition to come. In fact, I came with, I think at that time, two hundred dollars in my pocket and if I didn’t make it to college, I don’t think I had enough money to get a ticket back home. So I had to make it, you know."
12:24
IC: Very exciting because, you know, we saw like a huge adventure. And, of course, we miss our parents and our family but…but we also…because I always wanted a college education and finally the dream became a, you know, true, you know, a life experience so…I was very fortunate that I had Lesley because Lesley at that time was a very, very small college. I think counted 81 in our graduating class. So in…I think I was one of the very few foreign students…in my class."
AP: "Wow."
IC: "And all my classmates were really…well they really took good care of me so to speak. And when I first came, I could read English and write English but conversation and understanding is something else special. Going to lectures and if the professors male, you know, they had deeper voice, I had a hard time understanding them. I had a hard time. So my classmates always helped to, you know, copy their notes and try to help me out."
AP: "Wow."
IC: "And even how to dial telephone and make phone calls, stuff like that, all those things, I had to learn from the beginning."
AP: "And so why America? And why Lesley?"
IC: "Why Lesley…why America is because I think my family at the time in Bangkok was…things were not easy, I mean, financially, we had, you know, a very difficult time at that time because in…so we only went to take English classes at WYCA and among all the teachers I think we had more American teachers and we heard a lot about America. We learned about America. Also I don’t know when the people realized it or not, even nowadays, America still, how should I put it, is like a, you know, if you work hard, you can do it kind of place, you know. There’s, you know, there’s always land of opportunities and…and so I guess, you know, somehow, you know, college education in America seems to be my dream. You know, of course I’m lucky to have Judy Bolt to help me to apply to different colleges and one of them was Lesley. And Lesley, in the sense because it is smaller not like BU or something, you know, like big…big schools. And also…also I was lucky…they…in spite of my no high school diploma and all those, you know, qualifications on paper and I was accepted and offered a scholarship that’s the major thing, too, because otherwise we wouldn’t be able to afford tuition to come. In fact, I came with, I think at that time, two hundred dollars in my pocket and if I didn’t make it to college, I don’t think I had enough money to get a ticket back home. So I had to make it, you know."
12:24
URL
https://digitalcommons.lesley.edu/oral_histories/37/
Citation
Lesley University, “"...I was accepted and offered a scholarship." from Itty Chan '61,” Digital Exhibits | Lesley University Archives, accessed April 29, 2024, https://lesleyarchives.omeka.net/items/show/95.