International Programs Office reopens winter closet

As he peered out the library window, Augustana junior Patrick Adah recalled seeing snow for the first time. Adah smiled as he retold the story of studying in the library when the flakes started falling. The group of international students “left everything behind” Adah said and went immediately outside to see the snow up close. It didn’t take long before the students formed a snowman and snowballs to throw at each other. 

“It was just so beautiful,” Adah said. 

Every year, as the seasons change, international students at Augustana University face a new challenge: winter. To help these students survive the freezing South Dakota temperatures, International Programs Office staff recently reopened the doors to their Winter Closet. 

The IPO, located on the first floor of the Administration Building, serves more than 200 international students on Augustana’s campus. Kelsey Curley, assistant director for international programs, said their staff works to provide F-1 student visa advising, cultural adjustment support and international programming for their students. 

The IPO records show around 70% of international students on campus are from primarily warm-weather countries, and with 77 new first-year students this fall, there are more students from these tropical, warm-weather locales, Curley said. 

Natalia Kawesa, a first-year student from Kampala, Uganda, said she was “terrified” of winter. 

“I don’t like the cold generally, so I don’t know how that’s going to go for me,” Kawesa said. 

Uganda has an equatorial climate, so it doesn’t get cold, Kawesa said; the lowest temperature she remembers is 14 C or 57 F. Kawesa said she is looking forward to building a snowman and throwing some snowballs. But the cold? No.

Curley said that the IPO staff started the Winter Closet to provide free winter jackets, gloves, hats and scarves to students. The IPO typically gives away around 30-40 coats each academic year, and they have given away 15-20 coats already this fall. Kawesa said she visited the winter closet to find a winter jacket, some gloves and a beanie. 

The IPO staff keeps the closet stocked with many sizes of each clothing item so they can supply every student with something, “It’s helpful to our students to be able to provide free winter jackets, gloves, hats and scarves to them, especially knowing that it can get really really cold here to the point where it is often dangerous to be outside without proper winter gear,” Curley said.

When international students first arrive at AU, they pack up everything in their luggage, and winter clothing is “bulky,” Curley said. For those from warmer-weather countries, buying the items may be a challenge as well as having “to have to use limited luggage space to bring it over and back home,” Curley said. The Winter Closet gives an option to these students, who arrive unprepared for an average high of 28 F and lows of 10 F in Sioux Falls winter months.

“[The Winter Closet items] can help you through the winter for those who are just trying to start up and find your fit here,” Adah said. 

Adah said that buying winter coats can be expensive.

“You go to Amazon, you see a coat for 150 bucks,” Adah said.

However, with donations of clothing items from local businesses and community members, the IPO offers winter items for free, and once they take them, students can keep them forever.

Augustana faculty, staff, students, and alumni give their used clothing to the Winter Closet, Curley said. Throughout the year, the IPO collects donations of clean clothing in decent condition with intact zippers.

Curley said she enjoys seeing how “our international community takes care of itself.” When international students graduate, they may return their used winter clothing for a new first-year student to pick up. 

“It’s really great to see how we support each other throughout the years,” Curley said.

In addition to used clothing donations, the closet is assisted by Outdoor Gear Inc., a winter apparel supplier based in Sioux Falls that has donated 15-20 new winter jackets each year for the past three years, Curley said. 

Outdoor Gear Inc. works with a variety of non-profits and over the years has given away “close to a thousand garments,” said Adam Garry, president. 

“Making sure people are warm here is important to us,” Garry said.

Outdoor Gear Inc. has also given all Augustana community members 20% off winter clothing with the code AU20 on Boulder Gear.

International students needing winter clothing can stop by the IPO office during business hours, 9 a.m. to 5 p.m., Monday through Friday.

“When I walk around campus in the winter, I see more international students wearing coats from our winter coat closet than not,” Curley said.