Freshman Melanie Christine Herrmann Mantilla sits atop an elephant with her mother in Northern India, her current home.
TCK, according to Mantilla, is a fictional condition where a person has moved so much that they have no definition of “home.”
“We like change and we cannot stay in the same place for a long time,” she said. “We like to switch our rooms around a lot or change our hair color and style weekly.”
Born to a Columbian mother and German father, she is trilingual, first learning Spanish while living in Columbia, then German and English. Since her father works for Intercontinental Hotels and Resorts the family has had eight homes, but Mantilla doesn’t mind.
“Traveling has immensely impacted my life; I cannot imagine my life without it,” she said. “I want my children to grow up the same way I did.”
Prior to enrolling at Elon, Mantilla lived in Hong Kong where she went to an international high school. There she enjoyed the same hobbies she does now at Elon, including billiards, photography and listening to her favorite bands: The Postal Service and The Scene Aesthetic.
“I’m still the same person that I was back then and I carry a little bit of all the places I have been to wherever I go,” Mantilla said.
Mantilla is studying at Elon because she was attracted to its small town feel and she received a scholarship upon enrollment. Constantly surrounded by bustling cities, she felt that it would be a good experience to explore life in American suburbia.
The drastic move from Hong Kong to Elon, however, took a little getting used to.
“I’m not used to so many people with the same ethnicity in one place, like all white upper class Americans,” Mantilla said. “In my high school I had friends from all over the place; in fact, barely any of them were Americans.”
The change was drastic, but with the aid of her roommate and high school friend freshman Catherine Meléndez, making friends hasn’t been too much of a struggle. She is also highly involved with international events sponsored by the Isabella Cannon Centre which has helped her make more friends.
The greatest change of all has been the contrast in curriculum, according to Mantilla.
“If I could give a future international student any advice, it would be to have an insider point of view rather than an outsider,” she said. “Have a different mentality in and outside of class, especially when dealing with politics.”
Mantilla said that the American style of education allows great levels of freedom to study subjects that they desire, yet at the same time professors are available for guidance, creating a “good balance.”
“American universities spit out well-rounded students, but the educational system needs to teach a little more geography,” she said. “Students need to take a more global look at things every now and then rather than just focusing on America’s view point.”