Around the globe

Moving to a new home can be difficult; saying goodbye to neighbors, having to make new friends, adjusting to a new life. But what if you had to move across the world?

Yatin Marneni, senior, is an immigrant who knows firsthand what that’s like. Born in Phoenix Arizona, he has not only lived in the states but also lived in India for 10 years before moving to Illinois. 

“There were definitely some big differences,” Marneni, said. “The first thing that really hit me was the weather because in India, we don’t have the four seasons; it was just summer and rain. And also the street layout, we don’t [drive] on the left. I’d say the biggest change would actually be the education system here compared to in India. It’s completely different, it’s more memorization based [in India].”

And that change took time to adapt to, according to Marneni. 

“It took two years for me to figure out how to adapt to it and it was a bit weird doing it early on because it was a completely different style,” Marneni said. “Even my teachers [said], ‘It’s weird how he can do so many memorization questions easily, but he can’t do critical thinking ones.’” 

Yet critical thinking is what Marneni will rely on in his next year as he begins his major in accounting. His friend, fellow senior Edward Kek, introduced Marneni to the field and once he took Accounting, Marneni said he was hooked.

“He told me it was really good and [that I] should take an interest in accounting. I was like, ‘Sure, I’ll take it.’ I’m interested in business and at that time I was thinking of going into business management, but after I took accounting, I was like, ‘This is more of what I wanted to do,’” Marneni said. 

But Kek says it’s not Marneni’s brain that makes him stand out, it’s his heart.

“He’s probably the most humble person I know,” Kek said. “It’s funny because he keeps everything to himself. But at the same time, when you compliment him he sends a compliment back. He’s really dedicated to basically everything in his life, family, friends, schoolwork, and his future.” 

That sense of compassion, along with his ability to help others with just about any subject, is what Kek says he admires about Marneni.

“Yatin does a great job helping out with everything when kids need help and answers questions about anything,” Kek said. “Then he can explain large concepts to them which is really valuable to anybody. He’s a great leader and friend.”

It hasn’t always been smooth sailing for Marneni, however, as his distinct accent and physical appearance didn’t help him out.

 “A lot of people assume that I don’t know how to speak English,” Marneni said. “My sister has had some of those problems like that accent specifically because she I don’t even know for a long time. Whenever she went back to India her accent would become thicker. And so she had problems with the school system and the students because the school would put her in ELA classes just like I have [been in]. Luckily, they’re not doing that anymore, but it was a bit weird that she was being put in those classes just because of her accent.”

Despite these challenges, Marneni succeeded at adapting to his new life, and had some final advice for immigrants.

“Just keep pushing yourself and don’t hide away; push yourself out to do whatever you want and what you need to do,” Marneni said.