------------------------------------ people ----------------------------------------- Freshman Stephen Roussos stands on a hill overlooking Athens, Greece, while at Harding University in Greece this fall. Roussos, who hails from Athens, spent his first college semester at HUG in Porto Ratti. (Photo courtesy of Stephen Roussos) ste~8m,os Moving from one dorm room to another in the middle of the school year was a task most students despised. Imagine moving from one dorm room to another dorm room 6,000 miles away. Freshman Stephen Roussos did just that this spring after spending his first semester in college on the Harding University Greece campus inPorto Rafti, Greece, an hour away from his hometown Athens. "I always knew that I would study inAmerica," Roussos said. "[Most foreigners] usually leave home because it's considered better to have a degree from somewhere "I always knew that I like America or England for instance." Roussos' father was the preacher at the Omonia church of Christ in Athens, where HUG students attended . With that being the case, Roussos grew up around Harding students. Naturally, he decided to spend his first semester of college as a HUG student. would study in America." -freshman "It was like being all one family; you did everything together," Roussos said. "So you got to know everyone really well. It was more of an experience while learning than just going to classes because you did the tours and saw new places. It was interesting to see some of the places I Stephen Roussos already knew from their perspective." In addition to knowing students prior to moving to Searcy, Roussos had lived in the United States before and had traveJed to other states, induding Florida, Texas, New York, Washington and Indiana. "It's different living here for a longer time," Roussos said. "But I knew exactly what I was getting into. I'm just not used to a small town. I miss the coffee shops, going to the beach or to the islands or snowboarding in the winter. Here everything closes early, while [in Greece] things don't close until 2 or 3 in the morning. " Although the differences between Searcy and Athens had a tendency to stand out, Roussos said the people on campus were friendly. He also said he was pleased with the campus atmosphere. Roussos also said his relationship with Christ grew stronger while on campus. "It's helped to strengthen my faith in Christ," Roussos said. "By being around Christians all the time and having things like chapel, you get to focus a lot better than you would in a regular setting." sophomores 11 79
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