For nearly two decades, the Friends of International Women (FIW) has tried to let female students at Iowa State meet each other and learn about their world.

Established in 1970, FIW is composed of about 100 women.

Ruth Ellis, program coordinator in the Office of International Students and Scholars, said FIW is “a community organization to welcome international women to the Ames community,” but it is not exclusive to only international women.

“Any woman with an international interest can join in,” she said.

Ellis said FIW has three main goals: to welcome women to Ames, to help these women adjust to living in Ames and to help them make friends from all over the world.

FIW President Laura Hamilton, graduate student in international development studies, said FIW is an ideal organization for women to develop friendships.

Hamilton said the group sponsors several outings during the school year to provide time for their members to bond, including an ice skating trip and a pumpkin carving Halloween party.

Members often break into conversational groups during these events. Each group would consist of both American and international members, and each member would talk with her group about her experiences and culture, she said.

Hamilton said having lived in Bulgaria, the Ukraine and Russia, she appreciates international women’s need for a social outlet in a community that is new to them.

“I know the feeling of entering a culture and hoping that someone will be friendly, and it means a lot when this happens,” she said. “We try to make the organization fulfill that need.”

Hamilton cited diversity as an important characteristic of FIW.

“It’s like a little United Nations,” she said. “We have many countries represented. That provides a richness to the membership.”

Galila Osman, 35, a Sudanese member of FIW, originally came to Ames with her husband, who wanted to obtain a Ph.D. in agricultural engineering at ISU. She has been a member of FIW for eight years.

Osman said she did not speak very fluent English before she joined FIW, but with the help of the group, that changed.

“When I interacted with other people, I was able to learn English,” she said.

Maureen Deisinger, central advising coordinator for the Greenlee School of Journalism and Communication, has been an FIW member since 1996.

Deisinger said because she’s an American who interacts with many international students, she has greatly benefited from FIW’s diversity.

Deisinger used Korean culture as an example to illustrate her experience. She said through interacting with FIW’s Korean women, she learned that Koreans regard their extended families as important as their immediate families.

Despite her enthusiasm for FIW, Deisinger said its membership should not become too large.

“If it gets much bigger, it’ll become too hard to manage,” she said.

Deisinger said the majority of FIW members range in age between 25 and 40. She said at least 50 percent of them have obtained college degrees.

Deisinger said FIW has achieved success because of the need international women have for interpersonal contact.

“I think some women in Ames feel isolated, so they need a social outlet,” she said.