Tag: Spotlight

Resident Spotlight: Darryl Sim

Written by International House on February 9, 2026. Posted in Resident News.

I-House resident Darryl Sim knows what it’s like to land in New York, wake up in a room in I-House South, grab a Pret coffee, make music, and squeeze in a run along Riverside Park. For the past semester, Darryl, who is from Singapore, has been documenting his daily life on his YouTube channel and on Instagram (@soundslikedarryl), capturing the jet lag, the small wins of the day, and the occasional struggles that come with moving to a new city. In 2024, Darryl began a master’s degree program in Creative...

Alumni Spotlight: Nick van der Kloot ’83 and Angeline van der Kloot ’83

Written by International House on February 9, 2026. Posted in Alumni News.

Sakura Sweethearts Nick and Angeline van der Kloot’s story began, as many I-House stories do, with a simple everyday moment. They first met while standing in the serving line in the Dining Hall. Nick struck up a conversation and, as Angeline recalls with a smile, began flirting right away. He asked to sit at her table, then asked for her phone number, which she said she initially refused because “he was very handsome and already being admired by many others.” Not long after, Nick invited Angeline to attend a Russian Emigré Society ball at the Waldorf Astoria, and she agreed to go with...

Resident Spotlight: Aurora Martinez

Written by International House on October 9, 2025. Posted in Resident News.

Aurora Martinez left Nicaragua at age 16 in pursuit of a better education. As the eldest daughter and the first in her family to study abroad, she was accepted to United World College–USA (UWC-USA) in Montezuma, New Mexico. There, she spent two years at a boarding school for international students earning an International Baccalaureate (IB) Diploma. From there, Martinez received the Davis UWC Scholarship to attend the University of Florida. As a Davis Scholar, she joined Semester at Sea, a program where students live and study aboard a ship while traveling the world...

Alumni Spotlight: Summer Scott Huyette ’73

Written by International House on October 8, 2025. Posted in Alumni News.

When Summer Scott Huyette ’73 arrived at I-House in the early 1970s from El Paso, Texas, she was pursuing her PhD in political science at Columbia, specializing in Soviet studies. She quickly discovered that I-House would be more than just a place to live. It would become her community. Looking back, Summer treasures the camaraderie and cultural exchange that shaped her I-House years. “My real social life was at I-House,” she recalls. “It was the perfect place for me to be.” She befriended residents from Russia, Egypt, and beyond during the height of the Cold War, and those encounters...

Resident Spotlight: Runting Luo

Written by International House on May 14, 2025. Posted in Resident News.

When Runting Luo first discovered I-House, she knew immediately that it was more than just student housing—it was the vibrant, global community she had been searching for. A graduate student at NYU studying Management and Analytics, Luo’s journey has taken her across continents. Originally from China, she studied in Japan for her undergraduate degree before arriving in New York to begin a new chapter of learning and cultural exchange. Luo credits her multicultural upbringing and early exposure to different languages for sparking her interest in international...

Alumni Spotlight: Cyrus Mehta ‘90

Written by International House on May 12, 2025. Posted in Alumni News.

Today, Cyrus Mehta ’90 is a prominent attorney for immigrant rights and constitutional protections, handling high-profile cases and shaping policy conversations across the country through his blog and other platforms. He is currently working on Mahdawi v. Trump. Though he planned—twice—to return to India, his path kept unfolding in New York. Friendships and referrals from I-House peers drew him back time and again, eventually establishing him as a leading voice in immigration law. Mehta credits I-House not so much with shaping his career, but with deeply influencing his worldview....

Alumni Spotlight: Sakura Sweethearts Edition

Written by International House on January 22, 2025. Posted in Alumni News.

Spencer Dreher ‘95 and Marisha Wignaraja ‘97 Spencer Dreher and Marisha Wignaraja’s love story began on the dance floor of Davis Hall at I-House. At the time, Dreher was a PhD student studying organic chemistry at Columbia and Wignaraja was pursuing a master’s in international affairs at SIPA. They met at one of I-House’s many lively gatherings—Wignaraja recalls seeing Dreher dancing without a care in the world. “He just kept dancing,” Wignaraja remembers fondly, “And we’ve been dancing together ever since.” Living at I-House played a pivotal role in their relationship....