The night before her first class at JMU in fall 2018, communication studies major Thu Nguyen had arrived in the U.S. after a 26-hour flight from Vietnam. As an international student, she said, she was excited about Americaâs diverse culture and the opportunity to study at JMU. In a classroom surrounded by over 200 students, Nguyen turned to the girl sitting next to her and asked what their next task was. She had never been in a class that big before and said she was confused about splitting into groups. â[The girl] was like, âWhy are you shy?ââ Nguyen said. ââThis is a free country â just do whatever you want.â And I was like, so shocked. And then, she just left me.â