Sara Ghavami: A Profile

Avila University draws in students from all over the world, and you never know whom you might meet on campus. Sara Ghavami is a junior at Avila University. While she was born in Overland Park, Kansas, she considers herself to be not only an American citizen but also an Iranian citizen. When she was two, her family moved back to Iran for a couple years, but decided to return to the United States before Sara went to kindergarten. Up until this point, she had spoken only Persian and Arabic, because those are the languages of her culture. After being immersed in public school in the United States, she learned English, which is one of the most difficult languages to learn. Today, her English is flawless and you would never be able to tell from a cursory glance that she is a trilingual Iranian woman.  Sara explained that she is a Muslim, and that there are two different sects within the Islamic religion: Shi’ites and Sunnis. She is a Shi’ite, which is the least common of the two sects. No matter which sect, their culture is very family-oriented and this definitely shows in Sara’s lifestyle. 

In her free time, she loves to spend time with her family and babysit her new niece. She also loves going to the movies and throws Persian parties on the weekends for her family and friends. You may be wondering what a Persian party is, but don’t worry, I got the inside scoop. A Persian party is very similar to a potluck. Everyone brings their own Persian dish and they all share recipes. After getting the hookah burning, they spend the night socializing and having a good time. Don’t worry, only pure tobacco here! The purpose of the Persian party is so that everyone can spend time together, telling jokes and reminiscing about old family stories and how it is back home in Iran. “We are all from [Iran], and it is nice to gather and talk about old times and our country”, she said. Her family travels to Tehran, the capital of Iran, twice a year to visit her and her husband’s family. Sara met her husband when she was 18 while on a trip to Iran. Shortly after, they decided to get married. She said, “A lot of people ask if it was an arranged marriage, and it definitely wasn’t. We are very happy together.” When asked about her plans after graduation, she says that she wants to live in the United States a little while, start a family here, and then move back to Iran when her children are older. She loves her country and her culture, but she loves living in the United States too. On the outside, it may seem like Sara has a lot going on in her life, but on the inside, she is just a normal, every day girl in college here at Avila University.