Two and a half years ago, Loubna Al and her family huddled in the corner of their home as gunfire and bombs erupted around them. Now she is a sophomore at Roseville High School.

Al moved from Syria to Roseville to escape the violence of their country’s war. She has been attending RHS since the begging of the school year.

“(We moved here three or four months ago) because of the war in Syria,” Al said. “(We wanted) to keep safe. (Most of) my friends (and) family are there (though), so it’s hard.”On March 15, 2011, an uprising began in the Syrian capital, Damascus, near Al’s former home. Protest was one of many Middle Eastern rebellious known as the “Arab Spring.”

The day of the first protest, Al and her family stayed indoors to avoid the violence. For six hours, they waited indoors, in rooms far away from the windows to ensure their safety. During that time, about 100 bombs exploded outside and the majority of Al’s village left the area.

Ever since the first uprising, Al experienced continuous was in her everyday life.

“(Once), I didn’t go to school for three months,” Al said. “Sometimes we’d go to school one day, and the next day we (couldn’t) go. Everyday there is (a killing). It is very hard to leave the house because (people) never stop shooting.”

Over the summer, Al, her mother and one of her brothers decided to leave Syria in hopes of escaping the dangers of war. The nigh of her escape was one of the most terrifying nights of Al’s life.

“We had a very scary night,” Al said. ” It was (about) 1:00 am, but it (looked) like 1:00 pm from all the fire and shooting. They doors looked like they were (shaking).”

Al took a plane flown by Israeli pilots to the United States and moved to Roseville.

Because Al’s father is a working doctors, and one of her brothers needed to finish studying in Syria, they decided not to leave their home. The majority of her family and friends are still living in Syria, so she hopes to return when the country is safe again.

Upon moving to the United States, Al discovered many changes in culture that she did not experience back in Syria.

“(America) is so beautiful, but everything changed for me,” Al said.

One major change was different style of school in the United States. In Syria, students study 12 subjects a year instead of eight, with different subjects everyday instead of a fixed schedule. Three of the four class periods consist of intensive studying. In the United States, classes are taught in a a more interactive and easygoing style.

“The studying here is very easy and more fun,” Al said. “(The teachers) do not make it hard on the students. It is better here in the way that the teachers teach the subjects.”

This term Al is taking English, Algebra, Basic Art and Photography. Al had taken English classes in Syria for nine years, so she understood the basics of the language, but it was still difficult to communicate when she first moved.

“When I come to the United States, it was very hard for me to communicate with people,” Al said. “Now I feel much more comfortable and I understand (the language a) little better. The only problem (is) when I ask questions.

Overall, Al likes her classes. She enjoys drawing in art class and feels like she can understand algebra because it follows the same rules in every culture.

“I love drawing and the teacher is very good,” Al said. “She helps me a lot. In mathematics (it is hard for me to) understand what the teacher is saying, but I can understand the concept (so)