A World Away, Right at Home

The college experiences of Lewis & Clark international student-athletes Arnav Bishnoi and Anna Ingadottir haven’t looked exactly like those of many of their classmates. But neither would change anything.

Bishnoi, a sophomore, and Ingadottir, a graduating senior, have balanced L&C’s challenging academics and intercollegiate athletics while also navigating a different country, a second language, and a new educational system.

They say meeting those challenges has only enhanced their time on Palatine Hill.

“The people here believe in you and support you, and for that I’m really grateful” Ingadottir says.

Ingadottir arrived in Portland from Garðabær, Iceland. Four years later, after playing in goal for the women’s soccer team, she is set to graduate with a double major in economics and international affairs.

“I think I’m leaving a completely different person than when I came” she says. “And I think that’s a good thing.”

Bishnoi feels similarly. A tennis player ranked in the top 40 as a junior in India, he is double majoring in economics and data science.

“The community here is super close,” says Bishnoi, who is from Chandigarh in northwestern India. “It’s like I know almost everyone. I’m used to saying hi to 100 people every day at least. I like that.”

 

Arnav Bishnoi BA ’28
Credit: Siena Flock

The Right Balance

Both picked L&C because it offered them the chance to pursue intercollegiate athletics without sacrificing their academic goals. They wanted small class sizes and professors who knew them as individuals.

When Bishnoi decided to attend college in the United States, he steered away from NCAA Division I schools, where tennis would have been his primary reason for being there. Instead, he looked to Division III.

Rishabh Sharda, an older player from his tennis club in Chandigarh, who won the 2023 NCAA Division III national singles championship at Tufts University, advised him to look at Division III schools rather than staying in India and playing tennis independently.

“Here, I’m only paying for college,” Bishnoi says. “The tennis is free. Somewhere else, I would be paying for my tennis training and my college.”

His L&C financial aid package made his decision to come to the States affordable.

Ingadottir used similar reasoning when she and her father sat down to look at U.S. colleges.

“We thought Division III would be the best option for me, because I figured I’m way better at academics than I am at soccer,” she says. “But I wasn’t ready to give up on soccer. I wanted to keep playing. It’s an outlet for me. But I also wanted to be able to study what I wanted, take the classes I wanted, get internships, study abroad—all those things.”

 

Anna Ingadottir BA ’26
Credit: Max Zuberbuhler

Ingadottir’s parents set one condition.

“If I was going to go away that far, and not to the free Icelandic university that was 15 minutes away from home, it had to least be a school that was on par or better than Icelandic universities,” she says.

Not only did L&C fit the criteria, but Portland has an international airport that offers flights to Reykjavík, Iceland. Her parents have been able to visit her every school year.

Ingadottir’s four years on the soccer team brought highs and lows. She was sidelined twice with concussions and once with a hamstring injury.

But there have been compensations. She grew close to her American teammates. The team traveled to Hawai‘i in 2024 and to Iceland in 2025, where she was able to show off her home country to her teammates, coaches, and some L&C administrators.

In spring 2025, she went on an overseas study program to Australia, a broadening experience that took her to the other side of the world. Together, these experiences reinforced her belief that she made the right choice to go to L&C, where athletics and academics work together seamlessly.

This academic year, she has served as president of the Student-Athlete Advisory Committee, taking to heart athletic director Mark Pietrok’s four pillars of an L&C athlete’s college experience: classroom, competition, character, and community.

“You’re not just an athlete here,” she says.

Bishnoi’s athletic journey at L&C has been slowed by a balky lower back that needs constant treatment. To stay competitive, he has relied on the experience and guile he developed as a top-level junior player in India.

“I’m mentally stronger than some of the people around me because I’ve been in tough situations and played in important matches,” he says.

Off the court, he bonded with his roommate, Gannon Clarkson BA ’28, spending one Thanksgiving and one Christmas with Clarkson’s family in Palmer, Alaska. Winter there was a climactic shock for someone who grew up in India. But Bishnoi shivered through it—and, in the process, grew close to Clarkson’s family.

Earlier this year, the tennis team traveled to Costa Rica, a trip Bishnoi calls “amazing.” He adds, “It was the best experience of my life. It’s the first time I was able to go to a country outside of India or the U.S for travel.”

Looking Ahead

Bishnoi still has two more years at L&C to think about life after graduation. Ingadottir already has her next step in place: She will pursue a master’s degree at Johns Hopkins University in international economics and finance.

Her four years at L&C, she says, served as the springboard.

“They believe in you here,” she says. “They want to push you and help you become better.”

Bishnoi and Ingadottir are among a dozen current student-athletes who have came to L&C from four different continents. This wide-ranging group has taken advantage of the opportunity to play intercollegiate athletics while pursuing a top-level college education.

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