Adil Baguirov in Dayton

Education runs in Adil Baguirov's blood.

Baguirov, who this past year was elected to the Dayton Board of Education, is just a veritable open book on subjects which range from education policy to the real history of the Ahiska Turkish community in Dayton, where he's among the rising leaders. He's also a teacher at several universities, including University of Dayton. Adil Baguirov Dayton

The well-traveled educator says the freedoms he's enjoyed in America have continued to amaze him, even once the mountainous terrain of his native Caucasus region occasionally make him consider home. Born in a the main Soviet Union today known as Azerbaijan, Baguirov loves the little things in Dayton, from the open hours of restaurants to his favorite local spots like Press Coffee, where he met me for drinks and cake.

Q: That which was it like coming to America?

A: I was supposed to visit law school in Moscow when I graduated from high school. I was 15, and I already was preparing for the entrance exams, and the outcome came that I was accepted into among the schools in the United States. I jumped for joy and told my parents I needed ahead here, although it was a smaller university in Michigan and I'd planned for starters of the best universities in Moscow.

That has been the early ‘90s, and I didn't just want to study law, I needed to understand about business and I believed the curriculum here could be better.

Since, one thing generated another, I transferred to a school in Los Angeles, lived in Washington D.C., and I had a good experience coast-to-coast and traveling around the country. I got to know more of America and the different experiences here, the different accents, expressions and I like it. Once you head to European countries, I always bring samples of how exactly we do things in America, typically either in operation aspects.

Q: What do you want best about living here?

A: Freedom of speech that will be enshrined here. It's hard to sue a person simply because he expressed his thought, and that's different even for advanced companies in Europe. You may be easily sued for something. Oahu is the small things I find. The stores open 24 hours, that's so awesome. In Europe and in the big cities, if you want to have lunch after 2:30, you're out of luck. They shut things down until dinner. Here you can go have a meal at just about any time. Sets from something high as much as something very practical. I, as an immigrant and naturalized American, find plenty of little things such as which can be better, although I already knew Europe effectively and I knew the culture.

Q: How's the culture different?

A: Parents are happy for the successes of their children. They cut them plenty of slack, they need them to savor life. Our grandparents had harsh lives and bad conditions and they wish to make sure their children have the ability to enjoy life and get things these were unable to get, such as for instance education, and the capability to enjoy freedoms and generate income like these were unable to do when these were persecuted. Adil Baguirov Board of Education

We've proven it, with eight years in America and the impact we've had here.

Q: Would you keep whatever reminds you of home?

A: Definitely. I'm a mountaineer myself, starting mountains, skiing, flying. I enjoy snapping pictures and post them. They're just mountains, but I enjoy them, they're so beautiful.

I enjoy the culture and history of this the main world. I studied it, even when I studied business and political science and international relations. I've published several historical articles in peer-reviewed journals so I'm sort of a beginner historian, too. I enjoy history. It's why I teach that program at UD and I get it done at other schools including George Washington University in D.C. and some others.

I like the real history, and the culture, I've great appreciation for them and I find them interesting, from the cuisine the dances the costumes, and so on. I've been active in the nonprofit sector, a lot of them in Washington, so I put my passion into use and action. I'm very proud to possess brought in some pretty big issues that way.