International student Avyukt Sachdeva got a crash course in local government last week, courtesy of Oxford Township Supervisor Bill Dunn.

For a few hours on March 21, Dunn gave Sachdeva, an Oxford High School senior visiting from Rewari, India, a tour of municipal facilities.

They went to the township and village offices, the Oakland County Sheriff’s substation, the village police station, the Oxford Community Television station and Fire Station #1.

Sachdeva, who came to Oxford last August, was shadowing Dunn as part of an assignment for his business strategies class.

He said he found it “most intriguing” to learn about the “backbone” of American government.

He explained that when the United States political system is discussed in school, the focus is typically the federal level. Sachdeva enjoyed the opportunity to learn about the “basic level” and find out “who’s responsible for the roads” and “who’s responsible for the water we get in our homes.”

Everywhere they went, Sachdeva said the various government employees were friendly and accommodating.

“People were more than happy to help us out and show me how things work,” he said. “That was a really nice thing.”

“There was a sense that . . .  people were really happy in their jobs,” Sachdeva noted.

At the fire station, Sachdeva was given the opportunity to try on a firefighter’s turnout gear, which includes coat, pants, boots and helmet.

“That was pretty fun,” he said. “It was very, very heavy. Honestly, I did not expect anyone who would be running around, saving lives, to be wearing (anything) this heavy. I don’t think I could even save myself running with that kind of heavy gear (on).”

Sachdeva is grateful to Dunn for the tour and the way the supervisor treated him during it.

“He made me feel like an equal when he was talking to me,” he said. “It wasn’t like a senior guy talking to a kid. He gave me a (feeling) of respect, which I really appreciated.”

Although his assignment involved shadowing a local government official, Sachdeva’s plans for the future involve the private sector.

After graduating from OHS in May, he will remain in the U.S. and attend college. He plans to study business administration and management.

Sachdeva applied to 18 schools and has already heard from Michigan State University, Penn State, Texas A&M, Indiana and University of California, Santa Cruz.

“Everyone’s accepted me,” he said.

Once he completes his education, Sachdeva wants to return to India and start some type of manufacturing business, but he’s “not really sure what” yet.

He said often “the best minds” from his country get educated in the West, then decide to stay, but he feels it’s his “patriotic” duty to return to India and use what he’s learned to improve conditions there.

Based on his time at OHS, Sachdeva has become a big fan of American education.

He likes that subjects are studied and explored in a more in-depth manner here. He also likes that there’s “a lot more choice” in the American system.

“I can choose the subjects which suit me better,” Sachdeva said.

Prior to OHS, Sachdeva was attending Mayo College in Ajmer, Rajasthan, India. Founded in 1875, the boys-only institution has a 187-acre campus and is one of the oldest public boarding schools in the country.

“It’s one of the best schools in India,” Sachdeva said.

When asked what the biggest difference is between Oxford and India, Sachdeva immediately replied, “the weather.”

He said while other people were out enjoying the winter season, “I was concentrating on staying alive and not freezing to death.”

Sachdeva explained in India, temperatures often exceed 100 degrees, while “the maximum cold” is in the 30s.

He was amazed to see that temperatures in the 30s don’t seem to faze people in Michigan.

“Here, if it’s 32  (or) 35 (degrees), people are literally in their shorts,” Sachdeva said.