From February 12 to 17, students at Irvington High School took a trip across the globe as they celebrated Multicultural Week to honor the various backgrounds of students and faculty at the school.
Throughout five jam-packed days, cultural clubs and ASG hosted exciting events that highlighted a unique culture — from the Korean-American club’s K-pop talent show to the French Connection club’s crepe-decorating event, Multicultural Week exceeded expectations and gave every student a chance to experience something new.
On February 14th, Madame Gurtz-Cayla’s room flooded with students trying to participate in French Connections crepe-decorating event. In fact, so many had shown up, the club had to cap the amount of students by only allowing people who RSVPed to participate. The club also faced some challenges with the quantity of crepes being distributed and the amount of toppings available to the many students. “We had a lot more people show up than we thought and we loved it,” states French Connection co-president Likhitha Thyagarajan (12) “we want to host a bigger event sooner or later in the cafeteria where we can introduce more people to French culture”. Crepes were chosen to represent French culture as it is a staple part of French cuisine, and a simple food to cater to a bulk of students. Likhitha noted, “We also want to try to have a cheese tasting pretty soon and maybe try another French food or do another French activity”..
On February 15, Irvington’s Japanese American club hosted a lunchtime Kabuki mask painting event that beautifully contributed to the colorful theme of multicultural week. Students received fox-like masks that represent characters from the Japanese Kabuki theater and decorated them with the assortment of paints and brushes the club provided.
As numerous incoming freshmen and parents arrived at Irvington’s courtyard on the night of February 15 for the combined open house and Multicultural Night Market, they were welcomed by a variety of different foods being sold by the many clubs of Irvington. The Multicultural Night Market featured many fundraising booths with cultural foods including kimbap, egg rolls, spam musubi, pani puri, mango lassi, taiyaki, pizza, and burritos.
“I really enjoyed how many different clubs got to showcase their different cultures or show what they are as a club to the incoming freshmen,” shares Multicultural Market attendee Amanda Lai (11) “I think the market was a really great experience and a great way for incoming freshmen to come and learn more about Irvington. Italso incorporates and represents different cultures well, especially with the food component”.
On February 14 and 15, students attended the Multicultural Rally — which featured a series of performances from regions across the world including India, China, the Philippines, and Latin America. Multiple parts of the Indian subcontinent were celebrated as Indopak’s unique dance teams, Soor, Bhangra Crew, Sitare, and Natya, performed energetic fusion dances.
On February 16, the Spark Chinese Club celebrated Lunar New Year by setting up vibrant booths and performances during lunch in the courtyard. The activities included Chinese chess, Quick Dry Chinese Calligraphy, lion and dragon themed photo booths, and a food stall providing free fortune cookies, boba mochi candy, and tea eggs to event attendees.
All in all, Multicultural Week was a spirited celebration representing the diversity at Irvington High School, promoting unity across students of different backgrounds, ethnicities, and cultures.
