Schools
Naugatuck Valley Community College Honors National Hispanic Heritage Month
National Hispanic Heritage Month is celebrated from September 15 to October 15 in the United States.
WATERBURY- National Hispanic Heritage Month is celebrated from September 15 to October 15 in the United States. During this month we honor the histories, cultures and contributions of Americans whose ancestors came from Spain, Mexico, the Spanish Caribbean and Central and South America.
September 15 was selected as the date to begin the celebration because it is the anniversary of independence for five Latin American countries (Costa Rica, El Salvador, Guatemala, Honduras, and Nicaragua) who declared their independence on this date in 1821. In addition, Mexico, Chile, and Belize also celebrate their independence during September. The observation of Hispanic Heritage Month began as a Hispanic Heritage Week under President Lyndon Johnson in 1968. President Ronald Reagan expanded the observation in 1988 to cover a 30-day period starting on September 15 and ending on October 15; it was enacted into law on August 17, 1988.
NVCC marked the observation of Hispanic Heritage Month by welcoming Dominican Activist, Diputado Nacional (National Congressman) Fidelio Despradel on September 27, 2017. One of the leading events in NVCC’s Celebration of Hispanic Heritage Month, it was an example of how intellectual discourse and community engagement define the work of the College to support the education of our students within and outside the confines of the classroom.
Multiple events have been planned at both the Waterbury and Danbury campuses in honor of Hispanic Heritage Month. In Danbury, students are designing and displaying posters about famous Hispanic artists in the multipurpose room. There was a Salsa workshop on October 17 from 3-4 pm in the multipurpose room with sharing of Hispanic food to follow from 4-5 pm.
In Waterbury, three events were scheduled. The first of which took place on Wednesday, October 4. The Multicultural Affairs Committee at NVCC presented Amusing Musings on Being Bicultural by a “Dominican-York.” Robert Chase, M.S.W., LCSW discussed how immigration in a small world calls for biculturalism and bilingualism. He explored linguistic and cultural variables and the comical examples of errors. Chase spoke dearly and personally about the benefits of bilingualism and biculturalism, on being adroit and adaptable, on helping others to thrive and on feeling at home within the cultures.
On October 9, 2017 NVCC welcomed Antonio Garcia-Lozado, Ph.D. to address the theme of Hispanic Heritage Month this year “Shaping the Bright Future of America.”
Antonio is Professor of Hispanic-American Literature at Central Connecticut State University. His work has appeared in many publications including Anthropos, Quimera, Hispamérica, Revista de Estudios de literature Colombiana de la Universidad de Antioquia, Mapocho, and Aleph e Inti. He has presented at conferences all over the world including the University of Bonn (Germany), the University of Valencia (Spain) and the National University of Colombia.
On Wednesday, October 18 from 12 – 3 pm, the Hispanic Student Union presents music from Mariachi Son de mi Tierra, CT in the Lever Atrium. This talented group will serenade us with some authentic Mexican Mariachi music, followed by Latin dance lessons. We’ll wrap up Hispanic Heritage Month with music and dance by a local DJ.
