MCC Students & Professor Visit State House for Korea Day Event

On Friday, October 6, Middlesex Community College students taking a Korean and Culture class visited the Boston State House as part of a Korea Day Celebration. Led by instructor Ashli Ree, MCC Professor & Program Coordinator of Fashion Merchandising, students saw Governor Maura Healey and learned more about Korean language, food, fashion and culture.

“The learning often becomes more meaningful when students participate in hands-on activities,” Ree said. “There were cultural booths where students were able to participate in jong i jeobgi (traditional paper folding), try on hanbok (traditional clothing, and eat Korean food. There were taekwondo (martial arts) and gugak (traditional music) performances as well, and students were able to tie the experience to their prior knowledge from the course while visiting the hangul (Korean alphabet) booth.”

During the event, MCC student Natalie Ray, of Tyngsborough, enjoyed practicing speaking Korean, eating the various food offerings, and visiting the booths where she got a keychain, made origami, and created a nametag with her name in Korean.

An MCC Chemistry Transfer student, Ray plans to transfer to UMass Amherst and one day become a neurosurgeon for a Boston hospital. Attending the “friendly and welcoming” event was a chance to network with law makers and community members, while also providing an opportunity to connect with classmates.

“When you build strong bonds like this in the beginning, it can be more helpful down the line,” Ray said. “Now that I know them, I feel like it is easier to ask for help. I look forward to going to class and I put in extra effort on my homework. This experience has helped increase my achievement and motivation in the class.

MCC student Antony Tep, of Lowell, values the social aspect of attending in-person experiences. Some of his favorite parts of the event was getting a keychain for a Korean energy brand and watching his classmates try on traditional Korean clothing. The event was helpful in forming new friendships and introducing him more to the culture.

“Doing things in-person allows for connections to be made that can evolve one’s interest in a certain subject,” Tep said. “For example, I wanted to study Korean, so I ended up taking a class for it. Going to this event allowed me to meet people with common interest and we could have ended up talking for hours.”

Believing that learning a language is made easier through understanding the culture, Ree is always looking to create hands-on opportunities for her students. She appreciates how MCC helps make these experiences possible.

“MCC has always provided us with what we need,” Ree said. “The train fare may not be much, but it makes a difference on whether students can attend or not. They truly appreciated the school for paying the train fare."