PROMOTING CULTURAL AWARENESS

Hauppauge High School held it first International Night 16 years ago as a means to unite the French, German and Spanish Clubs. Held this year on Thursday, April 23, 2015, it has since grown to become more than language club advisers Christine Rigaud, Helen Aigen and Danielle Cardi had ever imagined. “Not only does it unite language students, it unites the entire community. It promotes cultural awareness, acceptance, and understanding by allowing students to prepare ethnic dishes from their own heritage and perform cultural dances, some of which have been around for centuries,” described Christine Rigaud. “Students sang and performed musical numbers, we provided face painting and a piñata for the younger children.”

International Night was run almost entirely by the students under the guidance of their language club advisers. Each club member brought in a special dish, which had a cultural significance to him/her. The names and origin of the food were listed in front of each dish that was served. The students also provided beverages, obtained donations, sold raffle tickets, and set-up, served and cleaned-up on the night of the event.

All of the raffle prizes were either purchased in other countries, while the students were on their school trips, or were donated by local businesses. The students began soliciting for donations in January – as they do annually for the event. “When the students reached out to community members for help, it taught them to present themselves in a professional way. They also became ambassadors for our school by helping people understand what International Night is really about,” said Rigaud.

A portion of the proceeds from International Night are donated to the Crohn’s and Colitis Foundation each year.