By MICHAEL NUNES
Staff Writer
RED BANK — In what school officials called one of their biggest parties of the year, students, parents and other members of the community came together for the school’s annual International Night held by the district’s Parent Teacher Organization.
“Tonight is what this district is all about,” said Superintendent of Schools Jared Rumage at the May 20 event that was held at the Red Bank Primary School on River Road. Guests to the event were treated to an international buffet along with live performances, including flamenco dancers and a demonstration of a Brazilian martial art known as capoeira.
After the feast and show, attendees were guided to the school’s gym to experience the “cultural museum” in which students created tri-folds detailing different countries throughout the world.
According to Lucille Quinn, a second grade English as a Second Language (ESL) teacher at the school, the event dates to 2002 as a week long cultural celebration when every teacher would choose a country to teach about. After the week, pupils would detail what they learned in a project that was later put on display.
Over time, according to Quinn, the event came to include a feast and performances.
For teachers at the school, this event is about exposing students throughout the district to the world beyond Red Bank.
“We do [this event] to teach our children about diversity and to try to expose them to different cultures. A lot of our children do come from the same place, we do have a large population from Mexico, so it is very important to expose them to their own culture, but also the culture of the world,” said Beth Ann Moran, a first grade teacher who helped coordinate the event.
Contact Michael Nunes at [email protected].