Dual Language Winter Fiesta Draws Crowd
A night of good food, friends and fun was enjoyed by a crowd of more than 400 that turned out for this year’s dual language program winter fiesta in the Huntington School District.
The two-hour event, held in the Jack Abrams School gym, featured a potluck dinner and an abundance of food. Families brought food dishes reflecting their cultural heritage, ranging from Central and South America to Europe and even Asia.
The district’s dual language teachers and aides were in attendance, too, laughing alongside their students and a huge turnout of parents. Silvia Lopez, an ESL aide at Huntington High School, taught the crowd a Mexican country dance. Maria Lanzot, a Washington School bilingual kindergarten teacher, taught the Merengue and La Raspa, a Mexican dance. Superintendent John J. Finello even stopped by the celebration and saw the youngsters and their parents dancing.
This year’s dual language program Family Night will be held on Friday, June 11 from 6-8 p.m. in the Huntington High School auditorium. As the program has grown, there was a need to separate the fiesta and family night. “We used to have the celebration all in one night, but the ‘DL’ family has become so large that we don’t have room for both celebrations on the same day,” said Carmen Kasper, director of foreign language, ESL and bilingual programs.
There are currently 16 dual language classes at Jefferson, Southdown, Flower Hill, Washington and Woodhull schools.
“The evening gave the ‘DL’ family members the chance to celebrate our diversity, reconnect with old friends, make new friends and enjoy food and dance,” Ms. Kasper said. “The custodial team did a tremendous job setting up so many tables and chairs in less than a half hour. Al White (district operations supervisor) was there supervising and making sure everything was in place and on time. Thank you very much to all of them for their hard work!”
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