UIndy’s International Education Celebration kicks off Oct. 16-18, featuring a multi-day event for students to celebrate international education.
The Celebration of Flags is one of UIndy’s campus traditions. It is modeled after the Olympics opening ceremony, and there are over 75 countries represented. The flag bearers wear their national colors and clothing, and there are also international student performances followed by World Fest, previously known as the International Expo.
While this is going to be the 36th annual Celebration of Flags, this is going to be the first year UIndy has done a multi-day celebration. Assistant Director of Retention Strategy and Student Experience Designer Cesone Snowden said UIndy wanted IEC to be more than just one day. According to UIndy’s website, IEC is “an opportunity to celebrate the benefits of international education and exchange worldwide.”
“My job is to amplify voices, stories and cultures,” Snowden said. “I can do that freely because I inform myself first. I would not want our students to feel like they cannot participate or get involved because they do not come from the community. There are safe ways to be a part of other people’s cultures.”
The Celebration of Flags will be taking place on Oct. 17 this year along with World Fest, but there will be additional events on the days before and after the Celebration of Flags as well. According to Snowden, there will be passport photo and application events, an international coffee hour, a couple of international speakers and more. She said there is something for everyone regardless of their schedule or interests.
IEC will feature food, artists and performers of different nations. UIndy works with local businesses and artists to support the community around it, according to Snowden, and she said this year there will be a Haitian jazz group, a Bollywood-inspired Indian dance group and a Venezuelan group. The IEC will also feature food from Latin America, the Caribbean, Poland, Argentina and Jamaica.
“Indiana is on the path to being a very diverse place,” Snowden said. “The cities are particularly more diverse than the outskirts. The associations and community groups are very much involved and doing all sorts of things to represent their own culture across the state, so a lot of the groups were already booked out through October when I tried to talk to them in May. Doing this event means we are supporting the community around us.”
Snowden also said that most of these groups are understaffed and volunteer-based, so it can be hard to focus on one nation or continent from year to year for World Fest — it’s about what the city has to offer at the time. The events are based on what is going on at that time, Snowden said, and what she thinks will be eye-catching to students. She enjoys incorporating student artists as well.
Music therapy senior Sofia Casasola, a veteran Celebration of Flags performer, will be singing at the event for the fifth time. Being an international student from Costa Rica and Spain, she said Celebration of Flags is one of her favorite things that happens at UIndy.
“For international students, it is really cool because we get to see ourselves integrated as part of the community, while also showcasing our own country and where we are from,” Casasola said. “At the end of the day, where we are from is part of who we are.”
Everyone can benefit from IEC, Snowden said, and it is a time and place where everyone can learn about other cultures and do it in a safe and enjoyable environment.
“It is an opportunity for international students to feel appreciated when they see their culture be represented,” Snowden said. “For domestic students, it is a chance to explore different cultures in a safe space where they can ask questions. It is a way for them to get an appreciation of different cultures. World Fest is for all of the students and it will benefit everybody.”
