International Campus Events

International Thanksgiving Dinner

This event was hosted by SGA Cabinet. I am one of the members that were in charge of event planning. The goal was to get International Students to experience the traditional American holiday. We had turkey brought in and some games were done to introduce the holiday to the students. There were performances by the Belly Dancing Club, a representative of UF's ARSA, and an international student. Various organizations attended as well in attempts to get International Students involved on campus. I chose to be involved with making this event happen because it was important for me to make International Students feel welcome on campus. Thanksgiving is a foreign phenomenon to many of them and so I thought to create this environment for them was a good opportunity to get to know other students, as well as, a piece of American culture. This event was successful and very fun for me to take part in. Many of the students actually formed friendships at the event, and I loved hearing about each student's aspirations and why they had come to UF.

Gator Salsa

Being Hispanic, I wanted to find a club that would connect me to people with similar backgrounds and perhaps learn a new skill. Dance is something I've always enjoyed and I know that it brings people closer. There is something very vulnerable and intimate about sharing a dance with a person, especially when it is a partner dance. I knew that joining Gator Salsa would make me step out of my comfort zone, and make my connections with other students deeper as well. There were many embarrassing moments, but I also gained a lot of confidence in myself through the dancing. I successfully learned how to dance bachata and salsa. These styles are danced all over the world and it has automatically brought me closer to many people just by mentioning that I knew how to bachata or salsa. On campus, this became a great way to meet other students that shared my love for the Hispanic culture. It was also quite a refreshing activity to do after a long day of academics. In October, the club hosted a Halloween event where I dressed up as a unicorn. It was cool to see everyone in their costumes and still dancing the night away. Socials like this one took place almost every weekend and often I got to meet dancers from all over the state. I really hope to come back to Gainesville for a social soon!

Agbedidi- African Dance

After learning some new Hispanic dance styles, I enrolled in a West African Dance class. It was a very eye-opening experience to learn the dance form and the culture of where it came from. I even got to perform and watch the show Agbedidi. Agbedidi truly embraced the African culture and displayed both contemporary and traditional pieces. There were traditional live drum players on the stage the entire time and I loved how the dancers captivated the different rhythms in their moves. I particularly appreciated that audience participation was encouraged in the show. There was a piece that involved a folktale where the narrator closely interacted with the audience. He would make a call and the audience had to answer it. At the end of the show, the dancers invited some of the audience members on stage for some freestyle. It was a warming way to finish the show and really enforce that African dance is an inclusive and social artform.