Riverhead Middle School’s first World Language Culture Night drew a bigger-than-expected crowd Thursday evening, as students, families and teachers came together to celebrate the many cultures represented in the school community.
Hosted by the school’s World Language Department, the event featured homemade dishes prepared by students and families, along with student reflections on culture, identity and belonging. Ruotolo said before the event that the goal was to create something fun for students while showing “how culturally, although we’re different, we can all come together through food.”
“This is a much bigger crowd than we expected,” organizer and French teacher Betsy Ruotolo told those gathered. “We’re really excited about it. This is our first ever culture night.”
Ruotolo, who said she has taught in Riverhead for 30 years, said language study is about more than vocabulary.
“Learning is more than just memorizing vocabulary,” she said. “It’s really about opening doors, understanding, empathy and just global citizenship.”
One of the student speakers, Taneikah Thompson, spoke about what her Jamaican heritage means to her.
“Being a Jamaican is very special to me, and it’s really how I connect with different people,” Thompson said. “My Jamaican culture will forever be within me.”
Before the event, Ruotolo said the evening was meant to emphasize the common bonds shared across cultures.
“We all come together on the very same things, like family, friendship, food,” she said.
RiverheadLOCAL photos by Emil Breitenbach Jr.
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