As we begin to take our winter jackets out of our closets, wrap our scarves around our necks, and dangle colorful ornaments on trees, the days become easier to get through as the holiday season inches closer. Although both students and faculty alike cannot wait for that 2:26 bell on Friday, marking the beginning of Winter Break, the Friday before break is not just a day of counting down the clock.
This year, the ICU Luncheon has returned to its rightful place on the calendar, kicking off winter break! The entire Wheatley community, including past alumni, sits in our auditorium for two periods of the day to watch what ICU (Intercultural Unity Club) has planned for the day!
Typically, the ICU Luncheon consists of three main parts: the Assembly, Fashion Show, and Luncheon. Through these three events, ICU hopes to enrich our community through intercultural unity and understanding. As students file into the auditorium, ICU prepares for the first part of the day: assembly!
The ICU Assembly consists of cultural performances by Wheatley students. These performances include singing in other languages, cultural dances, music, and more! ICU co-Presidents Audrey Chen and Morgan Doan stand proudly behind the podium, announcing each performance, beginning with Chorale led by Mr. Watts. This year, the Assembly saw a total of 11 performances, ranging from Pavithra Eswar’s rendition of 棉花糖 (Mian Hua Tang) by 胡期皓 (Hú Qī Hào) representing China, to Nayiri Barton singing “Dernière Danse” by Indila, representing France, to a Bhangra Dance by Ayan Mahajar and Jennifer Kaur, representing India. Each performance seems to have been practiced to a tee, as students synchronize their footsteps, rouse the crowd, and serenade all who listen. This can be thanks to ICU’s rigorous rehearsal schedule, with upwards of 10 total rehearsals leading up to the show.
In between assembly performances, ICU also displays its language assembly, with some students and teachers speaking in other languages about cultural unity and its importance in our society. A screen emerges on stage with both the definition and the language writing/characters.
As the assembly wraps up, Fashion Show Committee Heads Kayla Kokura and Melissa Li take the podium to announce our students strutting the stage in traditional cultural clothing! With accompanying music, students walk displaying clothing from all around the world, including Germany, Ireland, South Korea, Pakistan, Vietnam, and more! It is such a wonderful way to see the manifestation of fashion in cultures across the globe.
After the performers and walkers bow holding hands across the stage, students leave the auditorium to return to their classrooms. Above and around them are decorations meant to bring Wheatley’s halls to life. The 100s and 200s hallways see strings of speech bubbles with different languages written on them strung across the hallway ceilings, and other hallways have combinations of color streamers lining the ceiling tiles. The walls outside the cafeteria have large hand-painted murals, painted by Decorations committee heads Robert Marasia, Ophelia Ching, and Kayla Xu, as well as Meghna Venkatesh, Audrey Chen, and Melissa Li, representing this year’s ICU theme, “Holidays and Celebrations”. These students have put immense effort into these paintings, staying upwards of 3 hours every day after school for multiple months.
Speaking of the cafeteria, next is the Luncheon! Starting around mid-November, social studies teachers offer students extra credit for their students to bring in cultural dishes to help prepare for the ICU Luncheon. Walking into the cafeteria is a strange sight, with tablecloths covering our normal cafeteria tables, and queues for food that snake around the cafeteria. With so many mouths to feed, ICU along with the help of Wheatley’s lunch ladies sets out hundreds of dishes, drinks, and dessert. Dishes range from pierogies, bulgogi, fried rice, pasta, shepherd’s pie, spring rolls, and more. ICU members come together, stretching gloves over their hands to serve the dishes to the students and teachers.
ICU Day has been a Wheatley tradition for years. With such a large assembly and the food aspect, it has been an event that was deeply impacted by the pandemic. This year, however, we’ve seen a true ICU Day with numbers of participation and food donations back to pre-covid levels! ICU Day was truly magical, and Wheatley is truly so lucky to have such a hardworking, talented, and open-minded student body!
Special thanks to the ICU executive board and advisors for helping make this event happen:
Audrey Chen & Morgan Doan, Presidents
Benjamin Friedrich & Ella Zhong, Vice-Presidents
Lauren Shin & Arikah Goher, Secretaries
Maeve Brady, Treasurer
Mrs. Birthe Seferian, Mr. Andrew Ardito, & Ms. Gaia D’anna, Advisors