“The very first Hispanic Awareness activities actually began as a small effort in the 1976-77 academic year organized by two OSU Hispanic graduate students and funded by the Office of Minority Affairs” recalls Normand Caban Director of OMA recruitment. “The original activities consisted of very small informational gatherings that included speakers and activities organized by student organizations,” Caban adds.
It wasn’t until 1979-80 academic year that the first official Hispanic Awareness Week was held as a collaboration between Student Affairs and OMA. The activities consisted of a few speakers, a movie and a talent show that permitted the OSU community to witness and to take part of a variety of Hispanic music and dances performed by OSU students. The week’s activities then ended with a dinner dance. The involvement of the students in helping to organize and plan the activities generated a true sense of community, with the various different Hispanic students groups.
The Office of Hispanic Student Services from 1980-2002 organized and maintained the series of annual Hispanic Awareness Weeks. This continued until The Office of Student Affairs was restructured, changing the format and spreading the Hispanic Awareness activities throughout the academic year. With the restructuring, and the centralization of Student Affairs student activities and budget, the Hispanic Awareness Week as it was once known, changed.
This year the Multicultural Center is helping to bring back Hispanic Awareness Week. “I believe it is important to revive this tradition at OSU to celebrate the Latin@culture and to show the unity of our growing community” says Indra Leyva-Santiago, Intercultural Specialist at the Multicultural Center and liaison to Hispanic/Latin@ Student initiatives. “The moment I came across old Hispanic Awareness week calendars, and saw the magnitude of the events they offered, I felt the need to revive the tradition, and the community has responded very positively to it”, added Leyva-Santiago.
This year is the year to bring back old traditions, like La Noche Latina, the talent show that had so much success in the past, in addition to hosting movies, discussion tables and lectures. This is the week to celebrate Latin@ traditions and to invite the larger scarlet and grey community to learn about our history and presence as Americans in this country. |
