Southmoor Multicultural Night Celebration is Thursday, May 11. Join us from 5:30-7pm to celebrate the diversity of the Southmoor family.

From 5:30-6:30:

Fill your passport as you visit country/culture tables, enjoy music and tastes of food from around the world, visit craft stations, and enter a drawing after collecting ALL the passport stickers.

From 6:30 to 7:

Enjoy performances and a multicultural Fashion/Flag Show with Southmoor students, and hear the drawing winners announced.

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Recipes

Thank you to all of the wonderful families that shared their favorite recipes! Download the recipe e-book below!

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Music

Please enjoy the playlist we’ve put together celebrating our diversity!

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If you have any questions, contact organizers, Stacey Grapengater (Stacey.Grapengater@gmail.com) or Anh Tran (anhcloud9@gmail.com). 

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Frequently asked questions

• What does hosting a country/culture table look like?

  1. Sign up!

  2. As possible, ask another family from your same country/culture to help you co-host your table. We’ll also try to help match you with another family (if possible) to help you co-host your table so you can be at your table during the event for as much time as you’d like, or just half the time so that you can also enjoy the event with your family.

  3. Receive a free tri-fold presentation board from the event organizers.

  4. Consider questions like: What are the special items/artifacts that people use in my culture? How does my language look different from English? What are children's favorite games in my culture? Is there a traditional kid-friendly craft or art from my culture? History. Population. Climate. Wildlife. Music. The arts. Etc.

  5. Design your tri-fold presentation board – markers, stickers, photos, etc. It does NOT have to be professionally printed. Handwritten information, taped on photos, and more are great. We have sample photos available from other multicultural nights to help give you ideas. Just let us know!

  6. Include display items/artifacts like flags, traditional cloth, daily use items, popular products from your country, books, photos, instruments, toys, etc.
     *Event organizers can help provide printing help if you do not have access to a printer yourself. Contact Stacey (stacey.grapengater@gmail.com) or Anh (anhcloud9@gmail.com).

  7. On May 11 at 5pm, bring your completed tri-fold presentation board and country/culture items/artifacts to set up at your assigned table. Additionally, but not required: Feel free to wear clothes from your country, bring a game, craft, or activity for event participants to experience, and/or a sample of food to share (bite-size samples).

  8. Hand out country/culture stickers into table visitor passport booklets, as event participants are working to fill their passport with stickers from each country/culture represented at our event.

  9. Optional: encourage your student to participate in the multicultural fashion/flag show at the end of the evening.

• Why can’t I represent a country/culture I know a lot about, but am not from?

  This event is about appreciating the cultures that make up our school community. Please only sign up to represent a culture you are a part of. Cultural appropriation (the borrowing and/or misuse of cultural elements of a culture) is not permitted. We want to make sure the cultures are being accurately represented by their own members.

• Does the culture have to be international or outside the United States?

  No. Domestic cultures like various Indigenous American groups, Cajun/French-Cajun, Tejano, etc. are welcome! Feel free to connect with organizers with any questions. Contact Stacey (stacey.grapengater@gmail.com) or Anh (anhcloud9@gmail.com).

• Why share recipes?

  For many, a special dish or recipe is a part of a story in our family’s experience, journey, history. It has been said, “A single recipe holds countless stories.” We want to help share these stories from the Southmoor families with the Southmoor family.

• What info do you need with my recipe?

  • Your name(s), grade(s)

  • Country/Culture the recipe is from

  • 1-3 sentences why this recipe is special to your family

  • The recipe

  • Optional: a photo of the dish

  • Optional: a family photo

• What is the fashion/flag show?

  Southmoor students can sign up to participate in the closing event of the celebration (approx. 6:40pm). They can either wear clothing from their country/culture of heritage AND/OR bring a flag to carry in the fashion show. All Multicultural Night participants and attendees will gather in the cafeteria to cheer on our students as they walk across the stage and remain on the stage until all fashion/flag show students have gathered. If you need assistance in acquiring a country/culture flag, please contact organizers. Contact Stacey (stacey.grapengater@gmail.com) or Anh (anhcloud9@gmail.com).

• Will the international food shared be dinner?

  No. The foods shared will be bite-size portions and/or samples. Please plan to eat dinner with your family before or after this event.

• Will there be entertainment?

  Yes! Performers from the greater Denver community are being invited to perform at the event. If you are a part of an international or cultural performance group, please connect with our organizers to talk more about possibilities and requirements to bring your local group to perform at our Multicultural Night Celebration. Performers can be soloist musicians, or small groups. Contact Stacey (stacey.grapengater@gmail.com) or Anh (anhcloud9@gmail.com).

• What is included in the Multicultural Week, May 8-12, at Southmoor?

  Each teacher will decide how, in their classes, they want to celebrate the beautiful diversity of their students during this week. So, be on the lookout for information in teacher newsletters in the spring. The Multicultural Night Celebration is the only all-school student and family gathering on Thursday, May 11, 5:30-7pm at Southmoor Elementary School.

• What is DEIB, one of the event organizers?

  This event is led and hosted by the Southmoor Elementary School Parent Teacher Organization (PTO) and Diversity, Equity, Inclusion and Belonging (DEIB) advocacy team. Along with the Collaborative School Committee (CSC), these 3 organizations lead school-based parent, educator and community engagement to promote the success of our students and our school.

  DEIB is an advocacy team made up of Southmoor educators and parents committed to promote an equity-centered school and community culture.

  • Reach every family through meaningful communication.

  • Serve our families with community resources.

  • Engage families by making community events accessible.

  • Foster a sense of community and belonging among students, staff and families.

  They meet monthly and are ALWAYS open to guests and new members. For more information, please email Madison Stockton, Team Specialist for Equity-Centered School Culture and 3rd Grade Teacher, at madison_stockton@dpsk12.net.

  Learn more at https://www.southmoor.dpsk12.org/community-partnerships-engagement

**This event is led and hosted by the Southmoor Elementary School Parent Teacher Organization (PTO) and Diversity, Equity, Inclusion and Belonging (DEIB) advocacy team.