Here at Renton High School, we have a fan-favorite event, Multicultural week!  Multi is a big part of RHS. It’s where all of  the different cultures come together to put on a fabulous show to teach us about their cultures. It’s so interesting and fun to watch and learn!  Students do a lot of work to make our multicultural show perfect. It was truly an honor to speak with each president from each student union, and hear their input on Multi and what they love about it. We were invested in what everyone had to say. The first person we contacted for an interview was Katie Chen, member of ASU.  We spoke with her and asked her a few questions. How does Multicultural at RHS make you feel?  Chen states, ¨I am very excited to show off my culture to others.¨ What is one thing you would add?  ¨If I could add one thing it would just be people. I want others to join and feel welcome to show off their culture.¨  How does it feel to be president? ¨It makes me feel empowered to be a leader of a diverse group and such an honor.¨ Chen is very outgoing and she was excited to share her answers with me.

(Picture of Katie Chen, member of ASU)

We also interviewed Thao Vo, who is the president of VSA. How does being president of a student union feel? ´´It is super fun setting up the dances and teaching people! Though sometimes it can be overwhelming as there are just so many people and things can go different than what I had planned, but I enjoyed every second of it.”   What’s your favorite thing about Multi? ´´Personally in general, I like the thought of everyone just practicing really hard and coming together to perform. I love seeing other groups performing a lot.”  If there was one thing you could add to Multi what would it be? ´´I think it would be good to expand the Multi show duration during school advisory because there are more and more groups joining multi over the years.”  How did preparation for Multi go? ´´Preparation for Multi went well and we had a lot of fun filming silly videos of each practice.”  That is all Vo had to say. It’s wonderful to know that these students have so much fun with this.

We interviewed Leanna Monillas, the president of FSU.  What is your favorite part of Multi?  ¨I enjoy seeing the amount of diverse cultural performances.¨ Our next question was How did your practices go?  Monillas replied, ¨It was hectic and pretty stressful. FSU is the main big act, so I want to try my best to put on a good performance. I had a lot of fun this year with my friends.¨  What would you add to Multi?  She responded with, ¨I want the food fair to come back.¨

         (Picture of Leanna Monillas, President of FSU)

The next individuals we talked to were Timmothy Khamlong the president of K-POP and  Angel Perez the president of LSU. We asked Timmothy What is your favorite part of being in charge of a student union?  Khamlong told us, ¨I am very excited about being a leader, but at times I can get stressed out. As stressed out as I get, I still love being a leader of this group.¨ Another question we had for Khamlong was How did the practices go?  Khamlong said, ¨They went well; I was a little stressed out but knowing that others are committed is nice to know and makes me feel a type of joy.¨  If you could add one thing what would it be?   Khamlong replied, ¨I would love to add the food fair back. I think people miss this the most.¨

(Picture of Timmothy Khamlong, President of K-POP)

As we finished up with Timmothy we moved on to Angel. We asked him How did your practices go?  He told us, ¨I was anxious and nervous since it’s a lot to do, but I also enjoyed being able to see all the other students perform.¨ We asked Perez What would you add to multi?  He said, ¨Probably more cultures for everyone to embrace themselves and to show off their unique culture.¨ Our last question for Perez was How does it feel to be a president?  He replied with, ¨It’s nerve racking, but I’m also still getting used to being a leader for this group. I’m also very grateful for being put in this role.¨

  ( Picture of Angelina Pham, President of ASU)

It was wonderful to meet with all of the student union presidents. We enjoyed getting their input on what it is like to prepare for our wonderful multicultural show. Our favorite part of this was being able to watch the practices while interviewing!