On Friday, Sept. 19, at 4:30 p.m., MOSAIC hosted its annual potluck in the Bowld Gym, bringing students and faculty together to celebrate cultural diversity.
MOSAIC, a student-led organization, aims to recognize the diverse cultures and backgrounds of students and faculty while creating opportunities to connect and celebrate.
This open event—one of the organization’s largest — invited attendees to share unique dishes from their cultures, opening the door for conversations and cross-cultural understanding.
“Food connects people and we all love food,” said Dona Kaci, MOSAIC president and a junior double major in psychology and Christian studies. “It’s a nice first event for people to get engaged, a nice way to learn about another culture that is not just information.”
Meals from the Philippines, Albania, China, Turkey, Vietnam and Mexico gave attendees a taste of diverse traditions. The potluck offered a warm, welcoming setting to celebrate their cultures.
Keen Peng, a freshman applied linguistics major from China, attended her first MOSAIC event.
“Coming here as a minority, I am glad to have a space to share and talk about cultural similarities and differences,” Peng said. “I was telling all of my friends to come to the potluck.”
Expanded outreach and stronger branding drew a bigger turnout than expected.
“I was shocked. We doubled our numbers and we ended up having 8 … almost 9 tables,” Kaci said. “It was such a good time and I could tell people were enjoying themselves with good food and good conversation.”
Rae Noelle Ramirez, a sophomore nursing major and executive council member of MOSAIC, assisted in her first potluck of the year. “It was really good. I knew a lot of people were going to come but I did not expect to set up more tables when we were eating,” Ramirez said.
Looking ahead, MOSAIC leadership hopes to grow its presence on campus and increase student involvement.
“There will be a lot of events and a lot of opportunities,” Kaci said. “These will help build community and help the community that we foster feel supported and loved for.”
Events like the potluck foster curiosity, understanding and belonging, reminding students that all backgrounds and cultures are welcome.
