Contact: Sasha Steinberg
STARKVILLE, Miss.—More than 27 nations will be represented April 2 at Mississippi State’s 26th annual International Fiesta.
Sponsored by the Starkville World Neighbors Association, the free cultural extravaganza takes place 11 a.m.-3 p.m. on the university’s historic Drill Field. MSU’s Richard E. Holmes Cultural Diversity Center is the event’s organizer.
Center associate director Ra’Sheda Forbes said she looks forward to the springtime event each year because it serves as a “really great way to display the international culture and its value on Mississippi State’s campus.”
In addition to the Holmes Center, other sponsors include MSU’s Office of the Provost and Executive Vice President, the College of Arts and Sciences, Office of Institutional Diversity and Inclusion, Department of Recreational Sports, Dean of Students Office, Department of Geosciences and the Maroon Volunteer Center, as well as local State Farm Insurance representative Frank Chiles, Starkville Chapter of Kiwanis International and Greater Columbus Civitan Club.
Highlights include a parade of national flags, arts and crafts exhibits, costume displays, authentic music and dance, an international fashion show and instrumental performances.
International student organizations also will have a variety of culinary items for sale.
For children, an inflatable bounce house, balloon animals, piñatas, face-painting, origami lessons, relay races and other games and activities will be available.
For additional fiesta information, contact Ra’Sheda Forbes at 662-325-2033 or rboddie-forbes@saffairs.msstate.edu. In case of inclement weather, event-related updates may be found at www.facebook.com/msuhcdc.
Learn more about MSU’s Holmes Cultural Diversity Center at www.hcdc.msstate.edu.
MSU is Mississippi’s leading university, available online at www.msstate.edu.