Regina Ybanez, international admissions technician, believes that introducing different cultures to the Cerritos College community creates respect and appreciation.

During the International Education Week, the Student Center was host to a celebration of Chinese culture on Thursday Nov 19.

“I think it’s important for [students] to grow and because we have to respect other culture and know what’s going around the world, not just the United States,” Ybanez said.

According to Ybanez, International Education Week was first declared by the U.S. Department of Education over 15 years ago, to encourage programs and policies that prepare Americans for the global environment.

A band treated the audience to an folk music, played with erhu, a Chinese two-stringed musical instrument held in the lap and played with a bow.

“When I said they’d play folk music, I didn’t say Chinese folk music,” said Dr. Jim Chang, a retired professor, who has helped set up events at Cerritos for years. Car

He said, “It’s a wonderful week and it’s a national celebration of international cultures. It’s a wonderful thing to expose Cerritos College students to different cultures around the world.”

Chang said that the event took a couple of months to plan, from contacting different members of the band to choreographing the dances.

“The depth of the culture takes a long time to appreciate but at least [students] get an exposure of cultural things,” he added.

Chang added tidbits of information about China and its immense diversity.

There were two dances, one the was a Mongolian dance, which was meant to celebrate the love the Mongolian people had for their homes. The other was the Xinjiang dance, meant to showcase the beauty and intelligence of Xinjiang Uygur women.

Bea Pongsiri, one of the dancers felt great to be able to demonstrate a piece of Chinese culture.

“It felt good, I’ve been dancing for two years and perform at senior citizen homes,” she said.

Ivy Pu, a student of the Intensive English Program, was in attendance and said that it was good to to have seen Chinese and Korean culture displayed.

“I liked the Chinese band because of the traditional music and the Mongolian dance,” she said.

Pu is an international student from Taiwan.

Ybanez hoped that the event gave international students a feeling of connection and being home.

“Having a little piece of their country being showcased, gave them back a little bit of what they miss at home,” she added.