UPIKE student trip highlights multiculturalism at Indianapolis International Festival

Twenty-nine students from the University of Pikesville recently traveled to Indianapolis, Indiana, for the Indianapolis International Festival, where they were able to enjoy an educational, multicultural weekend.
“Field trips like these are important because it provides international students with a hands-on educational experience and gives them a greater understanding of U.S. culture,” Pikesville International Students and Scholar Services Director Diann Whittier, one of the trip's organizers, said in a news release. “Effective multicultural concepts are not learned from the web or movies or media venues but found in peer-to-peer human interaction.”
Whittier organized the trip with Study Abroad Director Tim Whittier, who is also a professor of biology. The couple has a lot of experience organizing and running student trips, having conducted more than 600 to date.
For this trip, the 29 participating students were able to explore other cultures – the students themselves represented multiple states and six countries: Taiwan, Japan, Jamaica, Ecuador, Columbia and El Salvador – and develop bonds with their peers. The weekend included a parade of nations and presentations from different regional and international cultures. Additionally, the students sampled international cuisine and shopping and visited the Indianapolis Zoo.