SPRINGDALE -- Students filled a long buffet table at Springdale's Har-Ber High School with a fusion of dishes: spaghetti, fried rice, noodles with cabbage, a salad of crabmeat and broccoli, tamales, pupusas and a beef stew dish called hilachas.
The school's Language Academy, with 63 students who are new to the United States from six countries, invited teachers and staff members from Har-Ber and administrators from the Springdale School District for an annual Thanksgiving feast Friday, the last day of school before a week-long break for the holiday.
Language Academy
• 63 students
• Small environment within Har-Ber High School started in 2007
• Students from El Salvador, Guatemala, Honduras, Marshall Islands, Mexico and Pohnpei, part of the Federated States of Micronesia
• Students new to the United States spend an intensive school year learning English rapidly
Source: Springdale School District
"This was wonderful," said Stacey Hubbard, a nurse at Har-Ber. "With everything that's happening in France and how there's so much division between cultures, it's nice to see some unity."
A series of terrorist attacks on Nov. 13 in Paris killed at least 130 people and injured hundreds more at cafes, a theater and a rock concert. The attacks have led national and state leaders, including Gov. Asa Hutchinson, to oppose plans to resettle 10,000 Syrian refugees in the United States. The U.S. House on Thursday voted for tougher rules for Syrian and Iraqi refugees wanting to relocate. The Islamic State extremist group, which has claimed credit for the Paris attacks, has flourished in Iraq and Syria.
The Language Academy at Har-Ber started in 2007 and is host to students from El Salvador, Guatemala, Honduras, Marshall Islands, Mexico and Pohnpei, part of the Federated States of Micronesia.
Hubbard said she enjoyed seeing the students express themselves and learn about each other. Spanish-speaking students performed a song in Spanish, while students from the Marshall Islands sang a song in Marshallese with accompaniment from a ukulele. They joined to sing an English rendition of "Over the River and Through the Woods."
"It's such an important time right now to be able to express who you are," Hubbard said. "They just want to enjoy life."
Delang Rufus, 15, who played the ukulele Friday, was born in the Marshall Islands and moved to Springdale in February. The teen, who likes to play basketball, took soft drinks to the feast.
Nila Enos, 17, got up early Friday morning to bake her favorite food, which she called bread cake. She moved to Springdale in the spring from the Marshall Islands, where her parents and sister still live. She lives in Springdale with an aunt. An older brother also lives in Springdale with his wife, she said.
Enos wants to go to college after she graduates and is interested in becoming a nurse, she said.
The Marshall Islands song that was performed Friday is her favorite, she said. The song means, "Thanks to God," and "Thanks for everyone coming today," she said.
The international feast introduced the students to the American tradition of Thanksgiving, said Jeanie Nance, who teaches literacy in the Language Academy. The story of the early settlers of the American colonies resonates with them, she said.
"They're starting a new life with new opportunities," Nance said. "It was scary for them."
Students spent two weeks preparing for the feast, said Michael Spencer, a Language Academy teacher who works to develop the students' English language skills. Students were invited to take foods representing their cultures.
They practiced writing in English by typing recipes for a Language Academy cookbook that students sold during the feast. They had lessons on conversational English, including how to talk about foods they like and don't like. They also learned some American customs, such as setting a table.
During the event, each student was paired with a guest to gain experience with speaking English in conversation, Spencer said. For some students, it was the first time for them to have such a conversation on their own.
Moving to Springdale from Mexico was scary at first, said Ana Martinez, 16, who moved a year ago. In Mexico, she went to a small school of 120 students. At Har-Ber, she is one of more than 2,150 students. She wondered how she would find her way around such a large school, she said.
But she has made friends and is involved in the school's International Club. She wants to be a secretary when she graduates from high school, she said.
Friday was a special day, said Martinez, who brought a dish called "sopes."
"It's a day for Thanksgiving," Martinez said. "We are thankful for all the good things that we have."
Metro on 11/21/2015