By Callie Smith, Staff Writer

Armstrong has a Hispanic population of 6.7 percent. In the past, one week of events has been dedicated to celebrating Latino heritage. Due to an increase in Latino student population on campus, the university has extended the celebration into a full month.

Already, 720 Armstrong students have attended festivities like Fiesta Day, dancing in Downtown Savannah, the Brown Bag Series, and more.  

The extension offers a larger array of events, including a film festival which was made possible due to a grant written by assistant professor of Spanish, Dr. Nancy Tille-Victorica. The university is also hosting a Brown Bag Series, a ‘Lunch N’ Learn’ where four faculty and staff members present on their native countries.

“Armstrong has done a wonderful job including faculty, staff, and students in various venues with interdepartmental collaboration,” associate professor of Spanish, Dr. Ana Torres said.

Vivian Gonzalez, president of Hispanic Outreach and Leadership at Armstrong (HOLA), explained that the monthlong celebration allows students to have a comfortable atmosphere to express themselves through sharing traditional  clothing, food, and other aspects of their individual Latino cultures.

“The most important thing is that [Armstrong] is sharing its cultures with the rest of the campus.” Lucy Aradillas, assistant director of Armstrong’s Multicultural Affairs said.

There are still plenty of events to participate in, including the last two brown bag series presentations on Mexico and Ecuador, three more film festival screenings, a lecture on the Mirabel Sisters, and a guest speaker who will share their refugee story.

This year’s final event will be an Iron Chef competition between Mr. Carl Bleicken, President Bleicken’s husband and Mr. Bill Kelso, vice president of Advancement.

For more information on Latino Heritage Month or to see a list of the remaining events, visit the ‘Latino Heritage’ section of the Armstrong webpage.