Supplement for members of the
Nationalities Council of Indiana, Inc.
1. The 2002 International Festival is now history � and what a great chapter it was! From the Opening Ceremonies with Mayor Bart Peterson to the Naturalization Ceremony and the concluding Parade of Nations, it was a festival to remember. Thanks go to all the volunteers who put on their �public faces� to show Indy the depth and breath of our city�s diversity each year. Now we can start working on NEXT year�s festival. Mark your calendars for 6-9 November 2003 in the Exposition Hall at the Indiana State Fairgrounds.
2. Speaking of the festival, several of you asked for judging criteria for the ethnic group booths (outside vendors and restaurants are NOT included in the judging). Here�s what�s been developed over the years:
Both culture and food booths that are set up
by (voting) members of the Nationalities Council of Indiana will be evaluated
and winners will get certain amount of discount of their booth fees for next
year�s festival. There will be two awards for food booths: Grand Prize and 1st
Place. Food booths are evaluated for quality and authenticity of the food and
the appearance, decoration and sanitary conditions of the booth. Staff manner
and costume add beauty to the booth and are also evaluated.
There are four award categories for culture
booths: theme, educational value, creativity and quality. Each category has a
first place and a runner-up. There is also a grand prize for best overall.
Theme: Each culture booth must have a theme,
and the display must respect the theme. For example, if their theme is music,
they must present things to describe the music of their country. We will
determine whether the exhibit matches the theme and how well it describes the
theme.
Educational value: The major purpose for
setting up culture booths is to educate students and the general public about
ethnic cultures. Therefore, we will evaluate whether the display is informative
and whether the information is useful.
Creativity: There are many ways to tell a
story. We will evaluate whether the way they have chosen to tell the story is
effective. We will also determine whether the display is their own creation or
simply a reproduction of others. They also need to do something to attract
people to come to their booths. This is the area where they have to be very
creative to achieve the goal.
Quality: The displays must be of some
quality. They also must be beautiful and artistic. In addition, we ask that the
persons who staff the culture booth must be in their native costumes We will
evaluate how beautiful their costumes are. Staff manner is also an important
factor. They must be friendly, courteous and willing to explain their displays
to visitors.
This year�s winners for food booths: Taste of Congo (1st prize), TAAI (Grand prize).
For culture booths: Theme � Czech-Slovak (runner-up), Barangay (1st); educational value � SPPC (runner-up), Latvian CC (1st); creativity � Slovenian CS (runner-up), JASI (1st), and quality � Indianapolis Minyo Dancers (runner-up) and Sons of Norway (1st).
3. Ethnic groups who are voting members of NCI are reminded that elections for officers and directors are held at the November meeting. Be sure your representative is present!
4. Although The Ethnic Hoosier goes to all who are (or might be) interested, this supplement is prepared just for NCI members.
����������������������������������������� ����� Susan
���������������������������������������������������������������������������� Susan McKee
����������� President, Nationalities Council