Cultural cafes at Tallwood High School are a staple part of our school culture. Each cafe features a different culture, and they include interactive activities such as a detailed presentation of the culture, dances, cultural heritage music, and homemade dishes pertaining to each culture. And who runs these cafes? The answer is a small committee called GCCC, standing for Global Cultures Cafe Club. 

GCCC’s original founder is Jerry Gonzalez, now an alumnus of Tallwood. He started this club because of his love for cooking, traveling, and exploring other cultures. Ever since GCCC was founded, it has been nothing less than successful in providing cultural cafes to encourage learning about different cultures. 

“I get to see and learn about new cultures that normally I wouldn’t, have I not been the sponsor of the Global Culture Club,” says Megan Berberich, Tallwood’s General Academy Assistant, and GCCC’s teacher sponsor. Currently, GCCC’s president is Inaissa Sylla, a Tallwood GSWLA senior. 

“I got to really embrace the culture and go through it with them,” Sylla says. 

The structure of this cafe is simple. It starts out with a detailed presentation about the specific culture including their region, what kind of food they eat, their cultural traditions, and more. Next, the cafe splits into groups and participates in little activities through sections. These activities can include dances, online games, scavenger hunts, and more cultural activities to fully immerse a student into this culture. After the activities, the participants eat the cultural dishes.

“Most of my favorite dishes are the ones that the students make and that you can tell that they’ve been made at home, from scratch, with love and care and those are my favorite dishes,” says Berberich.

On January 11, 2023, the Afro-Carribbean cultural cafe was held. Attending this cafe showed me more about this culture and how important it is to learn about other people’s cultures. 

“I felt like I was truly able to connect with others and engage in African culture,” says Anaya Arthur, Tallwood GSWLA senior. 

Currently, GCCC is working on their first edition of an international cookbook. “We have had a lot of good responses in students bringing homemade dishes,” says Berberich. “We have a committee within the Global Cultures Cafe Club that is working on a design of the international cookbook,” Berberich adds.

“So, this is kind of my window to seeing the world, to broaden my horizon through this club and with the food and the traditions and the cultures and the presentations and the diversity of our club and our students and those who attend, I get a front row seat to the world,” says Berberich. 

These cafes give students a different perspective on the definition of culture. This is all made possible by GCCC.  So, come embrace new cultures and support GCCC at the next cultural cafe!