This year, a new club has formed at Edina High School which focuses on discussing a variety of cultures from around the world in a fun and engaging atmosphere. Junior Myra Mohammad is a leader of the club, and she got involved as soon as she heard about it. “It struck me as an opportunity to learn and help others learn about different cultures around the world,” Mohammad said.

In each meeting, a member of the club will give a presentation about a different country that they are interested in. Then, the whole group will discuss what was presented. “We talk about everything from movies and music to the political climate in the country. Someone brings food, and then we have an engaging discussion about the country,” Mohammad said. The club emphasizes the group-learning aspect of their meetings. “Learning things together, as a group of people is incredibly gratifying, and it makes learning so much more enjoyable,” Mohammad said. The presentations are given on a volunteer basis, letting people inform others about countries they are individually interested in.

Another cornerstone of the club is their “outside events.” “We get to go out and watch a movie or eat at a restaurant that relates to the country we learned about…It’s a lot of fun because we can do so much here in Minnesota to learn about countries all over the world,” Mohammad said. Some of the events this year have included going to a local Japanese restaurant and Moroccan restaurant. Junior Kendrew Chen has been a member all year and said his favorite experience in World Cultures Club took place at one of these events. “That week we had been studying Indian culture, we watched a traditional Indian movie and it was really interesting,” Chen said.

These events are a way for the club to build community and engagement within their club. “We have freshmen, sophomores, and juniors in our club, and being able to strengthen our school’s community by learning together is really amazing,” Mohammad said. This is also an aspect that will draw more people to the club in the future. “We hope that more people try out our outside of school events which make the meetings a lot less formal and more fun,” Chen said.

The club has faced challenges with getting people to attend. “As a new club, it’s obviously difficult to get a lot of people involved, but I think now that we’ve hit a rhythm,” Mohammad said. “It faces problems in growing both in size and popularity,” Chen said. This is somewhat due to students’ busy schedules after school. Leaders of the club have found a solution in holding meetings before school at 7:45.

Mohammad says that the club has big plans for next year. “We hope not only to increase the number of people in our club but also to plan fun outside events. I think that this club has the potential to change how people view the world, and that is something that can’t be replaced,” Mohammad said.