For Immediate Release
By Ariana Johnson, student news writer
CAMPBELLSVILLE, Ky. – On Tuesday, April 19 Campbellsville University will be having a cross cultural language festival at 7 p.m. in the Student Activities Center gym.
This event is free and open to the public.
Andre Morton, a senior from Vine Grove, Ky., will be the host of this event.
“I once wrote something and had a Japanese friend as well as a Mongolian friend of mine translate it for me in their language,” Morton said. “I felt powerful and different. I got the idea to have a night where people from different countries who speak different languages unite and all speak their language. From this night, I hope to bring everyone together under the pretense that one message can be presented in different languages but the message will still be the same.”
There will be a total of seven different languages being spoken that night. English will be spoken by Andre Morton, Mongolian by Erdene Baatar, Japanese by Yumiko Oga, Spanish by Mariela Gomez, Portuguese by Jonathan Pufal, Chinese by Jin Hua Engles and Korean by Park Woo.
“The seating will be arranged in a hexagon,” said Morton. “I will speak a little at a time, and my friends will then translate what I say in their native language.”
“I could not have been at a better school to do this at,” said Morton. “When this was just a mere idea John Chowning [vice president for church and external relations and executive assistant to the president] and Ed Pavy [director of campus ministries] were behind me all the way. They said they would help me with whatever I need, and I really appreciate their help.”
“Although I am graduating in December, I hope that someone else decides to pick up where I left off and continue this festival in the near future,” Morton said.
Campbellsville University is a widely acclaimed Kentucky-based Christian university with over 3,000 students offering 63 undergraduate programs, 17 master’s degrees and five postgraduate areas. The website for complete information is campbellsville.edu.