This past Friday, I had the pleasure of attending one of Bethpage’s most inclusive club meetings. Global Cultural Club has a goal to appreciate differences and cultural awareness.

The club meets every Friday in room 220A, and was founded by Devaanshi Kawatra in her freshman year which was in the year 2021.

In her childhood, Devaanshi was introduced to International Night, which was appreciating different cultures, and this led to her wanting to recreate that environment at Bethpage High School by doing it in fun ways like through celebrations, music, and food. GCC originally started as a 21st Century activity, and it only officially became a club a year after.

Now, the club does events like fundraisers where they donate money to ongoing issues such as the Turkey and Syria conflict. Additionally, this year for their second International Karaoke Night, they donated money to New Ground which is an organization for homeless veterans.

You can also find this club at Bethpage’s Halloween on The Field event every year where they have a booth for children, last year their theme was monsters from cultural stories. 

Marathe was also mentioned in an interview with the President, as a very pivotal part of the approval process and that the club wouldn’t exist or thrive without her. This year the school is off on Eid, and next year Diwali and Lunar New Year are off, proving that the Global Cultural Club has shaped and influenced Bethpage High School in many ways. 

If you have any questions, feel free to contact Ms. Marathe or Devaanshi.