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International Week Chopped?

February 15, 2012 by  
Filed under Featured, Student Life

13 Comments

There have been many rumors circulating around campus about International Week being canceled.  Sadly, half of it is true.  International Week will not be taking place during school hours like it always has.  For those who do not know what International Week is, it is a 3-day event during lunch for FVHS clubs to sell food from restaurants outside of school (i.e. Little Caesars, Jamba Juice, Tastea, etc.).

Why the change you ask? Principal Herzfeld decided to cancel International Week in its current form due to several reasons. Local and State food sales rules have become far more restrictive over the past few years. Some clubs violated these food sale laws (mostly the calorie restrictions) in spite of being given clear nutritional guidelines. Mr. Herzfeld stated that he believes it is “virtually impossible to meet all of the guidelines. Finally, Mr. Herzfeld is concerned that International Week has become “more about selling In ‘N’ Out, Lucky Chinese, and root beer floats and less about cultural diversity.”

So, what’s the solution?

ASB club commissioners Kathy Dang ’12 and Ayah Bany-Mohammed ’12 have been working diligently with administration to come to a compromise.  When asked if there were any solutions that have been discussed, Bany-Mohammed said, “we are leaning toward holding an after-school-hours cultural fair type of thing, similar to the ‘Club Carnival’ back in October.”

Some have expressed a concern that such a change would be detrimental to Baron culture here on campus. Mr. Theriault, an avid foodie, wondered, “how will athletes, theater, band, and students with jobs be able to attend? Is it really the unique bonding experience when only some of our students can attend?”

(This article was edited on 2/15/12 to correct previously misrepresented facts)

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  • Anonymous

    Unknown Unknown

    If there were nutritional guidelines, how come it wasn’t heavily enforced?

    • CatDog

      Unknown Unknown

       That’s the problem…. the administration tried to enforce the rules and regulations, but it was practically impossible to  make each club comply with those rules. The lady in charge of food and nutrition for our district/area obviously saw the many violations of the rules during last year’s International Week, so now Principal Herzfeld must enforce them strictly.

  • Cat

    Unknown Unknown

    half the stuff they serve in the cafeteria are fried and unhealthy anyways. i mean how are those like triple fried chicken nuggets as bad as lets say a rice bowl.

  • Anonymous

    Unknown Unknown

    the food is good but anyone who calls the food at international week “international” and seriously means it has no idea what he/she is talking about or has never tasted “real” food before…

    it will be missed though.

  • baron

    Unknown Unknown

    i’m saddened. i see where mr.herzfeld was going with this though. it’s unfortunate because a lot of the clubs get their revenues from here. :/ but be grateful he isn’t cancelling the whole thing… it’s pushed afterschool. sure, some people can’t go, but it’s better to have one than to not. suck it up, and accept it. do you want mr.herzfeld fired? no. so stop.

  • Anonymous

    Unknown Unknown

    suck it up? other students want to experience international week as well. there may be a chance that freshman students involved with sports may never get to experience it. there should be other ways that this can be solved so that it’s a fair chance for every student to experience international week. it was a tradition we had here.

  • Wadesias

    Unknown Unknown

    Is anyone else noticing how incredibly ridiculous it would be for the superintendent to actually fire Mr.Hertzfield over clubs selling food…at lunch…for 3 days…

    • anon

      Unknown Unknown

      it’s rules and regulations issued by the local, state, and federal law. are they just not supposed to do anything about it if mr. herzfeld continues to not follow them?

      • L;KJ

        Unknown Unknown

        let’s think about wade’s comment
        IS ANYONE ELSE NOTICING HOW INCREDIBLY RIDICULOUS IT WOULD BE FOR THE SUPERINTENDENT TO FIRE THE PRINCIPAL OVER CLUBS SELLING FOOD? AT LUNCH? FOR THREE DAYS?

  • anon

    Unknown Unknown

    if they think the food at international week is unhealthy… they should really look at the food they sell in the caf…

  • Tanya Wong

    Unknown Unknown

    In my view, the rules weren’t enforced heavily enough to stop people from breaking them. How about the superintendent just shut down a club’s booth if they didn’t follow the rules? I mean if that were to happen, would clubs really continue to break the rules?  I understand how it’s “virtually impossible” to meet the guidelines. Virtually isn’t reality, is it? And also, I can’t see the “cultural diversity” in selling food. It’s not like Tiffany’s Dream or the Writer’s Club have an exact culture they can use to express through food. I’m not trying to bash Mr. Herzfeld’s decisions but this whole afterschool thing would probably not work out.

  • DapperBro

    Unknown Unknown

    It seems here like a prematurely decision was made in a grey area. Because the restrictions were never enforced, it would surely benefit clubs to see how far they could “test” these rules. Clubs want to make the most money they can by selling food, pure and simple. If they’re just going to get a telling off when they don’t follow the rules, they’re going to continue the way it is. Seriously appears to be a lack of communication and dialogue to resolve this, but hopefully ASB clubs can work it out.

    In terms of celebrating cultural diversity, to me Int’l Week has always done the best it can given its limitations. How are students, who are already busy enough with the current setup, supposed to “package” up a culture and serve it ready to enjoy and experience during the short window of one week’s time? It’s simply unfeasible, and the expectation that Int’l Week be a truly diverse cultural experience is unrealistic. Authentic food is often much more expensive that what is currently offered, and this would make it even harder for clubs to turn a profit anyway.Sidenote/tangent/rant: the state’s caloric health restrictions for food served at schools are bogus to begin with—people should be able to decide what they eat for themselves. If they choose a poor diet, they’ll face consequences. If they maintain a healthy one, they’ll reap the benefits. Don’t bunch everyone together and punish those who don’t need or deserve it. 

  • Yvonne Le

    Unknown Unknown

    I think we should all stop being pessimistic about this situation and see it as an opportunity to do something bigger and better. International Week will be missed dearly, but with this change, it could turn out to be something phenomenal.