The campus community will get a taste of 19 cultures from around the world today at a fair hosted by the College of Nursing.
Free and open to the public, the fair will last from 5 to 6:30 p.m. in rooms 222-227 of the University Center.
As part of the undergraduate nursing program at UT Knoxville, students are required to take a course to learn about varying cultural perspectives on health and illness. The class culminates with the culture fair.
The cultures showcased at the fair include those from North America, Central America and the Caribbean, South America, Asia, the Middle East and Africa.
The cultures will be represented by booths where visitors can view informative displays, sample various cuisines and listen to music. Some students will wear festive dress representative of their particular culture.
The students spent much of the fall semester conducting research and learning about these cultures to prepare for the fair.
The class, taught by Assistant Professor Bonnie Callen, exposes students to various health care values and practices of different cultures around the world.
"Nurses today take care of patients from many cultures and backgrounds," Callen said. "Learning about a variety of cultures and differences in communication styles, family structure, dietary preferences and biological variations will improve the nursing care our students give. The result will be more culturally competent nurses."
This is the third year that the College of Nursing transcultural class has hosted this fair. All faculty, staff and students at UT are invited.
For more info call 974-7597.