Over 500 students filled the Frist A-level as tables overflowed with food ranging from samosas to pad thai to baklavas, while on the 100-level, more than a dozen cultural booths lined the room.
The Undergraduate Student Government (USG) Social Committee hosted its inaugural TigerTies event at the Frist Student Center on Nov. 16, aiming to showcase the diversity of cultural and international connections on campus. Hosted in collaboration with the Office of the Vice President for Campus Life, the Carl A. Fields Center for Equality and Cultural Understanding, and the Davis International Center, the event included over 30 student group booths and live performances as well as culturally inspired cuisine catered by 13 local restaurants.
“We wanted to create an event that was as inclusive and as uplifting as possible,” USG Executive Secretary Karen Villanueva ’27, told The Daily Princetonian. “Everyone should hopefully walk away from tonight learning something new about someone else’s culture or international community.”
USG Social Chair Enzo Kho ’26 told the ‘Prince’ that this event was inspired by an open town hall meeting in the spring where students spoke about the lack of international event programming to bring together different campus student groups. Attendees emphasized the celebration of the community’s rich multiculturalism as a standout feature of the event.
“I think it’s important to participate not only to express my culture, but also to show younger [students] the importance of maintaining cultural celebration,” Tomoka Ohmori ’27, a member of the Japanese Student Association (JSA), told the ‘Prince.’
Assistant Director for International Programs at the Davis Center Mariyah Salem told the ‘Prince,’ “There was a lot of excitement, and also a lot of pride.“
“When I went table to table, students were so excited to show their cultural heritage and the groups that they’re part of — a lot of smiling faces, chit-chat, and laughter, which is great to see on campus,” she added.
International food, catered from restaurants representing several nationalities around the area, was also a highlight for many. Offerings included mapo tofu and chongqing chicken from SC House, bubble tea from MTea, and falafels, baklava, and mucver from Efes Grill.
“We really just wanted everybody to see themselves within this event,” said Reed Marthers ’27, a member of the USG Social Committee.
Attendee Marvel Roth ’28 added that “there were some things that I definitely haven’t been able to eat on campus that I either missed from home or just have never tried before.”
“It was really great to have such a good variety,” she said.
Throughout the night, attendees also enjoyed cultural student group performances from Mariachi Los Tigres de Princeton, KoKo Pops, TigerChunes, and Triple 8.
“I think the mariachi band was a highlight for me,” Roth said. “I listened to a lot of it where I’m from, and it was really nice to hear it here.”
Student-run booths also exposed students to the breadth of Princeton’s affinity groups.
“I really appreciate that there are more events like this that expose the student body to clubs and different student organizations that aren’t at the beginning of the year,” Melanie Santacruz ’25, a member of the Princeton Latin American Student Association, said. “It’s just a really nice event that comes at a time of year when some students are finally settled in.”
A first-of-its-kind in recent years, USG and other co-hosting organizations hope to continue TigerTies in future years, making it an annual event.
“We plan on asking for people’s feedback on what they think we can improve upon, and we’ll definitely take that into consideration,” Hassan Khan ’27, an organizer, said. “But so far, I think it’s been amazing.”
Khan is a contributing Data writer for the ‘Prince.’
Salem expressed hopes to expand TigerTies to include other campus communities such as the graduate school and the staff, noting that “there’s probably cultures and countries on the graduate side that aren’t here.”
“I could see this being more of a full community event as well, but this has been an amazing start today.”
Devon Rudolph is a News contributor for the ‘Prince.’
Sena Chang is a News contributor for the ‘Prince.’
Please send corrections to corrections[at]dailyprincetonian.com.
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