Northwest students visit McCann School of Business

Kacey A. and Connor J. Kelly

First Posted: 1/11/2014 KINGSTON &#8212; The empty plates and bowls presented to Bahara Mohammadi left filled with single and double servings of beef kabobs and a spoonful of Palaw.
The 16-year-old student from Kabul, Afghanistan, dished out samples of foods from her homeland during Wyoming Seminary Upper School&#8217;s 20th annual International Food Night.
More than 300 students, faculty and family members crowded into one of the gyms at the school&#8217;s Carpenter Athletic Center Saturday night for the popular and much anticipated dinner presented by the school&#8217;s International Club.
Mohammadi, a scholarship student who&#8217;s been at the school since last summer, was thrilled to participate. In front of her at one of the tables lining the walls of the gym were pans of beef and chicken kabobs and Palaw, a traditional dish of rice with carrots and raisins. She prepared her meal off campus like many of the other students who spent the day in the kitchens of faculty and friends.
&#8220;I&#8217;m representing my country. It&#8217;s really special for me,&#8221; Mohammadi said.
Flags of a multitude of nations and hand-made signs decorated the gym for the dinner featuring more than 60 dishes representing the school&#8217;s global community.
&#8220;It&#8217;s one of the biggest events for Sem every year,&#8221; said Jessica Liu, who teaches Mandarin Chinese and is an adviser to the International Club made up of more than 100 students.
Italy&#8217;s table offered meatballs and sausage in sauce and penne pasta. Across the room the Peru table served Causa, a dish of mashed potatoes with lime and chili powder. Malaysia was represented by of dish of coconut rice with sugar, fresh mango and Teh Tarik, literally &#8220;pulled tea, &#8221; a hot beverage with sweetened condensed milk.
&#8220;It&#8217;s a dessert,&#8221; said Victoria Morrison, 15, a 10th grade student from Forty Fort. Her father William is from Malaysia, she added.
A member of the French club Adam O&#8217;Brien stepped from behind the France table and filled his plate with samples from the Netherlands, Poland and Slovakia. The 17-year-old senior from Hunlock Creek raved about the foods, saying it was &#8220;delicious,&#8221; and surprised at the culinary skills of the students.
Many of them bring ingredients from their native countries to make authentic dishes. The school&#8217;s food service provider Metz helps out with rice and coffee and tea. In addition the school contributes $2,000 for the dinner, said Konstantin Lyavdansky, who teaches Russian and serves as one of the advisers for the International Club.
The students take it seriously, shopping Friday night for food and starting early Saturday morning to cook. &#8220;The food is amazing,&#8221; Lyavdansky said.

Sem holds 20th annual International Food Night