Multicultural Student Association highlights African culture at OSU-Okmulgee

Wednesday, May 9, 2007

Professor Al Shabazz and Chef Monday Thomas

Many community members, educators and students attended a luncheon featuring African food, music and traditional African attire as a welcome for incoming international students at Oklahoma State University-Okmulgee this week.

The “Taste of Africa” luncheon, sponsored by the Multicultural Student Association at OSU-Okmulgee, helped raise awareness of African culture and to foster understanding and interaction among the campus and the community.

Dr. Thomas Kipkurgat, OSU-Okmulgee international and multicultural coordinator, said this event helped people better understand African culture.

“I was impressed with the great response from the Okmulgee community, OSU-Stillwater, African vendors from Tulsa, College of Muscogee Nation and several businesses from Tulsa,” Kipkurgat said. “The OSU-Okmulgee staff, students and faculty enjoyed traditional African attire modeled by guests, which was quite remarkable.”

Kipkurgat is a Kenya native and former NCAA track and field champion who came to the U.S. in 1995 to enter college on an athletic scholarship from Abilene Christian University.

Several guests from OSU-Stillwater were in attendance, including Professor Al Shabazz, director of African Studies, and Patrick Saisi, assistant director of African Studies.

The Ebute Metta Tropical market owners and the El Shadai International grocery store in Tulsa lined the sidewalk, selling African food and clothing. Attendees were treated to a demonstration of the African Djembe drum by Yawnie Knox-Jones of Tulsa.

The unique tastes on the African menu included Chicken Piri-piri (with peanut sauce), Jollof Rice, Foo-Foo Soup and fried plantains (African bananas). The meal was prepared by OSU-Okmulgee Culinary Arts students under the direction of Talking Drum restaurant owner Monday Thomas. A culinary arts graduate of OSU-Okmulgee, Thomas emigrated to the U.S. from Nigeria, where he was senior sous chef for several major hotels.

Jennifer Jackson, a culinary arts student from Wagoner, Oklahoma, said she helped prepare many of the dishes for the event and said the food was much spicier than American food.

“We used a lot of crushed red pepper and bell peppers for today’s meal — I tasted the food, and it’s really good,” Jackson said. “In learning how to cook African food, having guest chef Monday Thomas come to our class was neat. He’s executive chef at the Talking Drum restaurant and gave us insight into what we can do with an African-themed meal.”

The guest speaker was Dr. Mike Boit, an Olympic runner and bronze medal winner and a professor at Kenyatta University in Nairobi, Kenya, in the Department of Exercise and Sports Science. He talked about his native country and how promoting sports is a way to teach children the value of education.

“For talented athletes, we encourage them to pursue their education,” Boit said. “We need to enhance the international interaction and open an incentive program to get more Kenyan students here.”

Speaking on the broader issue of multiculturalism in our modern world, Dr. Bob Klabenes, OSU-Okmulgee president, said the world is changing, and globalization and international education are becoming more important.

“We have to figure out a way to have peace in this world and to support one another,” Boit said. “This is why working with Kenya and other countries is so important as we move forward. We have to work with everybody around the world.”