Indonesian Night honors tradition
The annual event, organized by student
groups Permias and ISA, presented
traditional Indonesian dance, food and
art in a celebration on Sunday night
Andrew Shipley
Freelance Reporter
The EMU Ballroom was transformed by the
vibrant colors of Indonesian culture for the an
nual Indonesian Night on Sunday, hosted by
Permias, an Indonesian campus group, and In
donesian Students Association. Through tradi
tional dance, authentic Indonesian food and
exhibits showcasing all things Indonesian —
from geography to art — students and commu
nity members got a glimpse of life in this South
Asian country.
Senior Pamela Sastra said the purpose of
Indonesian Night is to introduce Indonesian
culture. Sastra, a native of Indonesia, was re
sponsible for many of the event’s decorations,
including a larger-than-life painting of an In
donesian woman in traditional dress. She is
one of the dozens of native Indonesian volun
teers.
Part-time student and volunteer Eric Hamd
je is also from Indonesia.
“We’re proud to be Indonesian — we are
proud to share our culture,” Hamdje said.
Many of the event’s participants, however,
were not Indonesian. A multinational Ja
vanese Gamelan music group from the Uni
versity performed with dozens of Indonesian
drums and symbols to open the evening. An a
capella group called Overcast also gave a
short performance featuring the Beatles’ hit
“Blackbird.”
“Apparently, lots of clubs and restaurants in
Indonesia have big Western music,” freshman
and Overcast member Josh Klatz said. “This
shows the cultural interaction.”
Members of the community also supplied
many of the exhibits. Eugene resident Lili Wel
don displayed wooden carvings from Bali,
while senior Ria Muljadi’s mother, who lives in
Indonesia, purchased a number of hand-carved
puppets and masks for the event.
Mark McCambridge Emerald
The University Gamelan Ensemble performs traditional Javanese music during the dinner segment of
Indonesia Night 2003 on Sunday.
Lane Community College culinary students
Andrew Tan and Frank Kembuan were respon
sible for the night’s authentic Indonesian cui
sine. Delicacies included Ketoprak, an Indone
sian tofu appetizer; Redang, a pork dish with
spicy Indonesian sauce; and Ayam Panggang, a
seasoned chicken dish. An exotic desert called
Pacar Cina capped off the meal.
The evening’s performance opened with a
short skit introducing various aspects of In
donesian culture, and the Indonesian national
anthem, followed by several dances. The first
number, the Kecak dance, was a complex per
formance with choreographed chanting as well
as intricate dance.
Junior Visillia Guwana said the role of dance
in Indonesian culture is comparable to the role
of theater in America.
“In Indonesia, dance is used as storytelling,”
Guwana said.
The evening concluded with a fashion show
featuring traditional costumes from Bali, Riau,
Samarinda and Manado.
Many students in attendance said they had
come to the show to learn more about a differ
ent culture.
“It broadens people’s perspective on the
world,” freshman Tom Selling said. “I always
like to try new food, see new performance
and dance.”
Sophomore Kristina Pongracz had similar
sentiments.
“Events like this help to bring different cul
tures together,” she said.
Andrew Shipley is a freelance writer
for the Emerald.
News brief
College of Education
receives high national
rankings
The University College of Education is
one of the best graduate schools in the
nation for education, according to US
News & World Report’s annual ranking of
university programs.
The graduate program was ranked sec
ond nationally among public graduate
schools specializing in education, up
from fourth place last year.
Education Dean Marty Kaufman cred
ited the success of the program to “Great
faculty, quality students and excellent
school and community partners.”
“We’re about as close to the top as we
can get,” he said. “It’s about sustained
success,” he said, referring to the high
rating the school received last year, “not
one-year success.”
The ratings are often derided as being
a numbers game or irrelevant, however,
by schools that US News doesn’t rate very
well. For instance, when the University
law school was not even ranked in the top
50 two years ago, law school officials said
they did not think the numbers were very
important.
Kaufman, who has steadily improved
the performance of his school since he
became dean 11 years ago, agreed that
the education school’s rating from US
News is indeed a form of public percep
tion, as well as test scores and other fac
tual information.
“Are they the most rigorous statement
of quality? No,” he said. “This is just
where we ended up in people’s minds.”
The college also was ranked third-high
est in the quality of students it attracts,
third-highest in terms of its graduate pro
gram in special education and seventh
highest among all public and private in
stitutions for graduate programs in
education. There are about 450 students
in the school’s graduate program.
— Brook Reinhard
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