The week of September 15 through October 15 is National Hispanic Heritage month. With this in mind, the foreign language department is sponsoring dress-up days this week and students are encouraged to participate. The goal is to promote the student body’s cultural awareness.

“Hispanic Heritage month was created to appreciate what Hispanics have influenced in America,” Spanish teacher Arecele Garcia said. “Everyone should celebrate their heritage and recognize where you come from. I appreciate Wildkats that show support for Hispanic culture.”

Hispanic Heritage month celebrates more than just Hispanic culture for some students. Wildkats believe that it’s essential to be unapologetically original. 

“It’s important that students know who they are and should be proud of where they come from,” junior Jessie Huff said. “If people forget where they come from they’ll just lose everything that makes them who they are and what the people that came before them worked so hard for.”

The main goal of Hispanic Heritage month is to give people the chance to be proud of their origins.

“Everybody comes from somewhere, and it’s part of who you are, you need to embrace it and be proud of who you are and the country you come from,” Spanish teacher Thesia Sayers said. “I think it’s nice to celebrate and acknowledge that everyone at Willis High School is different and yet, we all get along. There is so much to learn about each other.”

At the end of the week, everyone is going to go back to dressing normally and Hispanic culture will not be in the spotlight. However, Wildkats will still understand the importance of being proud of one’s origins.

“I think people should celebrate their culture because they can show other cultures their true colors,” junior Cora Martin said. “I just really think people should dress up this week to show support for their classmates. Nobody should be afraid to be different. Every single Wildkat’s culture is important.”