As children, most people are taught to embrace other people’s differences. We’re taught to seek understanding; to ask questions and accept answers, regardless of how strange they seem to us in the beginning; and to value the opinions and beliefs of others. The interaction of these cultures is what shapes who we are as people and in some ways define us.

With a student population of around 20,000, each from a unique background, EvCC certainly qualifies as a cultural melting pot. With larger groups of people comes more diversity, and with more diversity comes more questions. How do we define the qualities that make us who we are?

As each student tackled this question; each response, though varied, demonstrated the same idea: Who we are cannot be defined with a single phrase. Culture is complex; it is more than just traditions, places, and things; culture is as living and changing as the people who embrace it.