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Bloomfield’s culture fair draws hundreds; district plans to expand multicultural engagement
Summary
Bloomfield Elementary’s first Culture Fair paired student presentations, a fashion show and a passport activity to engage families. School and district staff plan to scale the event and pair it with professional learning addressing implicit bias and inclusive instruction.
Bloomfield Elementary’s staff described a large, family-centered Culture Fair that organizers paired with the school’s annual Bloomfield Bash. Staff said the event drew several hundred participants, paired sixth-grade student presentations with a family fashion show, and used a passport-style activity to encourage attendees to visit multiple stations.
Casey (Bloomfield staff) described the planning process to the board, saying the school prioritized family engagement and used a multi-language outreach strategy. "We put out a letter to all of our families in a couple different languages," Casey said. The event combined student presentations, cultural booths, a fashion show and a passport program that families completed to claim Bloomfield swag and enter prize drawings.
Nut Graf: Staff framed the culture fair as both a community-engagement strategy and a lever to increase family participation in school events. The fair also served as a platform for district-level work on multicultural education and training in inclusive practices.
Assistant Superintendent Jim and Bloomfield staff credited strong partnerships — including PTO volunteers, EL teachers and high school volunteers — for driving attendance. Jim added that the event included multiple languages and family members wearing cultural garb, which increased parent pride and participation.
School leaders said the event was intentionally paired with the Bloomfield Bash — a widely attended community gathering — and that that pairing helped bring in families who don’t typically attend school nights. Casey told the board the team plans to refine logistics (noise control and space) and to expand the model district-wide in future years.
The presentation also previewed the district’s plan to bring Dr. Chisholm into schools for classroom walk-throughs and coaching around cultural responsiveness and implicit bias. Casey said Dr. Chisholm will present at preservice days, conduct classroom walk-throughs and meet monthly to provide feedback and coaching. "A lot of times, you don't know what you don't know, and to grow, you need to know what you don't know," Casey said.
Ending: Trustees congratulated Bloomfield staff and encouraged plans to scale the fair. District leaders said they will continue to develop translation and outreach supports to increase family involvement and representation in parent groups such as PTOs.
