Fulbright ETA Brian Miner was out of class for most of the month of March due to local and national testing. However, Brian did get the chance to meet with 11^th-grade students who are finishing up their 3-month long internship program.

Meeting with these students on March 16, Brian took the opportunity to talk about St. Patrick’s Day. St. Patrick’s Day is a special holiday for Brian who traces ancestry to Ireland. Brian enjoyed showing pictures of how his family celebrates St. Patrick’s Day. He explained that even if you are not Irish, this is a popular holiday in the US.

This opened up a good conversation about different cultural holidays and how they promote a unifying spirit through diverse backgrounds, which is a core tenant of Indonesia’s democracy. Brian was excited to hear many of the ideas students had about new cultural holidays that they want Indonesia and or East Kalimantan to implement in the future.

Brian Miner is currently teaching at SMKN 1 Sangatta Utara, East Kalimantan