Congratulations Provo High POP!

Provo High School’s ITAT (Island Teams Advocacy Team) recently represented, and won first place in the Most Creative and Original, Best Performance, and Audience Favorites categories for their traditional dances in the 2019 “Who got ROOTS” award.

The competition was between seven Utah schools with POP (People of the Pacific) classes and was put on by “Malialole Entertainment.” The purpose of the event was to give Polynesian students the opportunity to “to learn and perform their cultural dances,” according to Provo High’s ITAT facilitator Charles AH You. This was Provo High’s first year competing and their success is at least partly contributed the the schools principal, Boyd MacAffee, who has been a great support to the school’s POP program and the ITAT club. 

Along with winning the “Who got ROOTS” competition Provo high and a few other Utah schools with POP programs, were recognized by the Utah Public Health Association for “contributing significantly to addressing serious public health problems.” To earn this recognition, Provo High School’s POP program put on cultural dancing events, held at schools around Utah Valley, to help shed light on the negative effects of tobacco and and the risks of diabetes. 

The students and faculty in involved in Provo High’s POP and ITAT programs have worked hard this year to both learn about Pacific Island culture and provide community service. It is this kind of determination that helps make Provo’s students feel connected to where they are and where they come from.