CHC Community Comes Together for Latin Rhythms Social Celebration

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Students learned different styles of dance, including bachata and salsa, at the Latin Rhythms Social.

On September 26, the Commonwealth Honors College community gathered to kick off Latinx Heritage Month with an annual beloved event: the Latin Rhythms Social. The event, which was founded by Dean Mari Castañeda in 2021, is now in its fifth year and saw a wide variety of students arrive to try some tasty food, dance, and unwind with some lively music in the Commonwealth Honors College Concourse. 

Dean Mari Castañeda speaks at the Latin Rhythms Social, framed by Justin Cohen and Pablo Iglesias of Peace and Rhythm.

Dean Castañeda says that she wanted to give the CHC community a celebration that would promote togetherness, unity and community. “I also love to dance,” she added with a smile. 

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Students enjoyed churros, fried plantains, quesadillas, and more delicious Latin inspired food at the Latin Rhythms Social.

The event began around 3 p.m., with students lining up to grab colorful bags full of candy from Argentina, Brazil, Chile, Colombia, Ecuador, Mexico, and Puerto Rico. Food was also bountiful, with UMass Dining serving cheese and chicken quesadillas, chips and various dips, fried plantains, and churros dusted in cinnamon sugar.

On the other side of the concourse near Roots Café, people painted Talavera tiles at picnic tables, the sun casting a golden glow on the crafts inspired by a traditional handmade pottery art that originated in Mexico.

About a half hour into the event, it was time to dance. Even though not everyone knows how to dance, Dean Castañeda explained, that’s not the point of the event.

“The purpose is about movement, to join in music, to be together in community,” she said. 

As a community of scholars, Dean Castañeda said that students work hard academically but they should also be able to have fun, celebrate, and laugh together. Her own life philosophy has been an “intersection” of being academically committed and living joyfully, and she believes that the event is a perfect opportunity for students to enjoy themselves after the start of the semester. 

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A student paints a talavera tile at a picnic table at the CHCRC concourse.

She added that students get to listen to music they may not have heard before and dance in a nonjudgmental space. 

Music was provided by Justin Cohen and Pablo Iglesias of Peace and Rhythm, a DJ and record collective based in Western Massachusetts. Cohen said that they have been at every Latin Rhythms event since its inception, and that events like this are some of the best parts about going to university, as students get to experience new things.

Cohen explained that while students may be familiar with artists like Bad Bunny, hearing those songs in the context of music that inspired them and learning the dances is a unique experience. His favorite part of the event is playing music from many different genres and seeing how people react. 

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CHC student ambassadors Sophia Deligiannidis and Celia Perks dance at the Latin Rhythms Social.

Abdiel Huggins Rivera, one of the dance coordinators for Cayena, the Latinos Unidos Dance Team, had attended this event since his first year at UMass but was leading the dance session for the first time.

As the breeze scattered bronze leaves across the concourse, Huggins Rivera, alongside Janessa Altenor, taught bachata and salsa to a crowd of partygoers. 

“It’s definitely nerve-wracking, but I love to see how the community, especially the Honors community, comes together and just kind of has fun. And dance — it’s one of my passions,” Huggins Rivera said.

Abdiel Huggins Rivera, and Janessa Altenor, the dance coordinators for the Latinos Unidos Dance Team, teach students how to groove and move to the music.

He added that Latino culture is very centered around music and dance, so it’s important to have dance at an event like Latin Rhythms. 

“That’s how they persevered, how they showed a lot of their culture, their love, their passion,” he said. 

As the afternoon went on, students danced with each other, made crafts and chatted under the fall foliage, the sound of Latin music drifting into the distance.

Students learn how to dance at the CHCRC Concourse.

“The community that dances together stays together,” said Dean Castañeda. “I think it's really important to use this time because the weather is so beautiful…We want to take advantage of this opportunity to be together and really celebrate this moment and this time.”