On May 6, Latin Fever will return to West Chicago Community High School’s Commons, providing students with music and food from Latin American countries from 6:30-9:30 p.m.

Latin Fever is a student-led event hosted by the Spanish department and the Spanish for Native Speakers program. The group started to organize the dance in 2017 with a desire to showcase a typical celebration of Latino culture through an event that was open to all students of WEGO.

The idea of having the Latin Fever dance began in 2014 when a group of students in the Spanish for Native Speakers program planned out the event as part of a project for the class. With their ideas, the Latin Fever dance came to life in 2015.  

“My favorite memory of planning Latin Fever so far is the bond that is created between the students that help organize the dance as well as seeing the leadership skills that they further develop through their own initiative. They are an incredible group of students,” said World Languages teacher Alejandra Tantachuco.

Seven years later, the students in the Spanish for Native Speakers program are the ones in charge of planning the dance, but any student who wants to attend the weekly meetings with Tantachuco may contribute ideas as to how to make this event enjoyable for everyone. 

“I am looking forward to seeing the students have a blast at the dance for the first time since 2019. I always think of this event as one that fills students with joy and excitement because they can be fully immersed in the Latino culture in their beloved school community,” said Tantachuco.

Considering the program was initiated in 2015, some may be confused as to how 2022 can mark Latin Fever’s five-year anniversary: however, for the past two years, the dance has been canceled due to the global pandemic that took WCCHS students out of school for a considerable time. 

“I am so excited for this year’s Latin Fever dance because it’s one of the few events that represents Latin culture in our school. I am so excited to see many Latinos – and anyone else who wants to join us – celebrate Latin Fever together. I am looking forward to performing, spending time with my friends, the food, the music, and, in general, that it’s Latin Fever’s fifth-year anniversary. I’m so glad that I was able to be part of the Latin Fever planning committee, and that I will be able to attend this dance one more time before I graduate,” said senior Cristina Espino.

Those attending Latin Fever can expect a DJ at the event who will play music in Spanish before a band takes center stage. Everyone is welcome to join the festivities, even students who are not Latino. In fact, Tantachuco said attending Latin Fever is a great way to support Latin culture and have fun while doing so. 

Tickets went on sale last week on Thursday, April 28 during all lunch periods in Commons for $20. WEGO students were also able to order Latin Fever tee shirts before April 27 as a means of supporting the cause. The t-shirt sales served as a fundraiser to support the dance.