DIXFIELD – The world will be brought to Dirigo High School next Monday when the school’s annual Diversity Day offers new ideas, music and social issues for students and their parents.

“This is a small school and a homogeneous state,” said Norman Greenberg, Learning Lab coordinator at Dirigo High School and organizer of the fifth annual event. “This will enrich and enliven education.”

The day begins with a keynote address by Bill Yeo, a Durham resident who climbed Mt. Everest in 2006. He will talk about mountaineering, world travel and the diversity of cultures.

The day ends with a performance by Shamou, an Iranian musician who lives in Portland. He will perform world music, particularly by using percussion instruments.

In between, students can choose five workshops or presentations ranging from stereotypes of Native Americans and the culture of martial arts, to Jewish culture and cooking, and building healthy relationships.

New this year is a presentation by eight Portland High School students who are refugees. They will speak on their experiences growing up in their native countries and the journeys that brought them to Maine.

Also new are presentations about Buddhism, Baha’i and other religion-related topics on Judaism, Christianity, Islam and paganism. Social topics include birth control and STD prevention, disabilities, homelessness and hate crimes, student rights and freedoms, sexual orientation, and immigration.

Greenberg said Diversity Day gives students another way to learn, other than through textbooks.

Parents and the public are invited provided they call the high school ahead of time.

Students are required to choose five workshops to attend. Parents can have their child excused if particular topics are objectionable. Students who do not attend school that day will be required to write a three-page paper on diversity.

Greenberg said students have a greater selection of topics this year. After last year’s event, the least popular were thrown out, the most popular retained, and new ones added.

Yeo’s address is scheduled to begin at 8:25 a.m. Wednesday. Shamou’s performance begins at 1:05 p.m.