Cultural Recognition Campaign: 10/21 Update

By: Inho Kee

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In the past last 2 weeks, we have been trying to make the Board of Education recognize the lunar new year, one of the biggest Asian holidays. With our petition that was signed by more than 250 students and our proposal, we are happy to announce that we finally got a response.

On October 19th, Dr. Robert Hyman, the assistant principal at NVOT, reached out to Ian and me to have a meeting with us. He told us that he commends our effort to make a holiday that is so special to our community get recognized by the district and that NVOT and NVD have been moving towards greater inclusivity and diversity. Dr. Hyman also shared how the school he used to work at celebrated the lunar new year and how it would be great if Ian and I find a creative way to celebrate the lunar new year in NVOT.

However, Dr. Hyman expressed his concern about our proposal, regarding that it suggests the school should be closed during the lunar new year day. He told us that adding new holidays to the school calendar is a complex process. Especially because the next lunar new year on a weekday is in 2025, he advised us that we should think about alternate solutions other than closing the school on the lunar new year.

Taking Dr. Hyman’s advice, Ian and I are planning to come up with alternate proposals that can still recognize and celebrate the lunar new year. Check back to The Third Eye for the latest updates.