On January 29th, the first day of the Lunar New Year in the Year of the Snake, New York State’s public schools observed their first year of vacation for the traditional Chinese lunar holiday. Many parents took their children to participate in community Lunar New Year activities, allowing the children to learn about Chinese culture and traditional New Year customs.
At the “Golden Snake Bringing Joy, Welcoming Spring” celebration of the Lunar New Year at the Taiwan Center in New York, students from Long Island in New York enjoyed their first Lunar New Year break. They were delighted to have the opportunity to participate in the lively Lunar New Year activities organized by the Taiwan Center amidst their busy study schedules. They experienced the tradition of receiving New Year greetings from officials to the Chinese and Asian communities, watched dragon and lion dances, cultural performances, tried their hand at Chinese paper cutting and flower making, savored Taiwanese cuisine, and truly immersed themselves in the festive atmosphere.
In September 2023, New York Governor Kathy Hochul signed legislation officially recognizing the Lunar New Year as a holiday for all public schools in New York State, granting vacation time for all K-12 students. Last year, the Lunar New Year fell on a Saturday, which was already a holiday, making this year the first Lunar New Year holiday for all public schools in New York State.
Many public schools across the state adorned their campuses with Chinese New Year decorations such as traditional paintings and lanterns, introducing the customs of the Chinese New Year to students of various ethnicities. For example, the notice board at Public School 244 in Flushing displayed a message in English celebrating the Year of the Snake.
At the Taiwan Center, several Chinese students from Jericho High School, Long Island, who were enjoying their first Lunar New Year break, such as Hsu Yuzhen, Lin Yihui, and Lin Xiaohui, participated in the New Year activities. Student Hsu Yuzhen expressed her joy at finally being able to join in the celebrations this year, as in past years she could only watch New York City public school students celebrate. As a volunteer for the Foundation for Scholars and Cultural Exchange (FASCA), she was thrilled to provide instruction on paper cutting for the “flower lantern” activity.
FASCA’s counseling advisor Tang Fuyun said that 18 high school FASCA volunteers took part in the New Year activities as volunteers, stating, “High school students are usually very busy with their studies. The Lunar New Year holiday provides them with a chance to take a break from their hectic schedules and celebrate their ethnic festivals, promote Chinese culture and Taiwanese culture, understand their roots, and serve the community with what they have learned from FASCA. It’s really great.”
Taiwanese immigrant Ms. Liao not only brought her two children to the event but also informed other immigrant parents from mainland China to bring their children along. Parent May’s two children learned paper cutting at the event. The children happily observed pencil lines drawn on a stack of colored paper, and with a few snips of the scissors, those lines transformed into lively paper-cut snake artworks which they excitedly brought home. Both Ms. Liao and May expressed that celebrating the Lunar New Year with children to introduce them to Chinese culture was a meaningful experience.