Lunar New Year is one of the most important holidays in many Asian cultures, including China, Vietnam, Korea, and many more. Observed by more than 2 billion people worldwide, the holiday begins in late January or February and lasts 15 days. The first day of the Lunar New Year is the most important: families get together to celebrate, taking part in rituals requiring great preparation, such as cooking, cleaning, and decorating. In reality, Newton Public Schools does not take the first day of Lunar New Year off so families in Newton must, unfortunately, push their full-scale celebrations aside.

Currently, Lunar New Year is only a “recognized observance day” which means students still have school, but homework and tests are not allowed. However, as the second-largest racial group in the NPS system, constituting 20% of the student body and 14.8% of the entire population of Newton, students, and families who identify as Asians would greatly benefit from having the entire day off. Although an excused absence is allowed, many families are hesitant to do so out of fear of missing a day of education. As a result, AAPI students lose the chance to deepen their connection with their cultural roots and take pride in their Asian identity.

Our neighboring town, Brookline, and its public school system, which also consists of a 20% AAPI student body, has shown considerable success regarding this issue. Students worked with the Asian Pacific American Club to lobby the school committee and created an online petition that gained over 1000 signatures. On Jan. 9, 2020, the Brookline School Committee unanimously passed Lunar New Year as an official Category I holiday, leaving a historical mark on AAPI cultural recognition. We believe that a similar change for Newton is possible and aim to follow in the footsteps of Brookline High School.

NPS currently addresses five holidays as no school holidays – Christmas, Good Friday, Easter, Yom Kippur, and Rosh Hashanah. We strongly believe that Lunar New Year should be added to that list and would benefit those celebrating in the Newton community. We urge you to take a step towards promoting cultural diversity and AAPI awareness within the Newton community by signing our petition and sharing it with others.

Thank you.

Amy Cheu

Lyanna Tran

Jaeden Lim

Jocelyn Wu

Wayne Chan