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HISD kicked off Asian Pacific American Heritage Month on Thursday, May 4, at Kim Son restaurant with an extravaganza of color and entertainment. The Asian-Pacific American Heritage Celebration featured performances, awards, and the traditional dragon dance.
The event, which was organized by the HISD Asian Advisory Committee, was emceed by Angela Chen from Fox 26. HISD Board President Wanda Adams and Superintendent Richard Carranza welcomed attendees and thanked them for their support of diversity throughout the district.
As a part of the celebration, the committee honored three outstanding teachers from a field of 15, as well as Carranza and new HISD Board Member Anne Sung.
The Asian-Pacific American Teachers of the Year were Yen Trieu from Park Place ES, Sunil Dabas from Baylor College of Medicine at Ryan, and Dr. Liming Guo from Lamar HS, each of whom received a $500 cash prize.
“We congratulate these outstanding teachers for their achievements,” said Committee Chair Patrick Leung, professor of social work at the University of Houston. Dr. Leung presented Carranza and Sung, the first Asian-American trustee, with large glass roosters in honor of the Year of the Rooster.
In the colorful dragon dance presented by the Mandarin Immersion Magnet School PTO, the dragon wound through the crowd, spreading good luck. Following that, a traditional Chinese dance was performed by a student from Poe ES, and students from T.H. Rogers School performed the Diwali dance.
Dr. Leung thanked the sponsors and community partners who underwrote the event and helped make it such a success, including H-E-B and Quan Law Group.
The Asian Advisory Committee is made up of community leaders from local educational institutions, businesses, government, and faith-based organizations. Their purpose is to strengthen public support of HISD schools, increase student achievement, and encourage parental and community involvement within the Asian community. This committee was established in fall of 2005 and is one of the first ethnic advisory committees in HISD.