The following story was submitted by Liping Meng, the longest-serving teacher of Mandarin (standard Chinese) language in the South Orange-Maplewood School District. “This is my 5th year teaching in CHS,” Meng told Village Green. “The number of Chinese teachers has grown from only me more than four years ago to six now. The Chinese program is developing very well.”
On February 23, 2024, the Chinese language program of the South Orange-Maplewood School District held a Lunar New Year Lantern Festival Celebration, a district-wide event, at the Columbia High School cafeteria. The celebration had three parts: performances, cultural activities and Chinese food tasting.
CHS Chinese Program teacher and the Chinese Honor Society advisor Liping Meng took the lead in planning and organizing the celebration event. The other Chinese teachers in the school district — Jenny Lezzi, Xueyin Li, Chaoqin Chen, Chia-Chi Chiang and Weaver Xu — actively participated in the preparation and assisted in the event. The Asian Club and the Multicultural Club at CHS collaborated and supported the event.
HSA and PTA parent volunteers also helped at the event and donated food; their work was very much appreciated.
The students in the CHS Chinese program and the Chinese Honor Society enthusiastically participated by preparing decorations, setting up the venue, and performing dances and songs. About 50 CHS students performed Dragon Dance, Ribbon Dance, Health Dance, Taichi Fan, String Quintet, Solo, Chorus. Ms. Meng demonstrated Taichi.
The event brought people of different cultural backgrounds together to experience Asian culture and have a fun time. About 300 people, including parents, students and teachers, attended the Lunar New Year Celebration. Many attendees expressed that they were impressed by the performances and really enjoyed the evening and are looking forward to next year’s celebration event.
The proceeds from selling the tickets and donations will be used for construction of the Chinese American Garden in Columbia High School.
Photos Courtesy of Liping Meng:
