The campus community will come together on Thursday, Feb. 8, from 11 a.m. to 1 p.m. on St. Robert’s lawn for LMU’s annual Lunar New Year celebration hosted by Asian Pacific Student Services (APSS) and the Office for International Students and Scholars. Lunar New Year, a tradition celebrated by many Asian countries, signals the arrival of spring and the beginning of a new year on the lunisolar calendar. In China, Lunar New Year is known as the Spring Festival or Chūnjié in Mandarin, while Koreans call it Seollal and Vietnamese refer to it as Tết.
According to the Chinese animal zodiac, 2024 is the year of the dragon, which holds a significant place as an extraordinary creature, unparalleled in talent and excellence. It symbolizes power, strength, nobility, honor, success, and good fortune. While official dates may vary, this celebration draws strong ties to reuniting with immediate and extended family. “We aspire to further empower our Asian Pacific Islander Desi American community in the coming year, enriching our bonds and extending blessings to the LMU community,” said Min-Jung Kim, director for APSS.
The celebrations began earlier this week, on Monday, Feb. 5 with a special collaboration with LMU Dining for a free Taiwanese/Chinese-style dumpling making class at 5 p.m. in the Lair and a special lunch to dinner pop-up service where they served Korean Lunar New Year “Seollal” 설날 foods, including:
- Tteokguk- 떡국 rice cake soup;
- Bulgogi- 불고기 marinated beef;
- Mandu – 만두 bulgogi beef dumplings;
- and 김치 kimchi.
Crimson Circle Service Organization, led by Enrico “Ech” Echiverri, has also partnered with APSS and is coordinating a partner organization, Gracehopper STEM Academy in Inglewood, to bring a group of middle school students to campus for the Lunar New Year celebration and to learn about this tradition. Students will have the opportunity to participate in activities to be entered into a raffle for tote bags (limited supplies) and stickers of a dragon designed by Kayla Zheng, from Han Tao. Departments and student organizations will be hosting the following activities:
- Fan-making with the Modern Languages Department;
- Make paper firecrackers with Han Tao
- A paper-cutting activity with the Chinese Student and Scholar Association
- Jaegi making + yut nori (traditional Korean game) with the Korean American Student Association (KASA)
- Origami folding with Nikkei Student Union (NSU)
- Banh đũa game and selling Vietnamese coffee with the Vietnamese Student Association (VSA)
In addition to the Lunar New Year Celebration, APSS will be hosting and collaborating on a few programs this semester, including but not limited to the following:
- Feb. 22-March 3 – Tomodachi Inouye Scholars Program immersion trip to Japan;
- March 4-25 – Na Kolea’s history exhibit on the first floor of the William Hannon Library;
- March 9 – Han Tao’s Chinese Culture Night
- March 16-22 – Sophia University students visit to LMU
- March 16 – Nikkei Student Union’s Japanese Culture Night
- March 23 – Na Kolea’s 50th Lu’au
- April 5 – South Asian Student Association’s Holi Festival
- April 7 – Isang Bansa’s 32nd Pilipino Culture Night
- April 20 – APIDA Pass the Torch, a celebration of current APIDA RSO e-board leaders and their achievements and welcome incoming leadership
- April 26 – APIDA Graduation, 4-6 p.m., in the Bruce Featherstone Life Sciences Building Auditorium