About Decatur LNY

A CELEBRATION IN DECATUR

In 2022, we held Decatur’s First Lunar New Year celebration in partnership with the City Schools of Decatur’s lower elementary school PTAs. The event was focused on families and education. Each family received a passport to the 5 cultural booths, where they could do crafts and learn how the holiday is celebrated to earn a stamp. We also had vendors, food, and a lion dance.

What had started out as a small PTA event exploded into a community festival when we gained the attention of AtlantaEats and were listed first on its list of Where to Celebrate the Lunar New Year. See more news stories about us on our media page.

We expected around 300 attendees but ended up with well over 1000 people on one of the coldest days in January. Since then our attendance has grown to 4000 people and we’ve moved location to the Ebster Rec Center to accommodate the growth.

This event is entirely planned and organized by amazing Asian women in Decatur. Originally founded by Han Pham, Weonhee Shin, and Jeanie Dizon, we've been able to scale with the additional talents of Denise See and Christine Nguyen. We designed this festival to be a true reflection of our identity as Asian Americans, updating how the Lunar New Year is celebrated to reflect the broad contributions of Asians to America.

Paying It Forward

All profits from this year’s Decatur Lunar New Year Festival will go toward education curriculum that is centered on AAPI stories and history. Learn about our target charity, Asian American Voices for Education (AAVEd) below.

28, Oct. 2022 – Athens, GA – Georgia Council for Social Studies’ first Asian American history session led by AAVEd.
Photo with Georgia K-12 educators who attended the session.

ABOUT OUR CAUSE

Fastest Growth

Asians are the fastest growing ethnic and racial minority in the country. The South experienced the fastest Asian population growth (AAAJ-Atlanta).

Increased Awareness

Asian American historical figures/events are mentioned only three times in Georgia K-12 Social Studies Standards.

150 Educators in Over 22 School Districts

Asian American history was first introduced to Georgia educators last year through AAVEd. To date, we have reached over 150 educators in over 22 school districts.

Over 600 Attendees

Asian American history was presented and represented for the first time at Georgia Council for Social Studies Conference (GCSS) this year through AAVEd. GCSS is the largest social studies conference in GA with over 600 attendees per year.

FUNDS FROM THE EVENT GO TOWARDS

Teacher Toolkit

AAVEd will create grade specific lesson plans for Georgia K-12 educators. AAVEd’s lesson plans will focus on solidarity and intersectionality of Asian American history with that of other marginalized groups.

Heritage Month Box

In celebration of Asian American & Native Hawaiian Pacific Islander Heritage Month in May, AAVEd will provide Asian American heritage month boxes to 100 GA classrooms, which can be facilitated by parents or teachers. For many GA students, this will be their first introduction to Asian American history.

Teacher Workshops

AAVEd will continue to lead sessions at Georgia Council for Social Studies, reaching educators and school district leaders.

Student Leader Outreach

For the 2023-2024 school year, AAVEd aims to collaborate with Georgia’s Social Studies Fair and to create programs that can empower Asian American students through the discovery of their history.