Asian American Heritage Month Celebrated

Ahead of Asian American Heritage month, three GCS ambassadors, including an Upper School student, attended the Maryland Asian Pacific Islander Desi American conference hosted by the Association of Independent Maryland & DC Schools (AIMS).

Last month, Hong Ding, Mandarin teacher; Sheena Jordan, diversity coordinator; and Heidi Wang ’24 attended the second annual Maryland Asian Pacific Islander Desi American (APIDA) conference. The event is a student-led conference planned by Asian Affinity group leaders in the AIMS network. The conference’s goal is to provide a space for APIDA students across the region to learn about and discuss topics and issues connected to the APIDA community not typically raised elsewhere. This year marked the conference’s second year and the first held in person.

Wang enjoyed a day filled with dialogue and meaningful discussions as attendees heard from keynote speaker Joon Lee, a renowned sports journalist and current staff writer at ESPN. Known for his sports highlights, including the NBA, NFL, PGA, and Olympics, Lee spoke about the importance of representation in media and athletics.

Following the keynote, students chose between three breakout sessions on various topics such as political representation, cultural appropriation, multiracial intersectionality, and mental health. The day concluded with a message on the importance of taking care of our mental health given by keynote speaker Dr. G Wei Ng, Ph.D., a licensed psychologist and diversity coordinator at Towson University’s Counseling Center.

In addition to the conference, Upper School students plan to celebrate Asian American Heritage Month with displays of art, lyrics, poetry, photography, and book recommendations submitted by APIDA faculty and students in the school community throughout the month.