DEI

Upcoming Important Dates:

• Black History/Excellence Month (February)
• Women’s History Month (March)
• Disability Awareness Month (March)
• Gender Equality Month (March)

As we wrap up celebrating Black excellence this month, we ask each and every one of you to reflect on what makes this part of our culture so special. Black innovators have shaped our American culture in so many incredible ways, from the traffic signal to the Super Soaker, our refrigerated trucks to our long lasting light bulbs. And if it wasn’t for George Washington Carver, we might not have our good old PB and J or Reese’s Peanut Butter cups.
 
As we look into the month of March, we hope to celebrate women for their history month, and those with disabilities for their awareness month. It is also Gender Equality Month. If you have a story to share or someone special to highlight, please let us know!

Please check out the new AUHSD DEIB website for many great resources and events! And follow us on Instagram and Facebook

Upcoming Important Dates:

• Black History/Excellence Month (February)
• Feb 10-24 Lunar New Year
• Feb 14 Douglass Day
• Feb 19 Day of Remembrance
• Feb 23 BSU Dance at Miramonte

Tuesday, Feb 19 is Day of Remembrance. What exactly are we supposed to remember? It was on this day in 1942 when President Franklin D. Roosevelt signed Executive Order 9066, which gave the U.S. Army the authority to remove civilians from the military zones established in Washington, Oregon, and California during WWII. This led to the forced removal and incarceration of some 120,000 Americans of Japanese ancestry living on the West Coast, who had to abandon their jobs, their homes, and their lives to be sent to one of ten concentration camps scattered in desolate, remote regions of the country. Every February, the Japanese American community commemorates Executive Order 9066 as a reminder of the impact the incarceration experience has had on our families, our community, and our country. It is an opportunity to educate others on the fragility of civil liberties in times of crisis, and the importance of remaining vigilant in protecting the rights and freedoms of all.
 
Miramonte’s BSU and leadership group are hosting a district wide Mardi Gras dance for all students on Friday, Feb 23 from 7-9pm! Along with dancing and an awesome DJ, there will be food, a 360 open-air video booth, a place to hang out with friends, and an airbrush tattoo artist! Tickets will be $10 and can be purchased on GoFan here.
 
Please check out the new AUHSD DEIB website for many great resources and events! And follow us on Instagram and Facebook.

Upcoming Important Dates:

• Black History/Excellence Month (February)
• Feb 10-24 Lunar New Year
• Feb 14 Douglass Day
• Feb 19 Day of Remembrance
• Feb 23 BSU Dance at Miramonte

Thank you to the parent volunteers that helped bring Black Excellence Month alive around our school by decorating doors with information about influential black history makers. There are several events happening for our students throughout February so please encourage your students to join in on the fun.
 
Miramonte’s BSU and leadership group are hosting a district wide Mardi Gras dance for all students on Friday, Feb 23 from 7-9pm! Along with dancing and an awesome DJ, there will be food, a 360 open-air video booth, a place to hang out with friends, and an airbrush tattoo artist! Tickets will be $10 and can be purchased on GoFan here.
 
Lunar New Year, the Year of the Dragon, began yesterday, Feb 10. Did you know that San Francisco has celebrated Lunar New Year in some form since the Gold Rush era of the 1860s? You can learn many more things about this special time of the year here. If you are looking for ways to celebrate with your family please check out 510families.
 
Acalanes will have a Lunar New Year Celebration! You can encourage your student to celebrate with everyone at school this week on Wednesday, Feb 14 during lunch in the frosh quad with a potluck featuring various Asian dishes. IMPORTANT: Red envelopes with “food tickets” inside will be handed out that day during brunch in all of the quads. Please remind your student to make sure to grab an envelope to redeem for food at the potluck! Want to help make food? Signup here.
 
Please check out the new AUHSD DEIB website for many great resources and events! And follow us on Instagram and Facebook.

Upcoming Important Dates:

• Black History/Excellence Month (February)
• Feb 6 AUHSD Parent/Caregiver Workshop Supporting LGBTQ+ Youth
• Feb 10-24 Lunar New Year
• Feb 19 Day of Remembrance
• Feb 23 BSU Dance at Miramonte

Miramonte’s BSU and leadership group are hosting a district-wide Mardi Gras dance for all students on Friday, Feb 23 from 7-9pm! Along with dancing and an awesome DJ, there will be food, a 360 open-air video booth, a place to hang out with friends, and an airbrush tattoo artist! Tickets will be $10 and can be purchased on GoFan here.
 
Do you have a recommendation or highlight to share about Black Excellence Month? Please chime in and we will do our best to share!
 
On Tuesday, Feb 6 from 6-7:30pm in the AHS library, the Contra Costa Office of Education Wellness in Schools Program will share more on how to support the LGBTQ Youth in your family and community. Learn about being an adult ally and how to create a culture of acceptance. Stay informed about common terminology. Learn about gender identity, gender expression and sexual orientation. Learn about the important role that families play in promoting well being for LGBTQ young people. Register here.
 
Please check out the new AUHSD DEIB website for many great resources and events! And follow us on Instagram and Facebook.

Upcoming Important Dates:

• Black History/Excellence Month (February)
• Feb 6 AUHSD Parent/Caregiver Workshop Supporting LGBTQ+ Youth
• Feb 10-24 Lunar New Year
• Feb 19 Day of Remembrance
• Feb 23 BSU Dance at Miramonte

Black History/Excellence Month is HERE and PARENTS we NEED your help. Please use this link to sign up to help us decorate a few doors around campus as we celebrate the achievements of Black Americans that have shaped our culture.
 
Black History/Excellence Month is an annual celebration of achievements by African Americans and a time for recognizing their central role in U.S. history. Also known as African American History Month, the event grew out of “Negro History Week,” the brainchild of noted historian Carter G. Woodson and other prominent African Americans. Since 1976, every U.S. president has officially designated the month of February as Black History Month. Other countries around the world, including Canada and the United Kingdom, also devote a month to celebrating Black history. You can learn so much more here.
 
Do you have a recommendation or highlight to share about Black Excellence Month? Please chime in and we will do our best to share!
 
On Tuesday, Feb 6 from 6-7:30pm in the AHS library, the Contra Costa Office of Education Wellness in Schools Program will share more on how to support the LGBTQ Youth in your family and community. Learn about being an adult ally and how to create a culture of acceptance. Stay informed about common terminology. Learn about gender identity, gender expression and sexual orientation. Learn about the important role that families play in promoting well being for LGBTQ young people. Register here.

And follow us on Instagram and Facebook!

Upcoming Important Dates:

• Jan 25: Mahayana New Year
• Jan 27: International Holocaust Remembrance Day

Mahayana New Year is celebrated this year on Thursday, Jan 25 by Buddhists around the world. The term Mahayana encompasses Buddhist ideologies and philosophies. Mahayana is one of the two main branches of Buddhism and is mostly practiced in Northeast Asia — China, Japan, Tibet, Taiwan, Mongolia, and Korea. Each region has its own customs and traditions for practicing Mahayana Buddhism. You can learn more about it here.
 
The International Holocaust Remembrance Day, or the International Day in Memory of the Victims of the Holocaust, is on Saturday, Jan 27 and commemorates the victims of the Holocaust, which resulted in the genocide of one third of the Jewish people, along with countless members of other minorities, by Nazi Germany between 1933 and 1945. Jan 27 was chosen to commemorate the date when the Auschwitz concentration camp wasliberated by the Red Army in 1945. Many countries have instituted their own Holocaustmemorial days on the same day, while others, such as Israel’s Yom HaShoah, are observed at other times of the year. There is more information available here.
 
As we approach February, we are supporting our students in celebrating Black Excellence month. They have requested parent assistance in decorating and informing Acalanes students and families about the many contributions of Black Americans in our world. If you would like to help please reach out to us at diversityandinclusion@acalanesparentsclub.com.

And follow us on Instagram and Facebook!

Upcoming Important Dates:

• Jan 15: Martin Luther King Jr Day
• Jan 16: National Day of Racial Healing
• Jan 25: Mahayana New Year
• Jan 27: International Holocaust Remembrance Day

Drawing inspiration from both his Christian faith and the peaceful teachings of Mahatma Gandhi, Dr. Martin Luther King Jr. led a nonviolent movement in the late 1950s and ‘60s to achieve legal equality for African Americans in the United States. He is the only non-president to have a national holiday dedicated in his honor and is the only non-president memorialized on the Great Mall in the nation’s capital. He is also memorialized in hundreds of statues, parks, streets, squares, churches and other public facilities around the world as a leader whose teachings are increasingly relevant to the progress of humankind. Please learn more here.

As we approach February, we are supporting our students in celebrating Black Excellence month. They have requested parent assistance in decorating and informing Acalanes students and families about the many contributions of Black Americans in our world. If you would like to help please reach out to us at diversityandinclusion@acalanesparentsclub.com.

Upcoming Important Dates:

• Jan 13: Korean American Day
• Jan 15: Martin Luther King Jr Day
• Jan 16: National Day of Racial Healing
• Jan 25: Mahayana New Year
• Jan 27: International Holocaust Remembrance Day

The DEI committee hopes everyone had a wonderful break and is excited to learn more about one another in the new year! Please reach out if you have any suggestions for upcoming newsletter updates.
 
Korean American Day is on Jan 13 and commemorates the arrival of the first Korean immigrants to the United States in 1903. The day also honors the Korean American’s immense contributions to every aspect of society.
 
Some exciting news for the upcoming school year…the AUHSD school board unanimously approved AP African American Studies as a course offering for 10th-12th graders starting in the 2024-2025 school year. The course is an accessible AP course, providing students with an in-depth look into African American history and culture. The course was piloted at schools across the US for two years and is now available to all interested schools. AHS teachers Bruno Moreland, James Munoz and Joe Schottland originally proposed the course, which was approved by all sites. For in depth information on the course and its framework, parents can view the 2024-2025 course at AP Central.AUHSD teachers who teach the course will be provided training from the College Board, which typically happens in the spring and summer. We are very excited about this new addition to our AUHSD course catalog!
 
If you’d like to be a part of the upcoming 2024 celebrations, such as Black Excellence Month and Lunar New Year, please contact the DEIB committee here. And follow us on Instagram and Facebook!

Upcoming Important Dates:

• Dec 25: Christmas
• Dec 26- Jan 8: Kwanzaa

December is a time set aside by many to celebrate a variety of traditions and enjoy time with family, friends and community. The APC DEI committee wishes you all a winter break filled with peace, love and yummy traditions.
 
Christmas, a Christian holiday honoring the birth of Jesus, has evolved into a worldwide religious and secular celebration, incorporating many pre-Christian and pagan traditions into the festivities. You can learn more about it here.
 
Created in 1966 by Maulana Ron Karenga, Kwanzaa is an African American and Pan-African holiday that celebrates history, values, family, community and culture. The ideas and concepts of Kwanzaa are expressed in the Swahili language, one of the most widely spoken languages in Africa. There is much more to discover here.
 
If you’d like to be a part of the upcoming celebrations in 2024, such as Black Excellence Month and Lunar New Year, please contact the DEIB committee here. And follow us on Instagram and Facebook!

Upcoming Important Dates:

• Dec 10               Human Rights Day
• Dec 7-15            Hanukkah
• Dec 25               Christmas
• Dec 26- Jan 8    Kwanza

The month of December is a time set aside by many to celebrate a variety of traditions and enjoy time with family, friends and community. If you have some information you feel is important for the DEI committee to share about a celebration you partake in, please let us know. 
 
Hanukkah (Chanukah) is the Jewish eight-day, wintertime “festival of lights,” celebrated with a nightly menorah lighting, special prayers and fried foods. The Hebrew word Chanukah means “dedication,” and is thus named because it celebrates the rededication of the Holy Temple. More information can be found here.

Contact the DEIB committee here. And follow us on Instagram and Facebook!