On Wednesday, February 7, Westridge students decked out in red from head-to-toe celebrated the Lunar New Year through performances, food, and music. During the morning band, students and faculty from both Upper, Middle, and Lower school gathered to watch a traditional dragon dance with musical accompaniment performed by a group of Lower School students on Madeline Court. 

While watching the dragon dance, Isabel D. ’26 said, “I’m really enjoying this performance. I see a lot of coordination and hard work and I can appreciate it.”

But the celebrations didn’t end there. Later, during the Middle and Upper School lunch, clubs, classes, and affinities lined Madeline Court with booths introducing traditional food, arts and crafts, and more. Students eagerly tried tanghulu (sugar-coated fruits), practiced Chinese calligraphy, and played mahjong. Affinity and club booths fundraised for supporting local AAPI communities and organizations, respectively.

This celebration taught the Westridge community more about the various ways many communities at Westridge celebrate the Lunar New Year. Even for students who celebrate the holiday at home, this was an educational opportunity. “I’ve learned some new things about different traditions, about Lunar New Year, that I did not know previously,” said Josephine W. ’26.  

Other activities during lunch included a Kung Fu performance and multiple student dance performances for student and faculty audiences, garnering applause and excitement for the holiday. 

Much of the Lunar New Year programming was coordinated by Ms. Annie Choi, Upper School Mandarin Teacher, and Ms. Lily Shang, Middle School and Upper School Mandarin Teacher. Ms. Shang told the Westridge Weekly, “The most important aspect of this celebration is that the students created their own expression of what this celebration meant for them.” She continued to celebrate the students’ accomplishments, “They created every component of this celebration and this is the true embodiment of what it means to celebrate Lunar New Year—a reawakening and discovery of who we are. New Year is a time of discovery and an opportunity to gain a deeper understanding of our culture and our heritage while embracing who we are as citizens of our planet.”

Students were grateful for the chance to participate in the festival. “This year’s Lunar New Year festivities were wonderful. Ms. Choi did an amazing job organizing everything like tables and cash boxes, which took a lot off of our plate as an affinity selling items. Having a designated person to help us and give us class time to work on our fundraiser was so helpful and much less stressful than previous years. I feel very lucky to go to a school that helps students cultivate and appreciate their culture, and it was such a fun event!” said Chinese Affinity Head Stephanie C. ’25.

After a day of celebration on Wednesday, on Friday, February 9, Westridge observed the occasion by giving a day off of school for only the third time ever, the first being in 2022.