The Verona Area School District School Board unanimously approved a resolution Monday, pledging to teach Asian American and Pacific Islander (AAPI) history and culture throughout the curriculum.
Verona became the first school district in the state to adopt the letter and spirit of a Wisconsin Board of Education resolution calling for representation of AAPI people in schools in history, literature, and other areas.
“This resolution is a way for Asian American students to feel heard,” said Angela Miller, a senior at Verona High School and co-president of the Asian Students Alliance. “This is how we are seen, not just in our school communities, but in our communities as well. and that we are not alone, that we matter, that we have our voice, that we have come to know who we are and what we are There is something important.”
Miller said the solution is especially important now.
“We have always been a group that has been pushed aside and silenced. she said.
“Symbols matter. Symbols really matter,” said Kabby Hong, English teacher at Verona High School and Wisconsin’s 2021 Teacher of the Year. She has publicly affirmed that “Asian American history, identity and culture are essential to every child,” she said, saying that she is a symbol of a district with just 4% of the AAPI population. I think it’s positive and incredibly important.”
Hong said there is a knowledge gap between students and adults about Asian American history, especially historical topics such as the internment of Japanese Americans during World War II.
“What shocked me was how many people didn’t know about Japanese internment,” he said. “When I discussed it with my own colleagues, they had no idea about the internment of Japanese Americans. I think this shows how important it is for boards and superintendents to publicly affirm that this is an important issue.”
AAPI Coalition of Wisconsin Chair Jessica Boling added the important contributions of Hmong Americans, many of whom came to the United States as refugees in the mid-1970s after supporting American forces in the Vietnam War. Wisconsin has her third largest Hmong population in the United States, after California and Minnesota.
“People don’t necessarily know and aren’t always respected enough as veterans,” Boring says. I think it’s a good thing…to make people understand that and to make the Hmong community feel integrated and part of Wisconsin’s history. It’s a big milestone in ”
Boring noted that state law mandates education in the history and culture of Blacks, Latinos and Native Americans, but not Asian Americans or Pacific Islanders. A bill endorsed by Rep. Francesca Hong calling for her AAPI education has not come out of the commission.
Superintendent Dr. Tremayne Clardy said the actual curriculum development work begins with input from students.
“The last thing students want to do is construct something that they feel is not a true representation,” he said. “We put student voices at the center of every step of our leadership. The next step is to bring these voices to the table and identify them. What does this really look like? “
Teacher Kabby Hong said this solution is just the beginning.
“What tonight’s resolution basically says is the beginning of our work,” he said. “This is not going to happen overnight. It will take time, it will take months and years. But tonight’s resolution will actually integrate Asian American identity into every child’s curriculum. It is a public starting point for the work required to do so.”
“I think it’s important to let everyone know that Asian Americans are still here,” said Miller. “You can’t silence us. It may seem like we can, but we always find ways to make our voices heard. Because we matter.”
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