A group of Garland High School students recently created and began publishing an online newsletter called The Garland Orient. According to Anna Ngo, the head of distribution, the newsletter will highlight the experiences of Garland’s Asian community.
“May is Asian American and Pacific Islander Heritage Month,” Ngo said. “And this is the perfect time to spread awareness about the Asian American community.”
She added that they will strive to reshape the conversation toward inclusion and understanding.
The website states that 28.1% of Garland residents are foreign-born. Of those, more than 28% are from Asia and include individuals with Vietnamese, Indian, Chinese and Filipino ancestry.
Approximately 24,000, or 10.6%, Garland residents identify as Asian. In Garland ISD, 9.1% of students are Asian and 0.1% are Hawaiian or Pacific Islander.
In the short time since its creation, the Garland Orient has published a number of interesting articles. One highlights the GHS Curry Clan, a South Asian dance group consisting of Garland High School seniors that was formed for the GHS Multicultural Fair.
Other interesting articles highlight Asian students and teachers like Dr. Coco Zhou, a Chinese-American who teaches the International Honors Biology and IB Biology II at Garland HS. Zhou immigrated to the U.S. as a graduate student to earn a Ph.D. in Biochemistry and Structural Biology.
In another piece, Mrs. Ashley Wong, an assistant principal at Garland High School, talks about the need for Asian Americans in positions of leadership.
The publication also serves as a place for sharing experiences which has included a post about Asian Americans being met with hatred and discrimination in the United States because of the Coronavirus.
Students involved in this project:
Contributors
Sarah Bailey, writer, editor
Jerri Do, social media team
Ishan Rereddy, South Asian content
Linh Trinh, food columnist
Editorial Board
Alina Dam, design/social media co-chair
Alex Fontenarosa, head of Filipino content
Anna Ngo, head of distribution
Zachary Nguyen, head of Vietnamese content
Alicia Sebastian, head of South Asian content
Vivian Thai, creative director
Katelyn Tran, design/social media co-chair
Isaac Yu, editor-in-chief
The students are grateful to IB coordinator Rebeckah Tisdale, Dr. Xiaoke Zhou, Luan Mai, Ashley Wong and Lisa Ray, Pam Swendig, Valerie Johnson, and all GISD staff for their support of this project.