February Heritage and Identity Recognitions

As part of our commitment to diversity, equity, inclusion, and justice, we recognize observances and holidays that center the voices and experiences of historically excluded peoples in the United States. This month, we’re bringing together Black History Month and Lunar New Year resources for educators and schools. To learn more about these recognitions, read our blog post on how and why we acknowledge.

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Recognize Black History Month at your school: The Center for Racial Justice in Education provides a Black History Month resource guide with the purpose of “ensuring the ongoing integration of Black history and experiences… to uplift every student and reinforce that Black Lives Matter everyday.”

Storycorps curates Black voices of the past and present, bringing together “stories that center Black voices in conversations about Black history, identity, struggles, and joy.”

Reimagine February with Black Futures Month: In her essay, “How Long Till Black Future Month,” novelist N. K. Jemisen writes, “Everyone jokes that of course Black history gets celebrated only during the shortest month of the year. No one seems puzzled by the fact that there is no time correspondingly devoted to examining, celebrating, or imagining the black future.”

Black Futures Month, founded in 2025 by the Movement for Black Lives is dedicated to “a reimagining of life as we know it and a revolutionary transformation of the beliefs, norms, and systems that reject our humanity.”

Recognize Lunar New Year celebrations:  The Lunar New Year is celebrated under various names across East Asia. In Chinese communities, it's known as the Spring Festival or Chinese New Year. Vietnamese people celebrate Tet Nguyen Dan, Koreans observe Seollal, Tibetans observe in Losar, and Mongolians mark Tsagaan Sar. In Thailand, the new year is Songkran; Balinese communities celebrate Nyepi, and Filipino-Chinese communities observe Tsinoy.

“Learning About Lunar New Year”, from WeTeachNYC and the New York City Department of Education provides sample lessons and activities for exploring Lunar New Year with grades K-8.