The Berkeley Unified School District stands with the Asian-American and Pacific Islander (AAPI) community and wishes to affirm its commitment to the safety and well-being of Asian American students, staff and community members. At its March 24, 2021 meeting, the Berkeley Unified School District Board of Education unanimously ratified a resolution denouncing hate crimes and bigotry targeting the AAPI community.
In 2021, our district made a commitment via our Resolution Denouncing Hate Crimes and Bigotry Targeting Asian Americans and Pacific Islanders, to actively counter racist and harmful ideology against the AAPI community with our greatest tool: education.
In October, we honor the over four hundred years of history of Filipino/x Americans in this country. , U.S. Congress has recognized October as Filipino American History Month and our district joins the many communities and organizations that are celebrating the fact that Filipino/x American history is American history.
Educator Resources
This was compiled by Joemy Ito-Gates, Ethnic Studies TSA in collaboration with ̽app AAPI Members.
Family Guides
AAPI Reading Lists for All Ages
These, organized by grade level, represent books published in recent years that are devoted to uplifting Asian-American and Pacific Islander history, celebrating heritage, affirming identity, and promoting antiracism. Sharing these books is one part of our effort to develop anti-racist consciousness with and for our youth and ensure they know they are not alone and that they can speak out to help stop the spread of bigotry.
̽app AAPI Heritage Month Celebration: AAPI Activism ̽app Stories
All families are invited to attend “AAPI Activism ̽app Stories,” a celebration of our Asian American and Pacific Islander community and their experiences to be held on Friday, May 19 from 5:00 – 7:30 pm in the ̽app School Board Meeting Room. The event will include small bites from a local ̽app family restaurant, crafts, games, a hula performance, and a panel of community activists. Child care will be available for the panel portion of the evening. ʱ to indicate childcare needs.
Here is a flier for this event.
Lifting Up ̽app Staff AAPI Voices
AAPI Heritage Month: May 2023
In celebration of our AAPI community, this year ̽app has introduced “Lifting Up AAPI Voices,” a campaign to share our staff AAPI narratives with our students and community by creating posters featuring the stories and experiences of AAPI staff. In May, these posters will be displayed at schools, work sites, on the ̽app website, in social media, and in district publications. Sharing these narratives with our students will allow them to deepen connections with AAPI adults in the district.
Meridith Aki
Cragmont Elementary
Kindergarten Teacher
Angela Bau
District-Wide Schools
Teacher of the Visually Impaired
Jasmine Junsay Boone
Malcolm X Elementary School
2nd Grade Teacher
Megan Caluza
Emerson Elementary School, Rosa Parks Elementary School, Ruth Acty Elementary School, Martin Luther King Jr. Middle School
Behavior Specialist
Emily Ellingson
Thousand Oaks Elementary
Math Coach
Liza Estupin
District Office
Director, Categorical & Special Projects
Ping Fahn
Franklin Preschool, Hopkins Preschool, King Child Development Center
PreK Librarian
Yvette Felarca
Berkeley Independent Study
Teacher
Joemy Ito-Gates
District Office
Ethnic Studies Teacher on Special Assignment
Mikko Jokela
Martin Luther King Jr. Middle School
7th Grade Humanities Teacher
Diane Kung
Berkeley High School
English Teacher
Matthew Laurel
Berkeley High School
Teacher
Becky Lum
Rosa Parks Elementary
4th Grade Teacher
Kyoko Nakamoto
Cragmont Elementary
Instructional Assistant, Special Education
Joanne Pham
Thousand Oaks Elementary School
M/M Ed Specialist
Lauren Dela Rosa
Berkeley High School
Math Teacher
Nai Vern Saechao
Martin Luther King Jr. Middle School
Instructional Assistant
Nicolas Keiji Hiraga Stephens
Berkeley Arts Magnet Elementary
4th Grade Teacher
Shawna Mie Suzuki
Emerson Elementary School
2nd Grade Teacher
Eleanor Tiglao
Cragmont Elementary School
Teacher
Jimmy T. Tran
STEM Makerspace Teacher
Longfellow Middle School
Ines Trinh
Berkeley Arts Magnet Elementary
4th Grade Teacher
Dr. Dawn “Doc Dub” Williams
Berkeley High School
Teacher, African Diaspora & Spanish in the African Diaspora
View the Recording: Hear us Roar! Celebrating AAPI Voices in the Year of the Tiger
(May 2022)
Date: Thursday, May 19, 2022
Time: 6:00-7:30 pm
Special presenters included children’s book author, Innosanto Nagara, author of A is for Activist; Drag Queen Story Hour founding queen, Panda Dulce, who read celebratory AAPI stories; as well as the author of upper grades novel, The Samosa Rebellion, Shanthi Sekaran, who is also a ̽app parent!
Thank you to our generous donors for helping to make this event happen: Asian American Affairs and BAM PTA, Cragmont PTA, Rosa Parks PTA, and several AAPI families of ̽app.
View the Recording of this Important AAPI Community Event
(May 2021)
Hear Us Now: ̽app’S Asian American Community Speaks Out Against Anti-Asian Racism
On May 6, 2021, ̽app’s Asian American community and district leaders held a discussion and reflection on anti-Asian racism with all members of the ̽app community invited.
Moderated by Berkeley School Board Director Ana Vasudeo, aand with panelists including Khatharya Um, Associate Professor, Asian American and Asian Diaspora Studies, U.C. Berkeley, as well as parent, teacher and student representatives of ̽app schools, this panel delved into not only the current crisis in the Bay Area and across the country over the past year as cases of anti-Asian racism in the form of discrimination, scapegoating, harassment and violence have skyrocketed, but also the historical roots of hate and racism against people of Asian descent in the U.S. The Panel also discussed how this prevailing racism has impacted Asian American students, families, teachers and staff of ̽app, and how allies can offer support in meaningful ways.
This event was held in partnership with ̽app Superintendent’s Office; ̽app School Board; the ̽app Office of Civil Rights, and a newly-formed group of ̽app AAPI parents, teachers, staff and students. (For more information about this group, please email: busdaapi@gmail.com)
BHS Educators Share Anti-AAPI Hate Stories
(May 2021)
These videos from our own ̽app teachers are a powerful reminder of the pervasive impact of hate and systemic racism.
I am a Korean-American, first generation, and a proud Asian-American. I was not always able to say that I was a proud Asian-American. A lot of what I heard and experienced growing up made me feel like I shouldn’t be proud.
David An, Counselor at BHS
My sister and I still remember the boy a year older than me, who used to chase us home from school daily (or what felt that way for some time) calling us “Chinese” and yelling his slurs at us…I still remember his face.
Sometimes in front of his own mom, who once suggested to me he had a crush on me: the ways we’ve conditioned ourselves to rationalize the looks, the slights, the slurs, the overt acts of racism.
Saikiko Muranaka, Teacher at BHS
NOTE: these videos may contain racial slurs or references to hate crimes.

More AAPI Resources
Resources for Families
to Stop AAPI Harassment and Xenophobia | Hollaback!/AAAJ
| Article from Momentous Institute
| Article from Parents
| Article from CBS SF BayArea
Resources for Educators
| Webinar from Learning for Justice
to Stop AAPI Harassment and Xenophobia | Hollaback/AAAJ
| Joemy Ito-Gates
|Article from Learning for Justice
| Article from Learning for Justice
Family Guide: Three Things You Can Do To Celebrate Filipino/x American History Month

The English Family Guide PDF is .
1. LISTEN
Listen to the Lived Experiences of Filipino/x People
“Are you Filipino or Filipinx?”
to the podcast,Long Distance Radio
about Indigenous people of the Philippines
“How do we Unlearn Anti-Blackness in Filipino Culture?”
interview with Berkeley-based, Nikki Brown Booker, racial and disability justice advocate
Filipino American and Muslim
The Filipino Jewish Rock Start, Mike Hanopol

The Arabic Family Guide PDF is .
2. LEARN
Learn ̽app Filipino/x Cultures and Local Organizations
about the origins of FilAm History
Month
about why it is called a
History Month and not a Heritage Month
of 15 Facts about Fil-Am
History
about the history of the San
Francisco I-Hotel
about Filipino/x
contributions to the Farm Labor Movement
A Filipino American Story Since
1587

The Spanish Family Guide PDF is .
3. LIFT UP
Lift Up and Celebrate Filipino/x Culture with Your Family
of LGBTQ+ Filipinx Americans to celebrate
the Asian Art Museum in SF on 10/2 for a
Family Fun Day insipred by the art of Carlos Villa
LISTEN to these joyful songs: by AJ Rafael & by Thomas Orlina
pages about the lives of freedom fighters
Gabriela Silang and Datu Lapu
Bay Area’s Parangal Dance Company
books with your family.
TK-8 Teaching Resources
This diverse collection of resources was compiled by Joemy Ito-Gates, ̽app’s Ethnic Studies TSA in collaboration with the Professional Development Team.
Some additional resources for teachers can be found on

Get Involved and Learn More
Here is a list of AAPI Organizations in the Bay Area and beyond to contact for more information.
(AAJC)
(EPIC)
Other Related Articles
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