Friday evening’s Lunar New Year celebration event, hosted by the Cornell Chinese Students Association and Taiwanese American Student Association, brought food, games and cultural traditions to Klarman Hall as students rang in the Year of the Fire Horse.
From 7 p.m. to 10 p.m., approximately 450 attendees rotated through activity stations featuring free food, boba tea, crafts and games. The event was entirely free and open to all, reflecting both CSA and TASA’s broader goal of cultural outreach and appreciation.
“Our main goal [of TASA] is to actually just improve awareness of Taiwanese culture,” said Luke Chang ’27, TASA co-president. “Part of the reason we host these events is to not only improve exposure for Taiwanese culture, but it's also to just get people involved in our culture.”
Both CSA and TASA are interest-based organizations, welcoming students regardless of ethnic background.
Gianna Ou ’27 is a member of both CSA and TASA, despite not being Taiwanese herself.
“We appreciate Asian culture in any way and always, so anyone is welcome,” Ou said.
“On campus there are a lot of international students and a lot of people from California and other places of the country that [make it] really hard to get home, especially for a small break,” Chang said. “So we want to create that sense of community and that sense of welcoming, and just create a place on campus where people are able to celebrate the New Year.”
Alina Lee ’29, who traveled home to New Jersey over break, said she was grateful that the holiday aligned with time off from school.
“I was really glad that February [break] was at the same time as Lunar New Year this year,” Lee said. “If there wasn't [a] break, I probably wouldn’t have [gone home], because it’s just too much.”
For students who remained in Ithaca over February break, the event offered a substitute for regular family traditions.
Food offerings reflected traditional Lunar New Year offerings. Chang said organizers ordered from local Asian restaurants like Ninja Chicken and Fusia Bento Bar. The spread included “over 100 orders of popcorn chicken,” vegetable lo mein, beef fried rice, gyoza, dumplings and spring rolls.
Dessert was a popular item as well. Larry Tao ’27, president of CSA, highlighted tang yuan, which he described as “a chewy rice ball with a filling inside.”
Activities at the event had cultural meaning as well. Tao explained the significance of red envelopes, which were located at a table and filled with candies. Some special red envelopes contained raffle prizes — including horse plushies, lego sets and snacks — that winners could redeem after opening them. Other envelopes remained empty for attendees to write notes inside to give to friends.
“Red envelopes basically signify gifts,” Tao said. “It’s traditional, like gift giving, sort of like Christmas gift giving in Western culture, where basically older members of the family will gift red envelopes, typically filled with money to younger generations. And it’s basically just a way of giving back and showing your support for the rest of your family.”
One table featured Chinese calligraphy, where Michelle Ching ’28 drew a “Happy New Year” sign in Chinese.
“I’m really happy that they held this event,” Ching said, noting she had not practiced Chinese calligraphy in several years. “I do feel a sense of belonging here.”
Another station had a fishing game where participants could fish for plastic Easter eggs in water, and potentially win prizes like candy.
Small details of the event — like oranges — carried symbolic meaning as well. Ou explained, “I think oranges are for good luck. … I think [because] it’s close to red and red wards off bad luck.”
The Year of the Fire Horse has particular significance as well.
“I’ve heard that the Year of the Horse means a lot of passion and renewal,” Ou said. “It symbolizes growth, good luck and a lot of fortune.”
Other activity stations had deep meaning for international students in particular. Katie Lu ’29, from Taiwan, enjoyed being able to send a letter back home to her family.
Lu said that she felt “very grateful for anyone who organized this event,” especially because it was completely free and allowed her to easily send a handwritten note home for the New Year.
The event’s main mission was to bring a sense of home to Ithaca in celebration of culture and the New Year.
“We hope … to create a place that feels safe and feels like home, especially for people who can’t go home,” Chang said. “We also wanted to just make sure to celebrate with free food and represent both of our cultures and just create a place on campus where it’s just fun to hang out with your friends, chill out after maybe prelims yesterday and lead onto the weekend.”
Rowan Wallin is a member of the Class of 2027 in the Nolan School of Hotel Administration within the SC Johnson College of Business. He is a senior writer for the news department and can be reached at rwallin@cornellsun.com.
