Wednesday, February 14, 2018
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Dumplings, family, tradition: celebrating Chinese New Year
Collegian graphic by ABBY WOLF
EMMA STAVNES News Editor
E
ven though the Chinese New Year and U.S. New Year land on different days, there are many similarities in how both cultures celebrate flipping the calendar. The Chinese New Year begins Feb. 16, which is the first day of a new lunar calendar year. From food to superstitions, the celebration is one of the most anticipated events of the entire year in Chinese culture, Cheng Zhang president of the Brookings Chinese Community (BCC) said. Zhang said it is the most celebrated festival in China and
other East Asian countries like Korea and Vietnam. “Schools and factories are closed for about one month for students and workers to go home for a reunion with family,” Zhang said. However, many people can’t make it home for the holiday season, so celebrations happen everywhere, including here in Brookings. This past Saturday, BCC hosted a Chinese New Year party at Gracepoint Wesleyan Church. The night was filled with poem recitals, dancing, singing, piano, games and food. The New Year’s Eve dinner is the most important part of the holiday for families. Typical-
ly, they spend months preparing food and preserving it until the new year, said Zhang. “[The dinner] brings every family member together for a full-course meal, which could easily have over 20 dishes,” he said. In Brookings, the Chinese Student Scholars Association (CSSA) works with the BCC to prepare the staple Chinese New Year food: dumplings. “Even back home in China we would always have dumplings, so it is nice to have them here as well when we are in America; it’s part of a tradition,” said Qing Jin, a junior chemistry major. Volunteers start making the
dumplings, which are typically filled with ground meat or vegetables, hours before the party starts. But dumplings aren’t the only food available to eat at the party. Every family brings a dish or two to share, so by the end of the night there are more than 30 options to choose from. Another tradition in the Chinese New Year is using zodiac signs to represent each year with an animal. This began from an old Chinese myth passed down through generations, and this year the animal is a dog. According to the website, “Chinese New Year 2018,” many people believe individuals who
are born during this year will portray qualities of a dog, such as loyalty, hard work and occasional stubbornness. However, there are also many people who don’t buy into the superstitions. Siyi Liu, sophomore computer science major, said she doesn’t usually believe in zodiac signs and their meanings. “I just use the New Year celebrations as a time to be with family and friends,” she said. So, whether it’s the food, friends or leaving the fate of the new year up to the stars, the Chinese New Year celebration has something for everyone.
Collegian graphic by IAN LACK
Counselor-to-student ratio raises concerns IAN LACK Reporter With mental health awareness becoming more prevalent on campus the past few semesters, the number of students seeking counseling services have increased, creating a strain on counselors to keep up. Darci Nichols, assistant director of Wellness Center Counseling, has noticed this pressure on Counseling Services staff. “Our counselors have been
extremely busy over the fall semester and I think that that’s why we’re adding another [counselor],” Nichols said. “The need for mental health support has driven for more counselors and adding staff.” Polly Davis, a staff counselor at the Wellness Center, said she and her colleagues have felt overworked from an excess number of students continuing to use Counseling Services. “I think we kind of felt that in the fall because we had a
counselor that took another position, so we did feel that strain,” Davis said. Another counselor will be added to the staff of six at Counseling Services this semester in hopes of resolving wait times for students to meet with counselors. Last semester, Counseling Services announced an existing, but little-known, administrative measure advising eight counseling sessions per semester per student, according to Associate
Vice President for Student Affairs Doug Wermedal. “This model was set up to accommodate for more students using Counseling Services,” Wermedal said. “But it’s not a meter that runs and then there’s a hard stop at the end. It’s about what’s therapeutically appropriate and providing access to as many possible students.” The guideline does not bar a student from a counselor in a crisis situation. Counseling Services continues to manage stu-
dents’ mental health needs on a case-by-case basis. Students may be recommended mental health services outside of the university to continue with treatment or may stay within Counseling Services, depending on their needs. Some students seeing staff counselors at the Wellness Center have noted an inability to make consistent appointments.
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