For the first time, public schools throughout New York will close on January 29 to celebrate Lunar New Year, NBC News reports.

Lunar New Year became an official New York State holiday in September 2023. Students were not given a day off in 2024, NBC News reports, because the holiday fell on a Saturday.

“Recognizing Lunar New Year as a statewide holiday is sending a message to Asian Americans, and to all New Yorkers, that Asian Americans are New Yorkers, and that we belong here,” New York Assemblymember Grace Lee, who helped pass the legislation, told NBC News. “I think it’s also a recognition for the many contributions that Asian Americans have made to New York’s history in the nearly 200 years since we’ve been here.”

The Rochester City School District in New York initially announced that it was giving students the day off but requiring staff to report. According to Rochester First, the school district has changed its decision and given staff the day off.

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