Asian American and Pacific Islander (AAPI) Heritage Month celebrates and encompasses an incredibly broad range of cultures, identities and lands. PBS Wisconsin Education is proud to share stories this month and throughout the year of important AAPI Wisconsinites and their communities through our free-to-use, Wisconsin-focused educational media for grades PreK-12 and anyone else interested in learning. 

Maa Vue

Re/sound: Songs of Wisconsin is a collection of educational media resources for general music programs that explores the connections between music, identities, cultures and emotions. Maa Vue is a singer/songwriter who creates music in the Hmong language. In her journey as a musician, she draws from her emotions while celebrating her culture and challenging expectations.

Lavanyaa Surendar

Lavanyaa Surendar performs Carnatic music, a form of Indian classical music that tells ancient stories from Indian mythology. She now continues the legacy by sharing her knowledge with others.

Geshe Lhoundup Sopa

Wisconsin Biographies is a collection of educational, online media resources to enrich social studies and literacy curriculum, using the stories of notable people in Wisconsin history. 

A renowned scholar of Buddhist philosophy, Geshe Lhoundup Sopa came to the University of Wisconsin–Madison to teach and founded the Deer Park Buddhist Center in Oregon, Wisconsin. 

Mahmoud Othman Atta

The AAPI designation is inclusive of the easternmost areas of Asia. While not everyone feels they are represented in the designation, and without a separate, more specific governmental racial or ethnic category, some, including family of Mahmoud Othman Atta, welcome inclusion in this celebration. Originally from Palestine, Mahmoud Othman Atta built the first mosque in Milwaukee open to all Muslims. 

Joe Bee Xiong

From growing up in a mountain village in Laos to serving as a child soldier during the Vietnam War to making a new home in Eau Claire, Wisconsin, as a refugee in the 1980s, Joe Bee Xiong’s journey connects many places and people. 

Experience these stories and more at pbswisconsineducation.org.