Press Release

From left, Steven Strohmeir, Field Museum Senior Director of Institutional Giving, Aimee Davis, Field Museum Sr. Director of Learning, Sara Furr, Field Museum Chief Diversity & Inclusion Officer, Fara Kul, Tang Foundation, and Jimmy Xu, Tang Foundation. Photo by Edgar Lopez

CHICAGO – The Cyrus Tang Foundation has awarded the Field Museum a $1-million, three-year grant to develop a suite of Kindergarten-12th-grade classrooms and virtual lessons on Asian history to fulfill new teaching requirements enacted to help improve public knowledge of Asian American, Native Hawaiian, and Pacific Islander (AANHPI) histories and cultures, build cultural empathy, and combat racism.

“The Field Museum strongly believes that creating, teaching, and uplifting Asian and Asian-American history in classrooms is imperative in our current educational climate,” says Aimee Davis, Sr. Director of Learning at Field Museum. “We know that strengthening cultural empathy helps students succeed, both qualitatively and quantitatively, and encourages them to be critical thinkers.”

Curriculum will focus on tiered approach

The Field will take a tiered approach to the project, according to museum educators, by first partnering with four local and six AANHPI organizations in target states (California, Rhode Island, New Jersey, Connecticut, Florida, and Ohio) to create a suite of student workshops, teacher professional development opportunities, and virtual programming and field trips. Within the Chicago region, these programs will take a more robust approach through in-classroom instruction and focused field trips to the Field Museum’s Cyrus Tang Hall of China and other exhibitions.

Together with community partners in Chicago and across the six target states, the Field will inject contemporary stories and help teachers engage students in AANHPI history through a community-centered perspective, according to Davis. Throughout the course of the project, students and educators from thousands of classrooms nationwide will have unfettered access to the materials in the Cyrus Tang Hall of China, the Regenstein Halls of the Pacific, and other related exhibitions at the Field.

Project garners support from philanthropic organizations, lawmakers

"We are delighted to support The Field Museum’s initiative to extend the impact of the Cyrus Tang Hall of China to K-12 classrooms in the Chicago area and beyond,” said Patrick Liang, Executive Director of the Cyrus Tang Foundation. “The museum’s commitment to using its extensive collection of rich cultural artifacts to bring to life important stories in our common history will be a tremendous addition to the efforts of educators and other passionate stakeholders across the country to develop curriculum that is relevant, interesting, and educational to students and teachers."

The Teaching Equitable Asian American Community History (TEAACH) Act was passed in Illinois in 2021 to create a more inclusive and comprehensive history education for public school students, making Illinois the first state in the country to ensure Asian American representation in K-12 public education. The act was co-sponsored by State Rep. Jennifer Gong-Gershowitz (D-Glenview).

“I applaud the Field Museum for taking steps to expand AAPI-focused curriculum for students in Illinois and across the country,” said Gong-Gershowitz. “The TEAACH Act was designed to help foster this kind of educational opportunity for students. For non-Asian students, a lack of knowledge is the root cause of discrimination – the best weapon against ignorance is education. It’s equally important that Asian students learn about their heritage and the AAPI community’s contributions to America – Asian American history IS American history.”

About Cyrus Tang Foundation

Cyrus Tang Foundation is an independent foundation based in Las Vegas, Nevada that is committed to realizing Cyrus Tang’s vision of a world where everyone is empowered and inspired to make a difference and carry forward the spirit of giving back. Alongside his two other foundations, one focused on the US and another supporting research in Traditional Chinese Medicine, the Cyrus Tang Foundation serves as a committed partner to the world’s passionate problem solvers who are driving positive change in the areas of education, healthcare, arts and design, community development and other underserved areas related to China.

About Field Museum

The Field Museum is a forward-thinking scientific leader on a mission to explore, protect, and celebrate nature and culture. From exhibitions that inspire journeys of discovery in visitors young and old, to the groundbreaking research and conservation efforts driven by our 40 million artifacts and specimens, we’re on a mission to connect us all to the natural world and the human story. Our public relations team can be reached via press@fieldmuseum.org.

The Cyrus Tang Hall of China is made possible with the generous support of the Cyrus Chung Ying Tang Foundation. Additional support is provided by the William G. McGowan Charitable Fund in Memory of Sue Ling Gin-McGowan.

Press may access b-roll of the Cyrus Tang Hall of China here.