Hmong History and Cultural Studies: About Us

About

The Hmong History and Cultural Studies Model Curriculum (HHCSMC) is a set of open-source lesson plans, primary source documents, planning resources, teaching strategies, and professional development activities designed to enhance existing courses or support educators in course development. Curriculum development was driven by community voices as per Assembly Bill 167. External organizations and local education agencies that serve the communities of interest hosted multiple opportunities for engagement. During listening sessions, participants explain what content they would like to see in model curricula. Engagement session feedback informs the choice of topics for the curriculum projects. Collaborators included researchers, writers, and community members, many of whom have Hmong ancestry. The curriculum is designed to assist K–12 educators in teaching about the histories and cultures of Hmong.

OCDE Team

The Orange County Department of Education Model Curriculum Team: Marika Manos, Matt O'Donnell, Joshua Brown, Tori Phu, Ger Thao, and Robin Silver. OCDE partnered with experts from K-12 educators, higher education professionals, scholars, and members from the Cambodian, Hmong, and Vietnamese communities to research, write, and review the curriculum.

Meet the OCDE Team

Orange County Department of Education

Marika Manos, History/ Social Science/ Civics Coordinator, OCDE
Marika Manos is the History/ Social Science/ Civics Coordinator for the Orange County Department of Education. In her current work, she facilitates educator professional learning about Culturally Sustaining Pedagogies, civic projects, civil discourse, community building, National History Day, History/Social Science content, disciplinary thinking, curriculum development, and more. Her experience includes 12 years as a secondary History/Social Science teacher and six years as a methods instructor. Between 2013 and 2019, she was the K-12 History/Social Science Curriculum Leader for Long Beach Unified School District. She has a doctorate in Education from the University of Southern California with an emphasis on curriculum. Her current research interests include Ethnic Studies, Transformative Social Emotional Learning, and Culturally Sustaining Pedagogies.
Ger Thao, Program Specialist, OCDE
Ger Thao, Ph.D. is a Program Specialist, Model Curriculum at the Orange County Department of Education, spearheading the Hmong History and Cultural Studies Model Curriculum. She is a bilingual educator, author, and educational consultant with ten plus years of classroom experience. Dr. Thao has a background in multilingual multicultural/social justice education and culturally responsive-sustaining pedagogy developing curriculum and professional developments that reflect diverse populations, with a focus on Southeast Asian communities.
Matt O'Donnell, Program Specialist, OCDE
Matt O’Donnell is a Program Specialist for the Model Curriculum Project at the Orange County Department of Education where he supports the development of the statewide Southeast Asia model curriculum projects. Prior to joining OCDE he was a curriculum specialist for the Sonoma County Office of Education, school administrator and secondary history social science teacher in Marin and Sonoma Counties and in Norcross, Georgia.
Tori Phù, Program Specialist, OCDE
Tori Phu is a Program Specialist for the Model Curricula Projects with Orange County Department of Education (OCDE). She has a Masters of Arts in Teaching with a single subject credential in English Language Arts, Vietnamese, ELD, along with a History/Social Science and Ethnic Studies qualification. She taught in secondary education for four years prior.
Joshua Brown, Project Manager, OCDE
Joshua Brown is the Project Manager on the Model Curriculum Project for the Orange County Department of Education. His current work involves developing curricula and organizing conferences and outreach initiatives across the state of California. Dr. Brown is an ethnomusicologist with over nine years of experience working as a faculty member at institutions of higher education across the Inland Empire, Orange County, and in Granada, Spain.

Community Partners

Our Leadership Team comprised of County Offices of Education and community organizations. They are a crucial partner and operate as an advisory panel regarding all aspects of curriculum writing and community engagement.

Meet the Community Partners

Hmongstory 40, Hmongstory Legacy

Hmongstory Legacy is where all of our history, heritage, identity and stories can be brought together and preserved forever. It is a grassroots, community movement, to establish a permanent physical museum, a comprehensive digital repository of our stories, transparent in our own vulnerability and resilience.

UMASS Global

Erika Saito, UMass Global
L. Erika Saito, Ph.D., is the Director of Strategic Partnerships in PK-14 Education at University Massachusetts Global. Dr. Saito is a California credentialed teacher with over 20 years of experience in various roles within K-12 public and private schools and teacher preparation programs. Her research and publications center on disaggregated Asian American history, communities, ethnic identity, social and emotional learning, international students, and multilingual learners.

California History Social Science Project

The California History-Social Science Project maintains that all of California’s students deserve high-quality history-social science, and ethnic studies instruction that equips them to discern fact from fiction and understand how the past matters to the present. We are dedicated to providing the highest quality history instruction, with a special focus on meeting the needs of English learners, native speakers with low literacy, and students from economically disadvantaged communities. Our approach to instruction integrates content, disciplinary understanding, and explicit support for English language proficiency, framed in an inquiry model of historical investigation

Butte County Office of Education (BCOE)

The Butte County Office of Education (BCOE) is located in Northern California and serves 13 districts and 17 charter schools in Butte County and provides services to students and educators in all 58 California counties.

Glenn County Office of Education (GCOE)

Our vision is for every resident of Glenn County to have available the educational and career readiness programs, and academic and career counseling necessary to maximize their individual potential to lead a successful and healthy life.

Los Angeles County Office of Education (LACOE)

LACOE is the largest regional education agency in the country and provides a range of services and programs to support Los Angeles County's 80 school districts.

San Mateo County Office of Education (SMCOE)

The San Mateo County Office of Education (SMCOE) supports local school districts in San Mateo County by providing services that can be done more efficiently and economically at the county level. These include implementing new standards, staff development and training programs, and instructional procedures; designing business and personnel systems; and performing many other services to meet the changing needs of local school districts. The County Office also provides a wide range of instructional programs, including special and career and technical education, and instruction in juvenile detention facilities.

Santa Clara County Office of Education (SCCOE)

Working collaboratively with school and community partners, the Santa Clara County Office of Education (SCCOE) is a regional service agency that provides instructional, business, and technology services to the 31 school districts of Santa Clara County. The County Office of Education directly serves students through special education programs, alternative schools, Head Start and State Preschool programs, migrant education, and Opportunity Youth Academy. SCCOE is committed to serving, inspiring, and promoting student and public school success.

San Bernardino County Superintendent of Schools (SBCSS)

The mission of the San Bernardino County Superintendent of Schools (SBCSS) is to transform lives through education. Working in collaboration with school districts, families, community partners and other agencies, SBCSS provides leadership, advocacy and services to ensure equitable, innovative and inspiring educational practices. This endeavor is essential to the quality of life and economic vitality of our communities.

Asian American Education Project

The Asian American Education Project creates and provides curriculum and professional development for K-12 schools in order to offer a more comprehensive and accurate look at APIDA history. By showcasing the struggles and triumphs of Asian Americans over the course of two centuries, our lesson plans amplify the importance and voices of this growing, integral segment of the U.S. population in building the country into what it is today and can become tomorrow, together as Americans. It is important for all Americans, young and old, to join in on this learning experience.

Southeast Asia Resource Action Center (SEARAC)

SEARAC is a national civil rights organization that builds power with diverse communities from Cambodia, Laos, and Vietnam to create a socially just and equitable society. As representatives of the largest refugee community ever resettled in the United States, SEARAC stands together with other refugee communities, communities of color, and social justice movements in pursuit of social equity.

California Commission on Asian and Pacific Islander American Affairs (CAPIAA)

The California Commission on Asian and Pacific Islander American Affairs (CAPIAA) was established in 2002 and is charged with elevating the political, economic, and social issues of Asian and Pacific Islander Americans (APIA), in the state. The Commission advises the Governor and the Legislature on how to best respond to views, needs, and concerns of the state’s diverse and complex APIA communities. Additionally, the commission provides assistance to policymakers, state agencies, departments, and commissions to develop appropriate responses and programs that meet the needs of APIA communities, including focus on cultural language sensitivity, and hate incident and hate crime prevention measures.

Hmong Innovating Politics (HIP)

Hmong Innovating Politics is a grassroots organization whose mission is to strengthen the political power of Hmong and Disenfranchised communities through innovating civic engagement & strategic grassroots mobilizations. We envision a California of empowered communities that thrive in a socially and economically just democracy.

Hlub Hmong Center

Hlub Hmong Center (HHC), reflects our love and passion for the Hmong community. Since 2010, HHC has emerged as a leading Hmong advocacy organization using culturally-driven methods to tackle social justice disparities. We are respected for our approach that connects the strengths of both public institutions and Hmong culture. Hmong lay-leaders facilitate institutional systems changes and family cultural changes.

Hmong Youth and Parents United (HYPU)

Hmong Youth and Parents United (HYPU) provides support services to under-resourced, marginalized and vulnerable communities. We offer outreach, bilingual support services, and programs for youth and families in the Greater Sacramento Region.

Fresno Center

The Fresno Center (TFC) is a nonprofit organization that assist individuals in becoming self-sufficient, self-fulfilled and more productive members of the community while Fostering Cultural Preservation and Promoting Cross Cultural Understanding. Building bridges for community engagement is an integral part of who TFC is. We can assist educators, health care professionals, government agencies, and business with cross cultural competency and interpreting services.

Hmong Cultural Camp

Hmong Culture Camp, Inc. is dedicated to preserving the Hmong language and culture while promoting cultural awareness and acceptance both locally in Merced, CA and on a global scale. Hmong Culture Camp provides language and cultural education programs for children ages 0 – 12, community events, and even online classes to reach a wider audience. Lastly, Hmong Culture Camp focuses on spreading cultural awareness and acceptance with a commitment to inclusivity and diversity.

Scholars

Our Research Team is our editorial board comprised of university scholars that reviews the relevance, accuracy, and framing of the content created for the model curriculum. Scholars led talks during the curriculum writing week and support educator acquisition of background knowledge.

Meet the Scholars

Bao Lo, Research Team, California State University, Sacramento
Dr. Bao Lo is Associate Professor and Program Director of Asian American Studies in the Department of Ethnic Studies at California State University, Sacramento. She received her Ph.D. in Ethnic Studies from UC Berkeley. Dr. Lo grew up in Stockton, CA and has conducted research on second-generation Hmong Americans in Sacramento, California.
Bee Yang, Research Team, California State University, Fresno
Bee Yang is currently a faculty of California State University of Fresno teaching Social Work with Social Work Education Department. He has been teaching Hmong Literacy and Hmong cultural classes at CSU, Fresno from 1994 to 2005, Field Liaison instruction and classroom Instructor teaching Social Work Cultural Diversity and Oppression since 2002 to the present time. He has been doing culture consultation for media, court, school, hospital, county agencies and other service providers locally, nationally and internationally over the last ten years.
Chia Vang, Research Team, University of Wisconsin-Milwaukee
Dr. Chia Youyee Vang is Professor of history at the University of Wisconsin-Milwaukee whose teaching and research includes twentieth century U.S. international history, the Cold War in Asia, Asian American history, Hmong history, refugee migration and transnational and diasporic communities. She is author of four books: Prisoner of Wars: A Hmong Fighter Pilot's Story of Escaping Death and Confronting Life (Temple University Press, 2020), Fly Until You Die: An Oral History of Hmong Pilots in the Vietnam War (Oxford University Press, 2019), Hmong America: Reconstructing Community in Diaspora (University of Illinois Press, 2010), and Hmong in Minnesota (Minnesota Historical Society Press, 2008). In March 2016, the University of Minnesota Press released her co-edited (with Faith Nibbs and Ma Vang) volume, Claiming Place: On the Agency of Hmong Women.
Chong Moua, Research Team, University of Wisconsin-Oshkosh
Chong A. Moua currently teaches Hmong Studies and History at UW, Oshkosh. Her research interests center around the question of how immigration, race, gender, citizenship, and U.S. empire produce discourses of cultural and national belonging in Hmong and U.S. history.
Choua P. Xiong, Research Team, University of Wisconsin-Oshkosh
Dr. Choua P. Xiong is an Assistant Professor of Hmong Studies at the University of Wisconsin-Oshkosh. Her research is informed by her activism as an educator in Southeast Asian community-based educational spaces, schools, and higher education. Choua led various collaborative and community-based participatory action research (CBPAR) projects that highlight the roles communities of color play in educating youth about schooling, political participation, and belonging.
Kaozong Mouavangsou, Research Team, UC Merced
Dr. Kaozong Mouavangsou is a scholar whose work examines the harmful impacts of U.S. education in order to imagine a P-20 educational system that centers Hmong community's knowledge, strengths, and assets.
Ma Vang, Research Team, UC Merced
Dr. Ma Vang is an Associate Professor of Critical Race and Ethnic Studies at UC Merced. Dr. Vang is also a founding member of the Critical Refugee Studies Collective. She is actively involved in local Merced community organizations in an advisory role on youth and education projects. She is author of the book History on the Run: Secrecy, Fugitivity, and Hmong Refugee Epistemologies (Duke University Press, 2021). She is co-editor of the book Claiming Place: On the Agency of Hmong Women (University of Minnesota Press, 2016) and co-author of the book Departures: An Introduction to Critical Refugee Studies (University of California Press, 2022).
Thong Vang, Research Team, University of Minnesota-Twin Cities
Thong Vang (he/him) is a Ph.D. Candidate in Culture and Teaching at the University of Minnesota, Twin Cities.

Writers

Educators were hired as short-term employees during the spring of 2022/2023 to write lessons. They were admitted based on shared experience, teaching experience in K-12 settings, knowledge of lesson planning, and interest in project.)

Meet the Writers

Clover Schinke, Writer Team
Clover Schinke is a teacher of 15 years in middle and high school social studies in Northern California. She has a former career as an attorney in San Francisco and New York City.
Linn Lee, Writer Team
Linn Lee (she/her/hers) is a Curriculum Specialist for History Social Science and Ethnic Studies in the Santa Ana, CA. She served on the original California Department of Education Ethnic Studies Model Curriculum Committee in 2018.
Karen Vang, Writer Team
Karen Bao Vang is a Ph.D. Candidate in Cultural Studies with a Designated Emphasis in Native American Studies and Feminist Theory and Research at the University of California, Davis. Her dissertation centers a Caub Fab worldview and centers Hmong women in relation to spirits of lands, spirits of waters, and spirits of skies. Her research interests includes ancestral knowledges and Hmong women as healers and knowledge keepers.
Sheng Vang, Writer Team
Sheng Vang is an educator and business owner in Chico, California. She is the oldest daughter of Hmong immigrants from Laos. She has been an education for over 14 years and have worn many different hats: Hmong bilingual liaison, After School Enrichment Teacher, After School Coordinator, Paraprofessional in an ED classroom, and Classroom Teacher.
Liz Ramos, Writer Team
Liz Ramos has taught high school history classes with the Chaffey Joint Union High School District since 2005 and as an adjunct teaching Literacy and Methods of Social Science since 2019 at Claremont Graduate University. Additionally, she has written curriculum for PBS, Unsettled History, and the CA CDE Distance Learning and Ethnic Studies Model Curriculum projects. As a lifelong learner, she enjoys continuing to learn, particularly about untold histories and culturally responsive teaching, and working to create inclusive spaces for learning inclusive history and getting into #GoodTrouble.
Vicky Xiong-Lor, Writer Team
Dr. Vicky Xiong-Lor is a retired K-12 educator of 27 years and is currently an Assistant Professor at California State University of Fresno. She has been working with Hmong language revitalization and reclamation work and have been directly involved with Hmong-centric Ethnic Studies curriculum for the last five years. Dr. Vicky was the Hmong language Teacher of the Year for the California Teachers Association and serves as the lead Hmong language facilitator for the Central California World Language Project (CCWLP) since 2015.
Phuoc Duong, Writer Team
Phuoc Duong is an educator and researcher. He specializes in state formation and educational development in Vietnam. His current project aims to illuminate the critical role that youth play within state making projects.
Doua Vu , Writer Team
Dr. Doua Vu currently oversees the Hmong Language Program in Fresno Unified School District and has worked in the educational field for the past 28 years, serving in different capacities as a teacher, instructional coach, school and district administrator, university adjunct professor, and consultant. She enjoys serving the community and spending time with her family.
Ya Po Cha, Writer Team
Ya Po graduated from California State University, Fresno with a BA in biochemistry and received his teaching credential in physical sciences and Master of Arts degree in Bilingual-Multicultural Education from California State University, Sacramento. He has been teaching Hmong as a world language full time for about 20 years. He is the author of the book An Introduction to Hmong Culture and Keeb Kwm Haiv Neeg Hmoob (History of the Hmong People).
Caroline Paaj Zaub Thao, Writer Team
Caroline Paaj Zaub Thao is a Social Science and Hmong Language educator who has 12 years of experience in the classroom. She teaches Hmong Language and Literacy in Sacramento. Caroline has been instrumental in developing instructional materials for the Hmong language, culture, and history and grounds her work in Hmong epistemology and decolonial discourses to uplift Hmong voices and empower the Hmong community.
Thong Vang, Writer Team
Thong Vang (he/him) is a Ph.D. Candidate in Culture and Teaching at the University of Minnesota, Twin Cities.