Tulsa Asian Affairs Commission sets 2025 priorities, finalizes Lunar New Year plans and appoints workforce committee chair

The Tulsa Asian Affairs Commission on Tuesday outlined goals for 2025 focused on leadership development, data collection and mental wellness while finalizing plans for a public Lunar New Year festival on Feb. 1, 2025.

Commission Chair Sarah said the group will move from an inaugural year of awareness and outreach into more targeted work, asking committees to help define an overarching commission goal. "I've never forgotten this — what is our purpose? What I would like to really be clear on what our goal is," Sarah said as the commission discussed priorities ranging from mentorship and leadership training to mental-health outreach.

The commission’s Cultural Committee confirmed details for a Lunar New Year celebration set for 6–9 p.m. Feb. 1 at 101 Archer, a University of Tulsa facility donated for the event. Ethan, chair of the Cultural Committee, said the commission had secured performers including a piano solo and Chinese folk dance, family activities such as lantern- and fan-decorating, a chopsticks challenge and food donations from local vendors. Circle Cinema will run related programming, including a showing of Parasite on Jan. 26 to promote the commission’s month of events.

Sponsors listed during the meeting include Williams, which the commission said provided a $25,100 grant, and other community partners such as Magic City Books. Ethan said the commission had also obtained roughly $500 in taiyaki gift cards for raffle prizes and planned to use Eventbrite as a public landing page. Commission staff said the City of Tulsa’s marketing office must approve use of city-branded materials and that the commission had established an account with Tulsa Community Foundation to receive monetary gifts.

Data and research work emerged as a central, cross-cutting priority. Patti and other data-committee members described plans to map existing community datasets and identify gaps, then coordinate outreach through partner organizations—schools, food banks and nonprofits—to answer three core questions: what percentage of an organization’s clients or employees are Asian, whether organizations provide differentiated services for those clients, and what needs would strengthen their ability to serve Asian populations. The committee intends to present a draft spreadsheet of partners and outreach leads in February before field work begins.

Mental wellness also featured in discussions. Commissioners and outside speakers urged the commission to frame outreach around "mental wellness" and resilience to reduce stigma and emphasize prevention, rather than waiting until crises arise. Several commissioners proposed culturally tailored educational materials and outreach through clinic partners and community leaders.

The commission held one formal vote. Members approved a motion to appoint Masood as chair of the Workforce and Education Committee. The motion was put to a voice vote; an "Aye" was recorded and the appointment carried. Earlier in the meeting Sarah moved to approve minutes from October; that motion was made on the record but the transcript does not include a recorded roll-call tally for that item. David moved to adjourn at the end of the meeting; the meeting was adjourned.

Commissioners and staff discussed next steps for event promotion and outreach: producing a short informational video or social-post series explaining Lunar New Year traditions, creating an Eventbrite landing page with an embedded video, coordinating press releases with city review, and producing volunteer badges and shirts. Staff said they would send a press-release draft to the group for review and circulate an Eventbrite link and media plan the week before the event.

The commission also discussed filling several vacancies on the commission, with particular interest in candidates who could represent public-health, immigration-law and Burmese community perspectives. Chair Sarah said she would pursue potential pro bono legal contacts and asked commissioners to suggest names for those openings.

The commission scheduled committee meetings for January and announced an intergenerational summit in March focused on Asian community experiences. Several commissioners emphasized partnering with existing organizations—APIDA groups, Global District, Leadership Tulsa and others—to expand capacity and avoid duplicating services.

Votes at a glance: the appointment of Masood as Workforce and Education Committee chair passed by voice vote; motions to approve the October minutes and to adjourn were made on the record (approval outcome for the October minutes not specified in the transcript; adjournment was carried).