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Week of January 12, 2023
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DENVER, COLORADO
A publication of
VOLUME 96 | ISSUE 8
It’s the year of the rabbit Denver to celebrate Chinese New Year BY CHANCY J. GATLIN-ANDERSON SPECIAL TO COLORADO COMMUNITY MEDIA
Colorado State University doctoral student Xinyi “Katya” Zhou grew up celebrating Lunar New Year in her hometown of Beijing, China. Each year to celebrate, Zhou’s family would prepare an elaborate dinner on the eve of the Lunar New Year, full of potstickers, chilled braised beef, many prepared vegetables, chocolates, nuts and wine. Potstickers, the most important part of Zhou’s family celebration, were made with yellow chives, eggs and napa cabbage with homemade Sichuan peppercorn oil to add flavor. “Years ago, when my grandparents were healthier, we’d make potstickers together. My mom would mix the fillings and my grandpa — the chief in the family — was the quality control and would tell Mom if the potstickers need more salt or any adjustments,” said Zhou. “Grandma, my mom, and sometimes my aunt, would actually make the potstickers. I would help as well, especially as I got older. My uncle either helped with the potsticker making or would make the dough and roll it into thin pieces.” Guests would come and go from Zhou’s house throughout the several days of the Lunar New Year celebrations, sometimes bringing gifts along with them such as food and potted plants. Guests were greeted by a decorated front door, adorned with the Chinese character that means luck. Zhou’s family will be celebrating the Lunar New Year in Beijing, but because it falls in the middle of the spring semester, Zhou will be staying in Colorado and expects to spend SEE CELEBRATE, P6
There are two job openings for every available worker BY JENNY BRUNDIN COLORADO PUBLIC RADIO
Colorado is launching a full-frontal assault on its 38% job gap – that’s the difference between job openings and actual hires. The state is changing its approach to fill its high-demand, often better-paying jobs, targeting millions of dollars in grant opportunities for businesses to train or upskill workers. The gargantuan task means enticing many people already in the workforce into further training or education and targeting historically untapped groups with more training and education. “We need to be doing more to help connect Coloradans, our home-grown talent with skills that lead to goodpaying jobs and careers,” said Gov. Jared Polis. How bad is the gap? This summer there were 208,000 job openings compared to 129,000 hires, according to the ninth annual Talent Pipeline Report, which analyzes and explains labor market information, shifts in job demand, top jobs and the state strategy to fill those jobs. The report is produced by the state agency the Colorado Workforce Development Council in partnership with a number of other state agencies. Colorado is just one of 14 states with more jobs than before the pandemicinduced recession. But it also ranks 11th in the country for the number of people voluntarily quitting their jobs. It’s not just the 3.6% unemployment rate
Dragon Dancers will entertain the crowd at the Nathan Yip Foundation Chinese New COURTESY OF THE NATHAN YIP FOUNDATION Year Celebration.
INSIDE: VOICES: PAGE 8 | LIFE: PAGE 10 | CALENDAR: PAGE 7
Historically Colorado has relied on importing highly educated people to SEE OPENINGS, P3
SOCK IT TO ‘EM Charity offering hosiery to the homeless
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