#repchange

[apiasfrepresent]

By: Sydney Nguyen, APIASF/GMS Scholar

educate + serve //

Many thanks to Google, Southwest Airlines, Wells Fargo, Walmart, and many other sponsors for the opportunity to attend the annual APIASF Higher Education Summit in the nation’s capitol. Celebrating academic excellence, culture, leadership, and the contingency to grow as a student. I have been privileged to network and work alongside policy makers, nonprofits in the private and public sectors, educators, and important leaders in the AAPI community, such as Secretary of Education John King and the first Chinese American congresswoman Judy Chu, in aims to increase accessibility and affordability for AAPI student leaders. I am humbled to represent Oakland & my university, all to join forces with fellow scholars who helped guide me to self discovery and self love. As a GMS/APIASF scholar, my professional and interpersonal journey continues to blossom. I am grateful to these empowering and life changing opportunities, to be part of the interwoven narratives, and to share the knowledge with our communities.

[apiasfrepresent]

By: Sydney Nguyen, APIASF/GMS Scholar

pain + anger // Dissagregate Data APIASF Higher Education Summit

I was suddenly flickered with anger and distaste... On the overhead projector, slides beyond slides of disaggregate data, lingering existence of the Model Minority myth, and passionate narratives lifted the room. My eyes boggled as the numbers and percentages shrunk to show the lack of teacher diversity in America and exponentially grew the amount of South East Asians not in higher education with. John King’s narrative and ode to “teachers being the very reason why he survived and school was [his] place of solace”. Kim Soun Ty’s words resonated to the room of educators, that “pedagogy and curriculum should be reflective of the students”. That education should be “transformative and liberatory” and that “we need more teachers of color because the majority of students are minority and only 18% are in faculty”. It was a rhythm of that discussion and the magnitude of AAPI issues unraveling before us all... Why didn’t I know. Why didn’t my parents tell me their story? Why didn’t my school offer me ethnic studies? Why didn’t get involved with my AAPI community earlier? Why did I try to change who I really am? Why did I hide the realities of my living? Why doesn’t everyone do anything about this? Why, why and why. My childhood and adolescent flashbacks flickered all throughout, taken back by painful tears and heating rage. With this information, I was beginning to make sense of what was going on with my own experiences and with the data. While I read “51.1 Vietnamese Americans have not attended college” my memories take me back to the humiliation when I had take ESL, the times where I buried my head in my mother’s shirt for being too frustrated in translating for my parents and aunts, and now to see struggles perpetuate in my younger cousins. I look at those numbers and realize that I was accounted a number. I became livid and heated

“But it sparked a fire. A fire to grow more, learn more, and fight more.”

[apiasfrepresent]

APIASF Reflection

By: Yanyu Wu, APIASF/AANAPISI Scholar

It was my honor to attend the Higher Education Summit in Washington D.C. and met other scholars across the nation. I was able to learn different knowledge from my peers and listened to different lessons from the professors. During the Summit, I admired the scholar speakers because they taught me how to use technology to improve the network among Asian Americans and Pacific Islanders in the world. Their personal stories motivated me to help my community to be better and stronger. I never realized the Asian community was so powerful in the United States until I attended the Summit.  Everyone and everything in the Summit inspired me to be proud of being an Asian American and I should expand our Asian culture to the world. From the guest speakers, they taught everyone about networking. Mr. Kippen said every conversation we had would give us a surprise. It is true that even though everyone studies in the different field, networking would provide a chance to us for our future. Sometimes, we do not know a small action or a short communication might bring a big impact in people’s life. However, opportunities always come to us when we networking.  

I remember when I volunteered at the Lunar New Year Event on campus, there were many people did not know about the Lunar New Year. I was shocked because I thought this was a well-known festival to everyone. However, it was not. Connecting the satiation that I saw and the lessons that I gained from the Summit, it is important that Asian culture should spread to other countries. People should have classes to study about them. Asian culture has a long history, there is no doubt that we should learn about it, especially for Asian American.

             There are only a few ethnic study classes in South Seattle College and almost fifty percent of the students are Asian in our college. It is significant to have ethnic study classes for the student to learn about the Asian culture. After attending the Summit, there is a lot more information that I do not know about the Asian culture. I think many students are the same like me because we did not deeply explore the history. We did not have a lot of resources that help us to understand them. In order to help students be familiar with Asian culture, I would gather Asian students to advocate ethnic study classes should be open more in our college. Wherever we are going, we should not forget our root.

            Since South Seattle College has the AANAPISI Center, I will keep in touch with everyone on campus and help the AAPI folks. The Higher Education Summit gave me the knowledge and I hope to use this experience to give back to my community. I hope to use my experiences to help not only the AAPI community but also the other people with different ethnicity. I want to use my ability to assist my community to be better and better. What is the matter to me?  The matter is I can help and lighten everyone around me like the APIASF help me to be successful in my educational path.  

[apiasfrepresent]

#repChange: With new beginnings, how do we make impact?

This September, discuss how personal decisions can effect positive change.

Change can be made through personal actions of tremendous variety.  How do you work to improve surroundings for yourself and others?

September 13/ As Scholars studying on college campuses, many have unique opportunities to make positive change.  Tell us about the work you do on and off campus!

September 15/ Positive change begins with an idea, an observation, or a passion.  Moving forward, where do you see a need for change?  What do you plan to do to make this change?

September 20/ Share a photo of a historical or contemporary change maker! Let us know how this individual or group has inspired you.

September 22/ Despite our best efforts, change does not always happen all at once.  We sometimes experience significant roadblocks.  What advice would you give to a change-making Scholar facing a setback?

September 27/ Often times our call for change is inspired by community justice.  How do you view justice in your community, and how has this inspired a call to change?

September 29/ Tell us about your ideal tomorrow.  Open to interpretation.

[apiasfrepresent]

APIASF Higher Education Summit

By: Pauline Dong, APIASF/GMS Scholar

I had the great opportunity to attend the APIASF Higher Education Summit this year, and the experience has changed my goals and my vision for the future in powerful ways.

I had just graduated from UC Irvine a few days prior to the summit, and though I was very happy to have graduated, I was also pretty lost as well. I knew that I wanted to be an educator to serve underrepresented communities like my own, but I did not really know how I wanted to get there. Sure, I knew I had to continue schooling, but I think that after so many years of involvements where I would try  to “find” myself, I think I actually lost a bit of myself and my motivation along the way.

I think the turning point for me was being able to meet so many other AAPI scholars who were so dedicated to community work and higher education access. I was inspired by the people and the positive energy they brought to the space. Learning about their stories, dreams, and goals reinvigorated my own desire to pursue a career in education--this time, with a bit more direction. The workshops and networking opportunities taught me to appreciate the work that AAPI folks have done to increase higher education access for our communities. In addition, they also taught me to appreciate myself and the skills that I have gained thus far in my education because they are still relevant to what I want to achieve.

AAPI representation in higher education is still very lacking, but it is heartening to know that APIASF links me to a community of like-minded young people want to contribute to change this field for the better. Dr. Takada-Rooks said it best when he outlined how change--or imagination--is when creativity meets reality. More importantly, I learned from everyone involved in the summit that it takes a community to make a difference; no one can do it alone and that it is important for all of us in this digital age to “nurture our networks” in order to sustain our visions for the future. I plan to keep these words of wisdom in mind and as I pursue my own goals.I will remember that there a lot of people out there who are dreaming the same dreams I am, and the road to education reform is hardly a lonely one if we have all got each other.

[apiasfrepresent]

Love to let go!

Saoimanu Sope | APIASF-NBCUniversal Scholar, 2014 | UC Santa Cruz |

“Saoi” is in her final year at UC Santa Cruz where she is studying Film Production and Community Studies. Following graduation, she has plans to further her knowledge and experience in youth counseling and/or psychological therapy for, primarily, urban youth. Until then, Saoi is in the process of wrapping up her senior capstone for Community Studies after having spent six months working in the Media, Arts and Culture Department of the RYSE Youth Center in Richmond, CA. 

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You may be thinking, “how could anyone love to ‘let go’?” It’s probably easy to make sense of this when it comes to the not so great experiences in our lives, but let me explain myself a bit further.

The idea of “letting go” has too often been associated with the understanding that if you're letting go of something, it must be because that something has caused you more harm than help. And let me just say that in some cases—probably more than both you and I have ever considered—that isn’t true at all. Letting go shouldn’t be seen as a way for us to rid ourselves of the negativity in our lives, but rather, a way for us to accept our experiences for what it was/is, and look forward to what is yet to come. When we feel comfortable with this practice of letting go, we are unconsciously preparing ourselves (emotionally and mentally) for whatever may come our way. We don’t get caught up in comparing the future to the past and we certainly don’t let what we’ve already been through, impact how we approach our future endeavors.

 Letting go may be hard to do when it comes to the good in our lives, but in doing so, we acknowledge that, as we’ve probably heard over and over again, life goes on. Now, don’t get me wrong… When I say “love to let go”, I’m not asking you to completely trash your happiest memories and forget about them. What I am saying, is that if you’re anything like me: someone that takes a million and one photos and posts everything on social media so that I have the pleasure of reliving that moment as much as I want (whether it be how beautifully my food fills my plate, the incredible view of the place I’m currently at or the amazing people that I’m sharing a space with at some crazy cool event), it may be relieving to let go of those memories so that you’re not constantly stuck on what “used to be”.

Loving to let go is something that we should all get comfortable with because let’s be honest, we’re all going to have to—if we haven’t done so already—let go of something or someone even when we absolutely don’t want to. Letting go is a part of life and it shouldn’t solely be seen as a good or bad thing, but rather an approach to life’s great and not so great experiences that we may or may not have anticipated. And there’s nothing wrong with that. So love. Let go. And prepare to do it again. 

[apiasfrepresent]

what do you stand for?

We are motivated to serve when we feel responsible for others in our communities.  Write about the people, places, or ideas that you advocate for. How would you define justice in terms of the communities you are a part of?

[apiasfrepresent]

because they never gave up...

Individuals faced with overwhelming odds and unbearable pressure are capable of extraordinary things. Who are the individuals you admire who refused to be defeated by their circumstances, and instead rose to the challenge?