The student leaders met with PCD to share their experiences as members of the API community and discuss how to make SJSU more inclusive. Their short-term goals included hosting an API study event and celebrating API Heritage Month. Long-term goals were to establish an API council, create an API resource center, and collaborate with other underrepresented groups. They presented data on API demographics at SJSU and in the CSU system. Through personal narratives, the students highlighted issues like a lack of support for Asian American studies and stereotyping of API students. They advocated for representation and empowerment of the API community at SJSU.

1. Meeting with the
PCD
By:
Abdullah Deen
Ian Zamora
LooLoo Amante
Mia Guevarra
Thien Dang

2. OBJECTIVE
We as API-identified student leaders
are here to share our unique experiences and share the
challenges as part of the API community on how
San Jose State University can become an inclusive campus.

3. GOAL OVERVIEW
Short-Term Goals
➢ Host an API finals study
event; to provide academic
support for the API
community
➢ Have some form of
celebratory event for API
Heritage Month
➢ Establish a university wide
API Council or task force to
create effective
communication among the
API community
Long-Term Goals
➢ Work towards creating an
API resource center
➢ Collaboration with the
campus community & under
represented groups on
campus
➢ Transparency of the API
community to the campus
➢ Expand on the CSU API
Initiative
Overall
➢ Giving space and voice to
those underrepresented in
API
➢ Highlighting the challenges &
unique experiences of our
students
➢ Educating other about the
API community

4. DATA
→ What is API?
→ SJSU
AANAPISI Grant
Achievement Gap
Enrollment Stats
→ CSU System
CSU AAPI Initiative

5. Breakdown of “Asian American” and “Native
Hawaiian and Pacific Islander”
Image from: “The State of Higher Education in California- Asian Americans, Native Hawaiian, Pacific Islander Report.”
The Campaign for College Opportunity. September 2015.

6. State of SJSU with the API Community
● Current grant cycle at SJSU: October 2011 - September
2016
○ We just submitted our application for the next cycle
○ It seemed as though the grant wasn’t properly utilized to actually
support the underserved API communities
● Lack of institutional support for the Asian-American
Studies department
● API students are often stereotyped because of
misconceptions, due to lack of awareness

7. cont.
● According to the SJSU Campus Climate Survey 2015, Asian-American students
indicated more instances of discrimination based on race as well as language/accent
○ 32 classifications of API - Campaign for College Opportunity
● Also, “Employees identifying with two or more races likewise reported higher rates of
racial discrimination, as did students who were of Pacific Island or Middle Eastern
backgrounds.”
● According the “in-house” research study Why Do Students Leave?
○ Within the Pacific Islander community from Fall 2012,2013, 2014 cohort about
70-100 % of First-Gen. PI left SJSU
○ Within the Asian-American community from Fall 2012,2013, 2014 cohort about
31-46% of First-Gen. Asian-Americans left SJSU

8. API’s at SJSU vs. CSU
Source: Office of Institutional Effectiveness & Analytics. Fall 2014.

9. CSU Data
Image from: “The State of Higher Education in California- Asian Americans, Native Hawaiian, Pacific Islander Report.”
The Campaign for College Opportunity. September 2015.

10. State of the CSU w/ the API community
● Currently have the Asian American and Pacific Islander (AAPI)
Initiative is a CSU-wide effort to improve college access and
graduation achievement for Asian American and Pacific Islander
students from underserved communities
● Is meant to serve Samoan, Tongan, Marshallese, Hawaiian,
Cambodian, Hmong, Laotian, Fijian & underserved Chinese,
Vietnamese, Filipino, Korean, Thai
● It seems as though, since these demographics are small in numbers,
it’s as though the support has declined or diminished

11. PERSONAL
NARRATIVES

12. LooLoo Amante,
President of Associated Students
Year: 4th year
Major: Advertising
Minor: Asian American Studies
I identify as Samoan, Filipino, Mexican and
Chinese American

13. Mia Guevarra
President of Akbayan
Pilipino American
Organization of SJSU
Year: 4th year
Major: Advertising
Minor: Humanities
2nd Generation Pilipino-American
from Fairfield, CA

14. Ian Zamora,
Diversity Advocate Intern
for MOSAIC
Global Village Resident
Advisor for UHS
Year: 5th year
Major: Social Science Teacher Prep
Minor: Asian American Studies
2nd Generation Pilipino-American
from Milpitas, CA

15. Long Dang,
Vietnamese Students
Association
Year:5th year
Major: Economic and Political Science.
1st Generation Vietnamese American
Vietnam War refugee.
Advocate for a society that embraced
equality of opportunity and condition.

16. Vietnamese Student Association
Annual Cultural Show

17. Abdullah Deen,
Q&A Officer
QTIP President
Year: 2nd year
Major: General Business
1st Generation Malaysian -
Sri Lankan

18. Since it’s founding in 2009, Q&A has been the multicultural
organization creating safe spaces for
LGBTQ-identifying API individuals.
Q&A SJSU hosts the annual Queer Prom and collaborates with
Cal Q&A to host QACON.

19. Why we are here
➔ Representation
Currently no API task force or resource
centers
➔ Educate
Disprove Model Minority Myths
➔ Empower
Hadn’t had a space to talk about our
issues
➔ Seek out Support from the
University
There’s only so much student orgs.
are capable of doing

20. Universally, there are more
than NINETY
DIFFERENT API
IDENTITIES from
Malaysian to Pilipino to
Samoan and Vietnamese.

22. We as API students have a
dream that one day SJSU
would provides support
services for Asian-Pacific
Islanders.

23. But why does that
have to be a dream?
Why can’t it be a reality?

24. THANK YOU!