Students have been campaigning for the Asian and Asian-American studies minor for the past 14 years. However, after the passage of the minor, there have been issues of transparency and communication among students, faculty and the administration. Last week, students met with George Langford, dean of the College of Arts and Sciences. In the meeting, the dean promised to have student representation on a coordinating committee that would consist of students enrolled in the minor and other concerned students. This committee’s responsibility will be to work with a faculty committee and report back to students on the state of the minor. It will be involved in processes that pertain to the AAA minor.

In response to The Daily Orange Letters to the Editor, we want to clarify some of the statements that were made within the last week:

On the issue of the hiring committee:

• A professor’s April 21 letter demonstrated a poor understanding of history when he claimed that student activists in the past ‘didn’t demand to sit on hiring committees or assess faculty qualifications.’ During the landmark 1968 student strike at San Francisco State College, student organizations demanded ‘authority and control of the hiring and retention of any faculty member, director or administrator, as well as the curriculum’ in ethnic studies. Furthermore, the African-American studies search committee at Syracuse University has student representation.

On the issue of qualifications:

• Having a background in American literature does not mean that one is a specialist in Asian-American literature.

• Regardless of one’s alma mater and identity, it is essential for an instructor to have an educational background in Asian-American literature to teach a class on the subject. For example, someone who has an educational background in science is not necessarily qualified to teach all concentrations of science.

On the issue of transparency:

• There has been a lack of transparency from the faculty and administration. When the new candidates were visiting campus, the AAA listserv only provided students with the names of the candidates. Their curriculum vitae listing their publications and community involvements were not provided.  

Our vision for the minor was articulated by Oliver Wang, a professor in sociology at California State University Long Beach, who signed our petition and wrote: ‘A commitment to the future and health of a program and department begins with more than lip service. Qualified faculty and personnel are essential to the long-term health of a program, especially a new one.’ As leaders of an organization that values inclusiveness, these are the views we uphold.

The executive board of Asian Students in America (ASIA)

Published on April 24, 2011 at 12:00 pm