AACC 2020-21 Alumni Update

ASIAN

2021 Asian Graduation Celebration

While we were unable to hold a formal Asian Graduation ceremony indoors due to the ongoing pandemic, we innovated and had a wonderful Asian Graduation Celebration outdoors behind the AACC to celebrate our Class of 2021 graduates. Over 150 Yale College, graduate and professional students came through in waves on May 21st for a bittersweet reunion! Approximately 125 AACC graduation packages containing an AACC stole, alumni pin, and gift were mailed out to Class of 2020 and 2021 graduates across the U S and globally who were unable to return to New Haven I hope you will join us in welcoming our newest class of alums when they move to your city!

From left to right: Brandon Lu, Alice Park, Lillian Hua, Kayley Estoesta

Maintaining Community

Without access to the AACC building during the academic year and students located in various locations throughout the US as well as internationally, the AACC staff exercised creativity in reimagining community beyond the four walls of the Center This proved especially critical to our mental health during what became a challenging academic year. From our welcome mixer series and annual Fall Asian Retreat to guest speakers and musical performances, events were tastefully adapted to the virtual sphere to ensure students could still access and feel a sense of community regardless of whether they are on or off-campus. The lack of geographical boundaries not only brought about collaborations with faculty, cultural centers, and New Haven community partners but also with Asian American Cultural Centers at other universities on the East Coast (i e Tufts University, Cornell University, University of Connecticut) Many of our event recordings can be accessed at our AACC YouTube channel at your convenience.

Celebrating Four Decades of Dreaming and Organizing

Anniversary celebrations are always an reflect, so here’s a video compilation of members’ reflections on what the AACC This video reflection was first shared at the start of our AACC 40th anniversary virtual kick-off event on May 12th (recording available here) during which it was announced that the AACC’s newly endowed Dean Mary Li Hsu Discretionary Fund, named after the first AACC Director to also serve as an Assistant Dean for Yale College, will be used to fund various initiatives that support firstgeneration low-income Asian and Asian American Yale students As we continue to celebrate 40 Years of Dreaming and Organizing throughout the 2021-2022 academic year, we invite you to learn more about how you can support the AACC as alumni here

Social Justice Education

The 2020 United States presidential election was a monumental period and we made an intentional effort to engage students around exercising their vote and voice in shaping the future In collaboration with Asian Americans Advancing Justice, the AACC organized virtual phone banking events to reach Asian voters in swing states to urge them to go to the polls and to help them make a plan to vote Additionally, the AACC continued to collaborate with the Association of Asian American Yale Alumni (AAAYA) to host Intergenerational Dialogue events series that brought alumni and students in conversation around a variety of racial justice issues.

Pan Asian American Heritage Month 2021

While the month of May is federally designated as Asian/Pacific American Heritage Month, the Asian American Cultural Center at Yale celebrates it University-Wide from March to early April. Pan Asian American Heritage Month (PAAHM) 2021 featured a month-long series of virtual events that pushed us to think more deeply about what solidarity looks like in everyday life within our Asian and Asian American communities. Our PAAHM 2021 keynote delivered by Alice Wong was titled, Disability (In)Visibility: Moving from Inclusion to Justice, drew over 200 student, staff, faculty, alumni and community members Throughout and beyond PAAHM 2021, AACC virtual speaker events featuring Asian American giants like Dr. Margo Okazawa-Rey, Dr. Val Kalei Kanuha, Dr. Tao Leigh Goffe (GSAS '15), Dr. Janelle Wong (GSAS ‘01), Hari Kondabolu, and Kristina Wong provided hours of invaluable opportunities for collective knowledge building as we navigated the ongoing pandemic as a community

From left to right: Alice Wong, Dr Margo Okazawa-Rey, Dr Val Kalei Kanuha

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Virtual Alumni Events

Due to the pandemic, the AACC was unable to host its annual Spring Break Externship program However, this allowed us to explore new ways to connect with alumni across the country in a virtual manner. In February, we hosted an Asian student-alumni get-together with the Association of Asian American Yale Alumni In March, we collaborated with the Office of Career Strategy to host "Asian Alumni Mentors in Common Good Careers," an event dedicated to increasing visibility of Asian American alumni who have had careers in non-profit, government and policy Both were great opportunities for students and alumni to connect in a smaller group setting through breakout rooms Shoutout to our amazing alumni community who availed themselves to connect virtually with our students and provided invaluable advice.

Stay connected to the AACC!

Please fill out this survey at tinyurl com/aaccalum2021 This will be used to gauge your interest for continued alumni engagement

summer, the AACC held multiple in-person, outdoor gatherings post-vaccination to facilitate explorations of community gems both on-campus and in the New Haven area