APAS Open House
On November 13, 2007, APAS held an open house to introduce the ASU community and the Asian American community in Phoenix to the new APAS offices. Visitors were able to view exhibits which reflected the variety of research being produced by APAS faculty and students. The exhibits will remain on display and will be updated regularly to keep visitors to the APAS offices informed on current research activities.
APAS moved to the third floor of Wilson Hall in late July. The expanded space allows APAS to grow physically and expand our research opportunities.
The open house began with an informal reception and later the Deans for the College of Liberal Arts and Sciences were introduced. Vice President and Dean Quentin Wheeler was joined by Executive Dean Alan Artibise and Dean of Social Sciences Linda Lederman. They have been instrumental in moving the APAS program forward and each received a clock with an "APAS" face in appreciation of their support. APAS would especially like to single out Dean Artibise for recognition since he has been associated with APAS longer than any other dean. APAS has been able to hire several additional professors because of Dean Artibise's efforts on behalf of the program.
It has been ten years since the Certificate in Asian Pacific American Studies was approved, and nine years since the Asian Pacific American Studies program officially began in the College of Public Programs with the support of President Lattie Coor and COPP Dean Anne Schneider.
Since then, the program has undergone changes in personnel, in institutional location—it is now in the College of Liberal Arts & Sciences within the Division of Social Sciences—and now in our office space, an improvement from our past two locations thanks to Dean Alan Artibise.
One exhibit contained over 30 photos of buildings owned by early Asian American families in Arizona. Several APAS students participated in the City of Phoenix’s Asian American Historic Property Survey, and worked with Arizona Historical Research Inc. to collect oral histories of some of those early Asian American families who lived and did business in Phoenix. Excerpts from these interviews were on display over photos of the buildings.
The Japanese Americans in Arizona (JAAZ) exhibit filled the conference room with
a display of artifacts recovered from the Camp Canal Internment Camp; videos of early JAAZ family, church, education, and farming life in Arizona; a slide show of JAZZ graphic design projects created by ASU senior visual communication students under the direction of Professor Molly Schoenhoff and APAS Director Karen Leong.
Other exhibits featured our faculty members’ research interests. Even though each faculty member is from a distinct discipline, many of the questions they ask overlap and address at least one of APAS’ three research foci: Racial Formations,
Migration, and Health.
Finally, while APAS engages transnational and national questions related to Asian American and Pacific Islander communities, we also maintain a strong commitment to social embeddedness and leveraging place. Our faculty regularly consults with community organizations in the areas of health, migration, and community knowledge. The Japanese Americans in Arizona Oral History Project and Enduring Communities are examples of APAS collaborations with local and national organizations.
