Our program is committed to four goals:
1. To foster innovative and socially-engaged faculty and student research in the fields of Asian American and Pacific Islands studies.
2. To create new paradigms for acknowledging and appreciating the contributions of Asian/Pacific Islander American diversity through teaching and programming.
3. To transform the production of critical knowledge about A/PIA communities and concerns through research, teaching, programming, and advocacy.
4. To engage in dedicated outreach to multiple A/PIA communities on campus and beyond.
The unique circumstances surrounding the incorporation of Asian immigrants and native Pacific Islanders into American society, as well as the broad range of stratification spanning Asian American and Pacific Islander American communities, underscores the richness and theoretical importance of developing a deeper understanding of the Asian/Pacific Islander American experience alongside—and often in contrast to—that of other groups in the United States. Students may take a full range of courses examining the historical, political, economic, literary, artistic, cultural, and psychological forces which have shaped and continue to shape the lives and communities of Asian Americans and Pacific Islander Americans.
