Celebrating a Legacy of Leadership and Resilience

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This May, UC San Diego celebrates the 19th annual Asian and Pacific Islander American (APIA) Heritage Month. Through events, lectures and seminars, the campus honors the profound impact of Asian Americans and Pacific Islander Americans on U.S. history, culture and innovation whose trailblazing efforts have paved the way for future generations to flourish.

This year’s theme embraces the national Asian American and Native Hawaiian/Pacific Islander (AANHPI) Heritage Month theme: “A Legacy of Leadership and Resilience.”

The celebration kickoff and scholarship awards ceremony was on May 1. The event featured live cultural performances by Lion Dance at UC San Diego and graduate student Varsha Vinod performing Bharatanatyam, an Indian classical dance form, inspiring words from keynote speaker Shyama Kuver—a celebrated writer, poet and founder of Heart Over Crown, a platform dedicated to storytelling around love, loss and healing—and the presentation of awards honoring outstanding students, faculty and staff.

APIA Heritage Month Awards

Essay Contest Winners

Top Award: Natalie Glezen (fourth year, Political Science major, Ellen Roosevelt College)
Graduate/Professional: Felerico "Pico" Marquez (first year, School of Medicine)
Undergraduate: David Hoang (third year, International Business major, Marshall); Mia Ricario (fourth year, Bioengineering: Biotechnology major, Marshall); Nhi Tran (second year, Human Biology major, Warren)

Service Achievement Awards

Madelyne Agamata, Office of the Vice Chancellor for Equity, Diversity, and Inclusion, Events Specialist
Dr. Maria Rosario "Happy" G. Araneta ’83, UC San Diego School of Medicine Associate Dean of Diversity and Community Partnerships and Department of Family Medicine and the Herbert Wertheim School of Public Health Professor of Epidemiology

Legacy Award

Windi Sasaki ’00, APIMEDA Programs and Services Associate Director

A Full Month of Festivities

Visit the APIA Heritage Month webpage to learn about ways to celebrate, or make a gift to APIA Heritage Month Scholarships or the Asian Pacific Islander Middle Eastern Desi American Programs and Services Fund. All faculty, staff and students are invited to join this year’s festivities; check out a sampling of events below and explore the full calendar of events. For more information on UC San Diego Heritage Months, visit this webpage.

Missing/Disappeared Bodies and Forgotten Geographies
May 6 | 6 p.m. | Mosaic Hall 113
Situating the Gwangju Uprising and the Argentine Dirty War as part and parcel of the diasporic, this talk by Junyoung Verónica Kim, a visiting scholar at the Asian/Pacific/American Institute at New York University, proposes that examining the relationships between Korean and Latin American communities can help create a decolonial and demilitarized world.

Victoria Chang: Poetry Reading and Q&A
May 8 | 6 - 7:30 p.m. | Price Center Theater
Join us for the sixth installment of the Humanities Event Series, featuring Victoria Chang, author of “With My Back to the World.” The collection engages with abstract artist Agnes Martin and explores the interior life of the self as we navigate the challenges of a world too often marked by indifference with wonder, beauty and humor.

APIMEDA Poetry Slam and Art Showcase
May 15 | 6 - 8 p.m. | Cross Cultural Center
CAPS and Asian Pacific Islander Middle Eastern Desi American (APIMEDA) Programs and Services are teaming up to hold a Poetry Slam and Art Showcase. All are welcome to come express yourself or simply listen to original poetry in the spirit of Mental Health Awareness Month.

Advancing the Well-Being of API Students: The Interplay of Research, Data and Action
May 20 | 12 - 1 p.m. | Murray's Place at Student Health Services
This panel will explore strategies to enhance the well-being of API students. Drawing on research, data and real-world case examples, the presenters will offer insights into addressing clinical needs, service utilization and access to care for API student populations.

PI Community Mixer
May 20 | 12 - 1:30 p.m. | ERC Room at Price Center West
Looking for a lunch buddy? Stop by our "bring your own" Pasifika luncheon. Together, we will be in community to highlight the beauty of connection throughout Oceania!

Bollywood Workshop
May 30 | 12:30 - 1:30 p.m. | RIMAC Room 2
Join the Pacific Islander and Asian American Staff Association for a Bollywood workshop with Recreation. Be sure to bring a water bottle and a towel!