One Friday afternoon in mid-October, Jonathan Han and five other Syracuse University students met in Starbucks on Marshall Street, ordered their lattes and ciders, and sat down to chat.

They discussed their gripes and issues: how Asian-Americans have or have not made headway in politics, social stigmas, the ‘model minority’ stereotype and how they are affected by affirmative action.

‘It’s always a black-and-white issue,’ said Han, a sophomore international relations major. ‘What about yellow? Where do Asians come into play?’

Their biggest gripe was that this discussion belonged within a far greater forum – an Asian-American studies program – which currently does not exist at SU, they said.

They developed a plan to somehow capture student and faculty support to start the program, by proving its need to the administration and following through with a detailed proposal of what the program would be. After nearly two months of work, the committee plans to complete its preliminary proposal within the next two weeks and send it to the SU Board of Trustees, and present it to Vice Chancellor and Provost Deborah Freund, Han said. But its work is far from over.

The committee must somehow prove both student and faculty demand for such a program, Freund said in a meeting with Andrew Lederman, Student Association president, when he proposed the idea, Han said. Then the administration would be happy to consider it. Then students would need to work with faculty members on a proposed curriculum, which would need to be acted on through the curriculum structure of whichever school or college proposes it, Freund said in an e-mail message. Lastly, the University Senate would need to approve it.

In the past, other students have tried to launch an Asian-American studies program but did not always receive such a warm response from the administration, Han said.

‘They had a lot of excuses before: no money, no faculty,’ Han said. ‘This year they seemed a lot more willing.’

Talking Strategy

The committee developed a three-pronged plan of attack, Han said. It must first establish a base of mobilized student support, and secondly establish faculty support within all programs and colleges, including the S.I. Newhouse School of Public Communications, the Maxwell School of Citizenship and Public Affairs, The College of Arts and Sciences and the Writing Program. The committee agreed that the program would ideally be multidisciplinary – with established courses and professors within all the colleges and programs – to not only give it breadth but make it much harder to cut if any sort of university budget crunch occurred, Han said.

The committee also plans to make connections with members of the administration.

‘People to tell us who to call, what strings to pull,’ Han said.

Student support, especially from students within the university’s 10 Asian student organizations, may not be difficult to find. Jen Li, fund-raising chair of Asian Students in America, said that at a school like SU, with its African-American, Latin-Latino American, Middle Eastern and women’s studies programs, Asian-American studies must be represented as well. Without such a program, people can’t be blamed for not knowing much about Asian-Americans.

‘People don’t realize how much Asian-Americans have contributed to this country,’ said Li, a sophomore communication design major. ‘And Asian-Americans don’t appreciate their own culture.’

Some professors are not only enthusiastic about the proposed program but are also strong advocates for it. With China becoming a booming economic force, and with six of the world’s most populous countries in Asia, Asian-American culture cannot be ignored on the SU campus, said Francine D’Amico, director of undergraduate studies in international relations.

‘It’s sad that we don’t have this program already,’ D’Amico said.

The international relations department recently assessed the university’s offerings of courses relating to Asia, across majors and disciplines, said D’Amico, who has spoken with Han about the proposed program this semester. The university already has many courses involving Africa, Latin America, and dozens across disciplines regarding Europe, but very few regarding Asia, especially areas other than Southeast Asia.

‘We’re still following a structure for international studies that reflects the traditional focus of what 30 years ago was called western civilization,’ D’Amico said.

Despite this, the university could potentially begin the program tomorrow with the courses listed in the course catalog, D’Amico said.

Reaching Out

Han said the committee has contacted other colleges and universities with similar programs. They also have presented the idea for the program to the Office of Multicultural Affairs, Hendricks Chapel representatives, the Student Advisory Board and several professors.

And while Han and others planned and made contacts, SA Vice President and President-elect Travis Mason mentioned the idea at a Syracuse University Board of Trustees meeting, where it was very well-received, Han said.

‘The board of trustees gets very excited when students take the initiative,’ Han said.

Chancellor Nancy Cantor’s great interest in revitalizing SU’s campus culture and ties with the community has generated even more optimism within proponents of the program, and her attitude may have caused administrators to encourage the program, instead of deflating the idea, Han said.

Following Winter Break, committee members plan to do more grass-root campaigning for the program. They will attend student meetings, send letters and press releases to the campus press, to create a strong student base of support, Han said. Their hope is that underclassmen will lead the effort so that, in a few years, the work does not wane as older leaders graduate. They will also develop a detailed report on the need for the program, the cost, and the benefits for students.

Han realizes that this program cannot develop overnight, though. Their short term goal is for the university to offer a few courses within one or two years under some sort of program title. The course would probably be an introductory course. Then, within five or six years, the university will establish a major within The College of Arts and Sciences. But the committee does not plan to propose that the university hire any new professors for the program – at least not initially, Han said.

Beyond five or six years, the program most likely would still be developing, as the three-year old Latin-Latino American studies program is just now beginning to take a more final shape, said Silvio Torres-Saillant, founding director of the Latin-Latino studies program and English professor.

Students, faculty and staff had to prove to the administration that they wanted the program, and it began as a project prior to Torres-Saillant’s arrival at SU in 1999, she said. As more and more courses became cross-listed within the program, it developed a major and minor. Now space has been allocated to it.

‘It’s wrong to think of it as just a project,’ Torres-Saillant said. ‘It’s a matter of education.’

Playing with politics

Although major institutions, including Cornell University and New York University, have some sort of Asian-American studies programs, most such programs exist in West Coast schools, Han said. The rarity of this major could help make Syracuse University more attractive to students, Han said. SU also has great academic and professional resources in its colleges and programs, which would give its Asian-American Studies program an edge, Han said.

But in starting the program, students and faculty must be very careful that it is established strictly within an academic realm, and not the political realm, said Lee C. Lee, founder of Cornell University’s program, which began in 1986. If the university begins to view it as filling some sort of ‘politically correct’ slot, then the program will not be fully respected and will become marginalized, Lee said.

Despite the upcoming steps, reviews and nonstop work, Han remains confident that the Asian American Studies Initiative committee plan will result in a strong program – so much that’s he’s already planning its 25th anniversary speech.

‘When we succeed,’ Han said, ‘and SU invites us 25 years from now for the anniversary of the program, we can tell the audience that it all began on a Friday afternoon in the Starbucks on Marshall Street.’

Published on December 1, 2004 at 12:00 pm