The U’s Asian American Student Association invited high school students to learn about college life through a series of workshops about scholarships, relationships and study abroad programs. However, the association had fewer students attend this year’s conference than attended last year’s.
About 35 students attended the conference in the Union last week, a small amount compared to the 200 students who attended last year. Association organizers said they faced challenges in recruitment because of a new policy implemented by Jordan School District.
“The rule is that they will not let schools come in and talk to their students and will not collect anything or arrange for busses,” said Dan Cairo, admissions counselor for recruitment at the U.
Tom Hicks, executive director of the Brighton and Hillcrest areas for Jordan School District, said the policy allowing fewer students to attend outside school events was established because bussing students to conferences was a strain on the District’s resources and affected students’ attendance at their regular classes.
“We want to provide opportunities but not interfere with instruction,” Hicks said.
Jordan School District officials decided to set aside only one Saturday each school year for groups like the association to hold conferences and events for students.
Cairo said the policy, passed in the spring of 2007, has also affected the attendance of similar events put on by the Black Student Union, Movimiento Estudiantil Chicano de Aztlan and the Lesbian, Gay, Bisexual, Transgender Resource Center.
However, conference coordinators said the event was successful regardless of the numbers of students who attended.
“It’s not always about the number of students who come but the impact we leave on the students that do come,” said Dana Ngo, president of the association and a senior in biochemistry.
In addition to the workshops, students were able to speak with campus groups like LEAP, the Center for Ethnic Student Affairs and the Associated Students of the University of Utah.
“This year we had some struggles contacting the schools, but we gave it our all,” Ngo said.
During the conference at the U, students talked about how Asian Americans are stereotyped as the “model minority” group, meaning that they are all college-bound and going to succeed without much help, said Tricia Sugiyama, program coordinator for the CESA.
“In reality, we have a large population of refugee communities and first generation students or students whose parents have not been to a U.S. institution of higher learning,” she said.
Senior class president Nicole Ngyuen said she has been a target for the stereotype before.
“That’s the same kind of stereotype that was placed on me when I was in high school,” said Ngyuen, who was a guest speaker at the conference. “Nobody in my family had been to college, so I had to figure it out on my own.”
Ngyuen discussed her background and what motivated her to attend the U.
“I want to show that although there are obstacles we all face, there is light at the end of the tunnel,” she said.
Basim Motiwala, vice president of ASUU, told students that they may come from a small community high school where everyone knows each other, but at the U, it’s necessary to go beyond their comfort zone to create relationships.
“If you really think you can accomplish something, go for it,” he said.
Mika Lee, vice president of external affairs for the association and a senior in exercise physiology, went to the conference when she was a senior at Brighton High and said she appreciated the scholarships and financial aid information she found there.
“A lot of Asian parents are concerned about money and how they can provide for the students, but there is financial aid and scholarships out there even if you don’t have a 4.0,” she said.
Anna KartashovaStan Inman teaches high school students about college life during the Asian American Student Association’s high school conference. The attendance at the conference was hurt by a new rule in the Jordan school district.