Wednesday, November 11, 1998
Program pushes for success of Southeast Asians
CENTER Group to help disadvantaged students improve
academically
By Andy Shah
Daily Bruin Contributor
For many years, Tung Pham listened to stories of fellow
Vietnamese students getting bad grades, dropping out of school and
how they usually dealt with their problems by themselves.
Pham, co-president of the Vietnamese Student Union (VSU), and
other UCLA students decided that the problem had to be addressed.
So after four years of student effort, SEACLEAR was born this
quarter.
SEACLEAR, which stands for Southeast Asian Campus Learning,
Education and Retention, is a new retention project aimed at
improving dropout rates and academic performances of Southeast
Asian students (including Vietnamese, Cambodian, Thai, Laotian and
Hmong students).
"We want to help Southeast Asian students succeed, and we want
to be a clearinghouse of information on Southeast Asian students,"
Pham said.
The project, which will open its doors next quarter, includes
one-on-one academic peer counseling, academic and professional
workshops, study halls and an exam resource library.
The idea for the project was generated four years ago, but the
actual proposal was written this summer and was approved by the
Campus Retention Committee this fall.
Pham said it was "really difficult" getting the project approved
by the committee because there were no statistics on college
entrance and dropout rates for Southeast Asian students.
"The university doesn’t track Southeast Asian students; they
lump us together with all the other Asians," he said. "They only
started tracking Vietnamese students last year."
Pham said proponents of the project had to legitimize their
proposal to the committee.
"We had to bring in census data showing the socioeconomic status
of Southeast Asians, and we had to tell the committee members our
own personal stories of how Southeast Asian students struggle," he
said.
Tram Linh Ho, a member of the Vietnamese Student Union and
Campus Retention Committee member, said proponents of the project
had to point out the differences between East Asians, who tend to
be better off financially, and Southeast Asians.
"Southeast Asians are the newest wave of immigrants in the Asian
population," Ho said. "We have problems with poverty and college
entrance that other Asian groups don’t necessarily have."
According to 1990 census statistics, 16.6 percent of Vietnamese,
5.5 percent of Cambodians, 6.7 percent of Laotians, 3 percent of
Hmong and 34.4 percent of Thais in California have college
degrees.
Ho said that these statistics reflect the effects the Vietnam
War and immigration to the United States had on Southeast
Asians.
"Many people came here as refugees. Others came for a better
life, and many of them came here with nothing," Ho said. "And if
both of your parents are working 12-hour days, and you’re working
yourself, you’re not going to have many mentors to guide you."
Ho added that because many Southeast Asians are recent
immigrants, some do not speak English well, or even at all.
Johnny Nguyen, Undergraduate Students Association Council (USAC)
budget review director, said he once received a letter telling him
he was subject to academic dismissal from UCLA.
Nguyen said that he would have benefitted from a retention
project like SEACLEAR when he was dismissed.
"I had to deal with it by myself, and many others have to also,"
he said. "It’s a cultural thing. Many students have to go home on
the weekends and work in their parents’ shops, and they don’t have
much time to study because they are always working."
Nguyen said he hopes the project will provide mentorship to
students having academic and personal trouble.
"They need someone to confide in, because they can’t deal with
their problems all by themselves," he said.
This quarter, the project named Triet Vo as their new director.
He is currently undergoing training and will assume his position
next quarter.
The project is depending heavily on volunteers to take on
leadership roles since budget constraints do not allow the project
to have hired staff, Nguyen said.
Ho said the project is going to recruit new members by
consulting with student groups, such as VSU and United Cambodian
Students. Nguyen added that the project is entitled to a list of
Southeast Asian students who are subject to dismissal, a list that
was private before.
Ho said that an established project like SEACLEAR, which will be
housed in the Men’s Gym, will allow volunteers to effectively help
Southeast Asian students.
"We’ve had informal study halls before the project, but now it’s
stronger because we’re a real retention center," she said. "And we
can now help students from a cultural frame of mind.
"If you identify with your mentor, it’ll be easier to connect
with them, and that will help you build self-esteem," she
added.
OUTREACH: For more information about the project, contact Trinh
Huynh, USAC facilities commissioner at (310) 825-1483 or via e-mail
at [email protected].
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