Class Web Project
Asian American Studies 197J

Asian American Social Movements: The Role of Students in Defining the Future for Asian American Studies

Fall Quarter 1999

 This class examines the current state of Asian American Studies - and Ethnic Studies as a whole - and the pivotal role that students can play in expanding the field for the future. This class is offered by the UCLA Asian American Studies Center as part of a year-long series of activities commemorating 30 years of Asian American Studies at UCLA. Drawing from our history, this class focuses on four main questions:

• 1) With UCLA now having a strong Asian American Studies program with nearly 3,000 students taking classes annually, what enlarged role can UCLA students play in bringing Asian American Studies into the community?
• 2) With the proliferation of Asian American Studies on college campuses but the near invisibility of Asian American Studies outside the college classroom (e.g., K-12 classrooms and other community settings), what new responsibilities face students taking these classes?
• 3) With the growing strength of Asian American Studies programs in elite institutions nationally, including UCLA, what dangers and opportunities does this new situation pose for students in these institutions?
• 4) In this critical period, waht special challenges face student activists relating to the expansion of Asian American Studies?