May puts the spotlight on Asian American and Native Hawaiian/Pacific Islanders’ access to higher education
Since 1992, Congress has designated May as Asian American and Native Hawaiian/Pacific Islander Heritage Month “to celebrate and pay tribute to the contributions generations of Asian American/Pacific Americans have made to American history, society and culture.”
This year, Liaison is marking the occasion by using our blog to draw attention to the significant contributions of Asian American and Native Hawaiian/Pacific Islanders to higher education as a whole.
Why are the members of these communities so important to American colleges and universities? According to the Postsecondary National Policy Institute, Asian American/Pacific Islanders (AAPI) college enrollment has increased 36% since the turn of the century, and AAPI students are more likely to graduate with a STEM degree than any other group of students. In addition, most AAPI adults over the age of 24 have earned at least an associate degree.
Speaking out
Today, in light of the surge in discrimination and violence against many members of the community, Liaison is compelled to add its voice to the chorus of others across the country speaking out against injustice, racism, violence and hatred.
Just as the colleges and universities that Liaison serves would struggle to thrive if they excluded certain groups of people based on ignorant beliefs and bigotry, so, too, would society as a whole.
United we stand — for all
In February and March, Liaison launched two series of blog posts and articles celebrating Black History Month and Women’s History Month, respectively. The same spirit with which we undertook those endeavors inspired us to take a stand for our Asian American and Native Hawaiian/Pacific Islander community members, as well. That starts with this series of blog posts.
Please continue to watch this space for the rest of our May blog series on this important topic. In the meantime, you can learn more about Asian American and Native Hawaiian/Pacific Islander Heritage month here and about the contributions of Asian American and Native Hawaiin/Pacific Islanders to our country here.