Asian American Empowerment - Mind The Gap: Generational Conflict in Student Struggles

By Anita Poon
APA News & Review
July-August 2003

Not long after I began my career in student affairs, I concluded that there is no such thing as a positive stereotype. Stereotypes silence the unique voices and true stories of individuals. Asian Americans may be entering colleges at a high rate, but that is not where the story ends. Many are first-generation college students. At UC Davis, the majority of Southeast Asian American students are the first in their families to attend college. Over one-third of Chinese American students at UC Davis are the first in their families to attend college. As a result, many of these students and families are not very familiar with campus resources and regulations - basically, how things work in college. I've encountered many Asian American immigrant families that view college as a trade school - a place to gain narrow skills for particular jobs. As first-gerneration college students, many 1.5 and second-generation Asian Americans(i.e. arrived in the U.S. at an early age, born in the U.S. to immigrants, respectively) are rarely influenced by family to view college as a place to develop as a strong person, to gain knowledge of their rights and to learn how to access resources to handle any career, family, or social challenges they face.

The fabled Asian American sucess story that the mainstream media have crafted since the mid-1960's, for their own racially divisive purposes, does not come without a price. What the media rarely reveal are the facts and data showing that a good proportion of Asian American college students are not doing so great. What they almost never highlight are the struggles behind the provocative headlines and the difficulties in academic progression once in college. Here are two stories. All names have been changed to protect the privacy of the students.

Marlan

Marlan was born in the Philippines, where his family was very wealthy. When he was 6, his faily fled the Philippines as political refugees to the U.S., where they had to start over with nothing. He witnessed his parents struggle to put food on the table. He greatly appreciated the sacrifices his parents made to give him an opportunity to go to college. Growing up, Marlan's parents encouraged him to become a medical doctor, but never forced him to do so. Though he was good at math, he struggled with chemistry and biology classes. The medical profession, Marlan felt, was both financially secure and would allow him to avoid political conflict, like the ones that forced his family out of their native country. During his second year in college, Marlan was placed on academic probation. Rather than reevaluate whether his interests and skills fit his selected major, he tried to persist with the course work. He blamed himself for his failure and his self-esteem quickly plummeted, because he couldn't understand why his grades didn't improve no matter how hard he studied. He became very depressed, and was eventually academically suspended. Rather than discuss his problems with his family he pretended to be enrolled in classes, and lied to his family, telling them he was doing fine in classes. He lived in fear everyday that his parents would findout. He felt so ashamed and depressed about letting his parents down. One of his academic counselors told him, "Just change your major. It's no big deal," but it was a huge deal. Marlan only felt dismissed by the counselor, who probably wanted to make him feel better. I encouraged him to let his parents know about the situation, but he did not feel that was an option. I was ethically and legally bound to maintain confidentiality. One day I asked Marlan what his interests were - music, business, journalism, helping people? His response was as disturbing as his lack of communication with his family, "No one has ever asked me that."

Pia

Pia was a second-generation Indian American majoring in mathematics, even though her passion was in politics and art. She came in to talk with me on a weekly basis about how much she wanted to pursue her interests. She was a very gifted public speaker and painter. She had a 2.1 grade point average in math, and a 3.7 and 3.8 respectively in poltical science and fine arts classes. Her parents felt math was the best major for her because they felt it was the only way to position her for financially stable career choices. They threatened to withdraw her from college if she went against their wishes. Like Marlan, Pia resorted to lying to her parents. With a great deal of guilt, she pursued a double major in fine arts and political science. When she asked me for a recommendation for a paid fellowship at the Asian Pacific American Institute for Congressional Studies, I gladly supported her candidacy. She was so happy when she was selected from a very competitive pool of applicants. Unfortunately, her parents would not allow her to follow through on the opportunity.

I encounter students like Pia and Marlan almost on a daily basis at UC Davis. Some are on academic probation or have been academically suspended. Some deal with a great deal of emotional stress and depression. Still others find some way to compromise between their personal interests and parental expectations. What troubles me is how difficult it is for some 1.5 and second generation Asian Americans to approach their parents with honest dialogue. In Marlan's case, his parents finally found out about his situation. Instead of being angry, like Marlan had expected, his parents were hurt that he didn't turn to them, but glad they could work together as a family. Marlan was lucky to have understanding and supportive parents. In some cases, parents are not so open to discussion. When Pia approached her parents with the fellowship opportunity to show them that there were good opportunities for her and to ask for their support in pursuing a career in government, her parents refused to support her. Pia completed her degree in mathematics and resolved to pursue a career in poltics after graduation.

According to a recent UC Davis report by Gillian Butler and Susanna Lee, data showed that many Asian American students are not fitting the Asian American overachiever stereotype. For example, Korean American students at UC Davis had the lowest seven-quarter persistence rate(72%) among all UC Davis students, the second lowest mean grade point average among all students, and a 22 percent academic probation rate in Fall 2001. There are many reasons for Asian American academic troubles. For some, they lack financial resources. For others they struggle with English as a second language. Many 1.5 and second generation Asian American students I encounter with academic difficulties are like Pia and Marlan. the conflict that Marlan and Pia faced stem from their family circumstances and experiences. As the next generation, they wanted to honor the sacrifices of their elders, but also had their own goals they wanted to pursue. The conflict between self and family is an extremely difficult one to resolved.

However, Asian American students can find support to address these challenges in healthy ways. They can access resources on their college campuses. At UC Davis, students should visit and access the services at the Counseling Center, Advising Services, the Undergraduate Advising offices in the various colleges, the Learning Skills Center, the Student Recruitment & Retention Center, and other offices. They should visit student affairs professionals and faculty with whom they feel confortable. They should enroll in Asian American Studies classes. They should take advantage of programs such as the Asian Pacific Islander Leadership Retreat. All of these resources can help students, who feel the weight of family expectations, with opening dialogue with their parents and finding the best way to resolved personal conflict within their lives.

At the same time, parents need to approach their children to open dialogue, and support youth in figuring out what their special talents and interests are. Many Asian American students take their families' opinions very seriously. Family support is an invaluable resource for many Asian American students in sucessfully completing a college education. As a community, we must enter dialogues to bridge the gap between first-generation Asian Americans who grew up in another country and the 1.5 and second-generation growing up in America, in order to nurture healthy families and to support the next generations of Asian Americans.

Poon is Student Affairs Officer in Asian American Studies at UC Davis. She is also a member of the national governing board of the National Asian Pacific American Women's Forum and an advisor to the East Coast Asian Student Union and National Asian American Student Conference.