Southwestern College (SWC) is committed to serving the community and its nearly 3,000 Asian American, Native Hawaiian, and Pacific Islander (AANHPI) students, as a qualifying Asian American and Native American Pacific Islander-Serving Institution (AANAPISI) Institution. SWC recognizes the unique challenges these students face, particularly those who are low-income, first-generation, or underserved, and we’re focused on how to better serve our students.
Janelle Williams, Executive Officer of Equity & Engagement, stresses the need for intentional focus on AANHPI students. “AANAPISI Week highlights the need to concentrate on the unique experiences of our AANHPI community members,” she explains. “We need to examine what we’re doing well, identify areas for improvement, and look at ways to replicate our successes,” Williams adds. Programs like the Bayan and Sangam Learning Communities, CHAI: the Asiana & Pasifika Employee Resource Group, and the AANHPI Student Achievement Program play crucial roles in fostering student success.
SWC student Kody Ignacio reflects on how the Sangam Learning Community transformed his college experience. “Going straight from having your hand held in high school to essentially fending for yourself is daunting. attending a community college felt like a big leap,” he says. “I was ignorantly confident that I could maintain the same habits… [but] Sangam saved me from repeating history.”
SWC student Kody Ignacio reflects on how the Sangam Learning Community transformed his college experience. “Going straight from having your hand held in high school to essentially fending for yourself is daunting. attending a community college felt like a big leap,” he says. “I was ignorantly confident that I could maintain the same habits… [but] Sangam saved me from repeating history.”
SWC Counselor Crystal Alberto emphasizes the essential role of learning communities in fostering a sense of belonging. “They engage students through community-building activities and events while helping them develop critical thinking skills that are essential in their academic, personal, and professional lives,” she explains. “When students see themselves represented in these spaces, their self-confidence and motivation to achieve their educational and professional goals increase. The AANHPI Student Achievement Program grant further supports Asian & Pacific Islander Learning Community participants with growth and development opportunities such as university campus tours, cultural enrichment events, guest speakers, orientations, and workshops.”
Another SWC student, Adrian Moster, shares how Sangam has impacted him: “Before orientation, I had no intention of joining a learning community. I was skeptical, thinking the community would be cliquey, but we became a family by the second week. Over these eight weeks, Sangam has made college enjoyable and rewarding, especially as an LGBTQ+ and AANHPI minority.”
Williams believes that AANAPISIs also play a crucial role in shaping federal policies that better support AANHPI students. “By helping policymakers understand AANHPI student experiences, we can address the inequities in higher education,” she says. “For instance, our Native Hawaiian and Pacific Islander students have seen disproportionate impacts on course success over the past five years. Raising awareness can lead to solutions that serve as models across the state.”
The efforts to support AANHPI students at SWC extend beyond the classroom. The creation of CHAI, a group led by SWC AANHPI employees, aims to ensure that these students receive the support they need. Genesis Quicho-Lastrella, Tri-Chair of CHAI, explains, “One of CHAI’s pillars of action is Student Support. We advocate for culturally responsive curriculum and services that align with the educational and career goals of our AANHPI students. Through initiatives like targeted outreach, informal needs assessments, focus groups, and our API New Student Orientation, we listen closely to the needs of our students, particularly our Native Hawaiian and Pacific Islander students who have historically been underserved, to ensure they have the resources and community needed to thrive and succeed.”
Penelope Inouye, a SWC student who identifies as Filipino, Japanese, and Native Hawaiian, shared, “As a multiracial student, I feel confident that I can finish my associate degree in Kinesiology and transfer to a 4-year university because of the support I receive at SWC—not just from the friends I’ve made, but from programs, services, and staff who reflect my background.”
Williams encourages the SWC community to get involved and learn about equitable teaching practices. She recommends books like Models of Change: AANAPISIs in Action by Dr. Timothy Fong, Dr. Dina Maramba, and Dr. Mike Nguyen, as essential reading to understand and advocate for these initiatives.
Asian American Ethnic Studies professor Joseph Ruanto-Ramirez adds that AANHPI students often face unique challenges that are masked when they are grouped with other populations. “When you separate Asian Americans from international Asian students, you see discrepancies in mental health, family support, and income,” he explains. Ruanto-Ramirez also emphasizes the cultural and professional value of speaking multiple languages, noting that being bilingual is more than a skill—it’s a cultural legacy.
SWC Associated Student Organization (ASO) President Alicia Gan, who identifies as Chinese-Mexican-American, highlights how programs like CHAI’s Lunar New Year celebration last year foster a sense of community for AANHPI students. “It reaffirms the importance of cultural community for all cultures. These barriers exist, and students face them daily, whether we address them or not,” Gan says.
Looking forward, Ruanto-Ramirez hopes that the future of AANAPISIs will include more resources to address the diverse needs of AANHPI students. He advocates for national conversations that ensure institutions don’t have to choose between being AANAPISI or Hispanic-Serving Institutions (HSI) and can instead receive support for both.
As Williams puts it, “When we learn better, we do better.”
