ASIAN AMERICAN WOMEN STUDENTS AND FACULTY ON THE UC BERKELEY CAMPUS

URAP/SPUR Projects Fall 2020 & Spring 2021

Asians have a unique history in California, including in higher education. In this project, we will focus on Asian American women on the UC Berkeley campus, exploring the representations and experiences of Asian women, in diverse disciplines from STEM to Humanities, and at various academic and professional levels. 

Zinmay Renee Sung, Professor Emerita, Plant and Microbial Biology, started this URAP/SPUR project in Fall 2020 with the goal of documenting Asian American women's experience on campus. She recruited another group of students to continue the work on this topic in Spring 2021. Professor Sung's team of URAP undergraduate apprentices interviewed Asian American women students and faculty, who talk about instances of racism and bias they encountered, and about their hopes and aspirations.

150W Initiative Asian American Women at Berkeley

Interviews with Asian American Women Students and Faculty, Fall 2020 

In Fall 2020, Academy Board member Renee Sung, Professor Emerita, started a 150W URAP project with the goal of documenting Asian American women's experience at Cal.

Professor Sung's team of URAP undergraduate apprentices interviewed Asian American women students and faculty, who talk about instances of racism and bias they encountered, and about their hopes and aspirations.

In the context of recent anti-Asian violence and racism, this 35-minute video reminds us of the systemic barriers Asian American women face in academia despite the fact that at Cal Asian American women make up 20.7% of undergraduates, the largest ethnic group (compared to 6% of Asian American women faculty). 

Students interviewed: Helen Liu, Jamie Yanne Calma, Darae Jun, Crystal Wong, Eunice Kwon, and Neem Patel

Faculty interviewed: Faculty, Dipti D. Nayak, Lydia Sohn, Renee Sung, Michi Taga, Hei Sook Sul.

Interviews with Asian American Women Students at UC Berkeley, Spring 2021

Watch a video compilation(link is external)(link is external) of interviews with Asian American women students and their experience at UC Berkeley. 

Undergraduate researchers and interview participants: Jo Alverado, Pauline Carbonell, Manaal Shaad, Isabel Shiao, Veronica Wang, Amy Yang, Amy Zhong. 

URAP Instructor: Renee Sung, Professor Emerita, Plant and Microbial Biology 
SPUR Instructor: Hei Sook Sul, Professor, Nutritional Sciences and Toxicology 

Teaching Assistant: Manaal Shaad 
Video production: Jo Alverado, Amy Yang