AAJA Goes Back to School with Student Groups
ASU, USC, CSUF, CSLA, Northwestern and UT Austin student group leaders share their ambitions and journeys with groups
By Hayden Park and Anissa Deol, Programs and Communications Interns
This month on AAJA Defined, we spoke with leaders from our student groups across the nation. We hoped to support AAPI journalism students on campus who need more representation within the media and their classes. They discussed how student groups not only give students the ability to join a new community; they also allow students to cultivate new skills and face challenges, all while building friendships along the way.
The student groups that are featured in this edition are AAJA-Arizona State University, AAJA-University of Southern California, AAJA-California State University, Fullerton (CSUF), AAJA-CCNMA-NAHJ (Cal State L.A.’s group), AAJA-Northwestern University and AAJA-University of Texas at Austin. AAJA strives to uplift chapters, affinity groups and student groups, especially through elevating our members’ voices anytime they have an achievement.
The responses have been edited for clarity and length.
AAJA-Arizona State University
Susan Wong, President
Why is it important that your student group exists to support AAPI journalism/communications students at your particular college?
It’s important that our AAJA-ASU group exists to serve and support AAPI students in the media industry because there are not many of us, so the more support there is, the better. We hope to create a community at Arizona State within the journalism and media field to help our students through professional and social networking.
For anyone looking to start a student group or join one, what’s your biggest piece of advice?
My biggest advice for anyone who is looking to start a student group is to just go and do it. I remember during my freshman year, it was just the president, the vice president, myself and another freshman, who is now my VP. It doesn’t matter the size of your group, it’s about the impact you can have on the AAPI community.
AAJA-University of Southern California
From left to right: Irene Kim, President, Marissa Ding, VP of Logistics and Edward Huang, VP of Communications
Why is it important that your student group exists to support AAPI journalism/communications students at your particular college?
IRENE: As representatives of a growing Asian American journalism community at USC, it is crucial to stand as stakeholders in our department. Representation in media is now more important than ever, which is why organizations like AAJA are key components to expanding diversity in newsrooms. From social events to guest speaker opportunities, AAJA at USC allows Asian Pacific Islander Desi Americans [APIDAs] to find their voices as journalists from starkly contrasting yet similar backgrounds.
MARISSA: Although USC has a large Asian American student demographic, it is still a predominantly white institution (PWI), with USC Annenberg having a small proportion of AAPI students. Because of this, it is very important to have an organization at USC where Asian journalism/communications students can help each other ideate and grow, knowing that we have a shared connection through our Asian American identity.
There is also a sense of fragmentation among the different AAPI groups on our campus, so USC AAJA promotes unity and seeks to provide a community and safe space for discussion of Asian American identities and amplification of APIDA voices.
EDWARD: It is important for AAJA university groups to amplify AAPI voices in college newsrooms to shift the norms of industry newcomers [and] be loud! The people you’re surrounded by when you’re young and learning influence your decision-making later in your career.
IRENE: Ultimately, AAJA reminds members that you are truly never alone in the newsroom as an APIDA journalist. Instead, we are given the ability to speak UP and OUT about diversifying opportunities to elevate APIDA voices!
For anyone looking to start a student group or join one, what’s your biggest piece of advice?
IRENE: Reach out to local groups and ask questions about their journey on getting started! Although every student group runs differently, it never hurts to reach out and learn more about the incredible networking opportunities and advice other chapters can provide you with.
Also, don’t be afraid to advocate and remind your school’s faculty on the importance of having an opportunity like AAJA! It’s so important to remind others that AAJA will allow students across campus to find community with others interested in elevating APIDA voices in newsrooms.
MARISSA: My biggest piece of advice is to message other college/university groups and get connected with other student journalists around the country online and at the national convention. I met so many talented and driven student journalists at the convention this summer and it helped me feel more at home in the AAJA community as well.
Learn more here: Instagram
AAJA-California State University, Fullerton (CSUF)
Jessica Choi, President
Why is it important that your student group exists to support AAPI journalism/communications students at your particular college?
Cal State Fullerton is a diverse campus, with an AAPI student population of around 25%. CSUF’s College of Communications had other established student groups of journalism associations, such as NAHJ and NABJ. However, AAJA’s never existed — until now. It was important for us to provide an association for AAPI journalists, students, communicators and allies at a university that has such a substantial Asian population, to collaborate, learn from and support each other.
For anyone looking to start a student group or join one, what’s your biggest piece of advice?
For starting a student group, the best thing to secure is a passionate group of like-minded students that are willing to put in the work. The beginning process of starting an organization and figuring everything out is the hardest part; the starting group needs to be willing to do that, and usually, passion drives that process.
Learn more here: Instagram
AAJA-CCNMA-NAHJ (Cal State LA)
Anne To, Vice President
Why is it important that your student group exists to support AAPI journalism/communications students at your particular college?
Once the group is fully up and running, we have plans to invite in guest speakers and plan events to help each other. The chapter also helps with learning about internships and joining associations like AAJA. Social networking is an important part of being a journalist, and this chapter is the perfect medium for it.
For anyone looking to start a student group or join one, what’s your biggest piece of advice?
Honestly, just go for it. The Cal State L.A. AAJA-CCNMA (California Chicano News Media Association)-NAHJ (National Association of Hispanic Journalists)-NAHJ student chapter has not been active since the pandemic, and we just decided this semester to start bringing it back. It was really just something that we decided to do on a whim, and it’s been going great. We have lots of people interested in joining and just starting something is always the first step.
Anything else you want to add?
One of our biggest plans is to go from the AAJA-CCNMA-NAHJ student chapter to the AAJA-CCNMA-NABJ-NAHJ student chapter. It’s long, but memorable.
AAJA-Northwestern University
Katrina Pham, Public Relations Chair
Why is it important that your student group exists to support AAPI journalism/communications students at your particular college?
Northwestern University is PWI, and the Medill School of Journalism within NU reflects that — that means many journalism students of color can feel underrepresented and invisible in their learning spaces.
By establishing our chapter of AAJA at NU, we wanted to make space for the AAPI journalism students at Medill. Being at a PWI and trying to learn how to navigate a predominantly white industry can be overwhelming. Giving AAPI students a chance to connect and see there are others like them working toward the same goals can be motivating and comforting.
For anyone looking to start a student group or join one, what’s your biggest piece of advice?
Starting something new takes time, so don’t be worried if the chapter isn’t as large or as established as you might imagine it to be — it will come.
Learn more here: Instagram
AAJA-University of Texas at Austin
Alishba Javaid, President
Why is it important that your student group exists to support AAPI journalism/communications students at your particular college?
When you’re in a new environment away from home, it’s imperative to foster community and support. I joined UT’s AAJA chapter during my first semester of my freshman year, after being ridiculed and discouraged by my Asian parents who didn’t want me to pursue journalism. As a junior, I want to create that safe space for others to help other Asian American student journalists stay in this field and put my mission of diversity and representation in the news media into practice. We hold workshops for internships, collaborate with student publications and give advice at journalism classes, among others. We not only help each other professionally, but also build this community within a community that’s at this intersection of identity and career. By advocating for better media coverage of Asian Americans, as well as reporting on our own communities, this growth happens.
For anyone looking to start a student chapter or join one, what’s your biggest piece of advice?
The community is there; it just needs to be tapped into and organized. For those who are planning to start their own student chapter, we advise you to organize not just internships, guest speakers and workshops, but also social events to build a community — especially in journalism, which depends a lot on connections and being there for each other both professionally and personally.
Even within Asian American journalism, there are a lot of diverse groups, from South Asians to East Asians, as well as topics to write about. Joining this organization will give you many opportunities to learn from each other while also being able to relate to similar experiences.
Anything else?
We were only founded about 3 years ago — including the pandemic years — so we are doing our best to show our support while still establishing ourselves as an organization on campus. This involves a lot of logistics like funding, but we’re also trying to ensure that this organization exists and thrives even after all of us graduate in the future.
Learn more here: Instagram, Twitter
Starting something new takes time, so don’t be worried if the chapter isn’t as large or as established as you might imagine it to be — it will come.
Liked this piece? Share it on social media and follow AAJA Defined as we continue to chat with AAPI journalists and share their stories.
Hayden Park is a Programs and Communications Intern at AAJA and a senior at University of North Carolina-Chapel Hill. She is based in North Carolina. Connect with them on LinkedIn.
Anissa Deol is a Programs and Communications Intern at AAJA and a recent graduate from the University of North Carolina-Chapel Hill. She recently finished an internship as a Production Development Intern at National Geographic and is actively looking for new opportunities. She is currently based in North Carolina. Connect with her on LinkedIn.
