EUI Group Project
Authors: Kelsey Sauder
Title: PSA: Benefits and Motivations
About the Authors: Kelsey Sauder is a junior in Human Development and Family Studies, and
has been able to work for part of her undergraduate career in a research lab studying the
experiences of divorced families after domestic violence. After graduation, she plans to go to
grad school for social work.
Keywords: RSO’s; Social Networks; Asian American; Ethnic Specific
Abstract: This research describes factors leading to students’ involvement in the PSA, benefits
they experience, and the role the organization plays within the University of Illinois. By
interweaving data collected through an observation and interview with other University projects
and scholarly research, several themes emerged. First, the factors that direct students’
involvement in the PSA are relationships, both prior to and beginning in college, and previous
cultural group experience. Through their membership, they gain a family-like environment,
cultural awareness, and personal development. Finally, the group promotes the University’s goal
of diversity by voicing ethnic-specific concerns.
Question:
Research Question (09/19/2011): Are there specific recreational sports that Asian Americans
prefer to others in the University system? What are the reasons for this preference? (i.e. social
reasons, experiential, cultural reasons) Are Asian Americans purposefully separating from other
races within their athletic interactions?
Refined Research Question (09/26/2011): Why do University of Illinois students participate in
the Philippine Student Association’s Rice Bowl? What experiences do they seek to gain from
their participation that they couldn’t receive from Intramural sports? Who is participating?
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Final Research Question (10/20/2011): What are the major purposes for students participating
in the PSA? Are there other organizations in the University that can accomplish the same
purposes? What factors lead to their involvement?
Plan:
Research Plan (09/26/2011): I plan to conduct an initial formal interview with a member of the
PSA’s team, and use the information that I learn from her to inform my subsequent interviews. I
plan to attend a practice of the team and conduct an observation of the people involved with the
team. I would also like to conduct an observation of a random intramural team practice or game
and compare the two observations. Then I plan to conduct brief, informal interviews with the
players themselves. Some possible questions include: How did you learn about the Rice Bowl?
Why did you decide to participate? Have you participated in University Intramural sports? How
did your experiences compare? What are the requirements to be a Rice Bowl team member?
What do you gain from your participation in the Rice Bowl?
Refined Research Plan (10/20/2011): To gather data pertinent to my new research questions, I
will conduct an observation of a PSA dance rehearsal for the FACT show. Following that
observation, I will conduct an interview to get more information on my research questions, and
any other topics that arise from the observation.
Data (observations):
Data Observation (10/20/2011): After looking at the PSA’s website calendar, I discovered that
there was an event for the “FACT V-Show Practice.” There were no events relating to the Rice
Bowl, and because I hadn’t received a response to my email inquiring about Rice Bowl practices,
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I decided to simply familiarize myself with the PSA in a casual setting. As I walked towards the
FAR Aerobics room, I saw a Filipina girl carrying a plastic sword. I asked if she knew who was
in charge of the PSA practice. She responded that she would be in charge in a few minutes, so I
briefly explained that I wanted to observe their practice for a class. She quickly agreed, and I
walked into a room blaring with American hip hop music. I was surprised by the size of the
dance; nearly 25 Asian men and women were arranged in a three line formation, dancing in sync,
hip hop style. I quickly moved around the coats and computers laying by the perimeter of the
wall, and positioned myself in a small alcove in the long back wall where I wouldn’t be in the
way of the dancing.
As I began to take notes, I first noticed the actual dancing. The hip hop style moves
transitioned into partnered spins and back into choppy movements. I could observe in the
mirrored wall across from me that most of the dancers were wearing sweats, or casual tshirts
with jeans. One boy called out the count, “5-6-7-8.” Every few seconds, someone would laugh
as one of their neighbors made a mistake, and they would jokingly correct each other or threaten
to kick them out. They all referred to each other by their first name. When the song ended, the
majority of the group started gathering their things from where they had left them along the wall,
but a few boys continued dancing solo to the next song that came on. The girls and boys that
moved to the edge of the room formed into small clusters. The girls would talk and laugh, then
hug each other and walk out. A few girls remained sitting against the wall, eating, talking, and
stretching. The boys that moved to the side sat down with their laptops and began to type on
them, talking to each other all the while.
As the solo dancers continued, the girl I had spoken to when I first came in began to pull
out long bamboo poles from a closet on the side of the room. She set the poles up in a tic tac toe
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formation on the floor. Three girls, one who had been there earlier, and two who walked in
while the setup was taking place, began to practice a step dance over and through the poles. The
lead girl set up another formation of poles. She remarked that some of the people in the room
“weren’t even cultural,” (meaning part of the cultural dance), and took out her phone with a look
of annoyance. The random dancing continued throughout the room for another minute, and then
a group of six boys walked in carrying a random assortment of props: more bamboo poles, a
wooden shield, a parasol, and painted fans. The group definitely all knew each other, and it was
clear that this wasn’t their first practice. They grabbed the props they needed and began
practicing individually.
One girl stood out to me in particular. She took the plastic sword and began waving it
above her head as she went through the step dance the other girls had been doing before. A few
of the guys gathered around to watch her. She seemed to enjoy the attention, and said, “Oh, I did
this in high school.” The rest of the observation carried on in similar fashion, with students
referring to first names that everyone else in the group seemed to know, teaching each other
various dances. One girl approached me and introduced herself. She told me she was the
coordinator for the fashion show, and when I told her I was doing an observation for class, she
began explaining that they have a few different acts for the show. The first practice, the hip hop,
was the business casual section, and now they were doing the cultural practice. She pointed out
two of the girls, including the one I had gotten permission from to observe, and said they were
cultural coordinators and had choreographed the dance. She explained that this segment, the
cultural dance, would be performed at the FACT conference on November 4th. She also told me
that the students were a mix of freshmen through seniors, and pointed out one boy as the PSA
president. I asked her for her email in case I had any further questions, and then she moved
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away. I observed the girls try to explain the story behind the dance to the boys for a few more
minutes before gathering my things and leaving.
Originally, I was hoping that by observing this practice, I could answer some of my
research questions about what students hope to gain from their involvement in PSA activities.
Even though this wasn’t a Rice Bowl practice, I wanted to see how they interacted with each
other, what the ethnic demographics were, and how structured the practice seemed. However, I
was intrigued by other aspects of the observation. For example, the girl’s remark about having
done the dance in high school raised the question: How many of these students were involved in
some kind of cultural club or group in the past? Also, as I saw the students interacting together,
it was clear that PSA events are not the only times that they have together. Did they meet
through PSA, or did they get involved in the organization because their friends were involved?
What percentage of their social time is spent with PSA members? Some of my original
questions were touched on: I was absolutely the only non-Asian in the room, showing a clear
racial uniformity. However, I would be curious to know, on average, how many of the students
in the PSA are full vs. half Filipino? What is the breakdown of generational position (how
many 1st generation, 2nd generation, 3rd generation, 1.5)?
As far as structure of the dance practice, it seemed more like time to hang out. I was
unclear who was actually in charge, as several people were teaching at different times, and they
all seemed to have different responsibilities (ie the group that arrived with the props).
After conducting this observation, I would like to broaden the focus of my research to
include the PSA as a whole, instead of the specific Rice Bowl Activity. My new research
questions are, “What are the major purposes for students participating in the PSA? Are there
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other organizations in the University that can accomplish the same purposes? What factors lead
to their involvement?”
Data (interviews): Interview (11/02/2011): After conducting an initial observation of a
PSA FACT Fashion show dance practice, many new questions sprang up in my mind. My initial
research question had been about what students gain from participating in the PSA’s Rice Bowl
team, as opposed to University Intramural sports. I had hoped to gain a more general feel of the
organization from the observation. However, I was struck by the social interactions of the
students, and a few comments that I overheard about previous experience with cultural clubs.
Also, after reading Nancy Abelmann’s piece, I was more interested in how students form their
social circles and get involved in certain activities. At the end of the observation, my research
question changed to the more general, “What are the major purposes for students participating in
the PSA? Are there other organizations in the University that can accomplish the same
purposes? What factors lead to their involvement?”
When conducting my observation, I was approached by a girl who told me she was the
coordinator of the show. When I explained I was doing some research for a class, she gave me
her email and said she would answer any questions I had in the future. A few days later, I
emailed her and set up an interview for the next week. As we sat down, I started with basic
questions about her personal experience with PSA, then progressing into questions about the
organization as a whole, the various activities they plan, and the organization’s role on campus.
Sofie Rosa met me outside of the room where the dance practice had been held a week
ago. We didn’t know where a good place to conduct an interview would be, so she simply sat
across from me in the hallway of the dorm basement. As we talked, I learned that she is a junior
that has been involved in PSA for all three years here at U of I. She is also involved in a
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teaching organization and MAASA (an organization that participates in “a travelling Asian
American conference”). She spends fifteen to twenty hours a week in PSA activities, and when I
asked her how much of her time is spent with friends from PSA, she simply said, “A lot.” She
explained that her boyfriend and roommate are both members, as well as many of her friends
within her major. In fact, she told me that she met most of her college friends through PSA.
Our conversation was very natural and comfortable; it was clear that she was excited to
be spreading the word about PSA. When I asked about how she had gotten involved with PSA at
the beginning of college, she said that there were two main people that had lured her in: one was
an alumni from her high school, the other a girl her older sister introduced her to at a wedding.
There are only about two or three other people from her high school involved in PSA, although
she clarified that her high school is predominately white. She explained how that had limited her
high school cultural activities; much like many of the individuals interviewed in Maira’s piece,
her cultural experiences before college were largely separate from school and her friends; her
family attended a Filipino church where she learned some cultural dancing. However, she told
me that the majority of other PSA members get involved in PSA through Filipino clubs or
cultural groups at their schools. She also emphasized their recruitment at the University’s annual
Quad day; “The Filipino flag is waving the whole time, and we do a dance performance. We get
a ton of people through that.”
She estimated that the total number of members was around 100. When I questioned her
about the average participation of members, she hesitated before explaining that there are usually
about fifteen to twenty people per class who are very involved; however, that number dwindles
as classes get older and students “get involved in other things”. When I asked what contributed
to the different levels of participation, she named personal interest (“what you get out of it”): she
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named friends, the family experience provided through “Big sister, big brother”( a program
where an upperclassman adopts a freshman), and the amount of time spent together. However,
she also said that the organization has a wide range of appeal because of the variety of activities
that they offer.
Some of the activities that the PSA organizes are the Rice Bowl game, the Fashion Show,
the FACT (a Filipino student conference that is hosted at the U of I and boasts over 1,000
preregistered delegates), the Battle of the Bamboo (a dance competition), and philanthropy work
with a charity back in the Philippines. They also host many social activities through the year, as
well as events with alumni that allow students to network with graduates.
As I asked questions more specific to the fashion show, it was clear that this was her area
of expertise. She gave detailed information about the cultural background of the dances and how
it connected modern music with the Filipino heritage. But even more than the cultural heritage,
she emphasized the “family atmosphere” that the participants create through the practices and
performances.
As I wrapped up with a few broad questions, Sofie shared with me that PSA has added to
her personal experience at the U of I by teaching her how to work with people, leadership role,
communication, and really being a part of the “family in PSA”. She added that to the University
as an institution, the PSA is growing and increasing ethnic awareness and pride on campus. She
even expressed a desire to see Illinois’s PSA held up as a model for other schools; she spoke of
one school she visited where “people see a group of Asians and think it’s weird.”
As I looked over her responses after the interview, several themes emerged. It seems that
for most PSA students, prior connections, whether through family and high school friends or
through cultural activities, lead them to the PSA when they arrive on campus. Sofie also
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mentioned how new friendships can get people involved; she said that sometimes people will tell
their roommates or classmates about PSA activities, and they will get involved themselves, even
if they aren’t Filipino. I find this circumstance particularly interesting, because it takes away the
motivation of identity exploration. She also emphasized the idea of the “family” that the
organization creates for its members. Not only do relationships initially draw people in, but they
also seem to be a major benefit of involvement in the group. Not only do students form
relationships with current students, they are also able to network with alumni as a resource for
the future. One slightly less emphasized benefit was cultural awareness and pride. It was clear
that being involved in PSA has greatly increased Sofie’s and others’ ethnic pride.
Analysis: The University of Illinois prides itself on its ethnically diverse campus, both
demographically and institutionally. In this analysis, I will examine one specific student
organization at the University: the Philippine Student Association (PSA). Specifically, through
my research I hope to shed light on these three questions: What are the major purposes for
students participating in the PSA? Are there other organizations in the University that can
accomplish the same purpose? What factors lead to their involvement? As I collected data
pertaining to these questions, I saw several themes emerge. First, there are three main purposes
for participating in the PSA, including the creation of a family environment, increased cultural
awareness, and personal development. Second, there are two main areas that contribute to
students’ initial involvement with the group: relationships and similar prior experiences. Finally,
I examine how this organization compliments other student organizations and the unique benefits
it provides the University’s environment and students.
As students begin their college careers, they leave behind a variety of family and
community situations to build a new sphere of interaction on their campus. However, they are
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not beyond the influence of their home-lives. The first predictor of involvement in the PSA that
I observed was relationships; students choose to participate both because they have previous
relationships with current members, and because they form new relationships with participants.
For example, in my interview, Sofie Rosa explained how an alumni from her high school and a
friend her sister introduced her to in high school were the main reasons that she got involved
with PSA. Maira (2002) confirms that social networks formed before college influence a
students’ new relationships and participation in groups upon entering school (p. 130). However,
the past doesn’t always dictate the future. Another trend that arose in my data was involvement
through new friendships. At another junction in our interview, Sofie Rosa shared how another
member of PSA had become involved through their roommate, despite the fact that they weren’t
Filipino at all; they had been intrigued by the glowing descriptions given by their new roommate,
and decided to investigate for themselves. Drawing from these examples, I conclude that
relationships, both previously and newly formed, are a significant factor in students’
participation with cultural groups like PSA.
Relational connectivity isn’t the only factor that can influence a new college student
deciding where to commit their time and energy. Former cultural exposure and experience can
also play a factor. Students who have been involved in culturally specific clubs through church,
school, or community seem to have a greater likelihood of seeking out ways to continue their
cultural participation. For example, in my observation, one of the dancers casually began to do
an intricate step dance with some of the props around the room. When some of the other
participants expressed their admiration for her skill, she responded that she had done that kind of
dancing in high school. Abelmann (2009) describes how a specific interviewee was active in his
high school’s Korean American club and a Korean church, and then got involved with a different
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Korean American church when he moved to college (p. 33-34). Although prior involvement
seems to influence college cultural participation, it is not a prerequisite. Indeed, in my interview
with Sofie Rosa, she explained that, although most students in PSA were directed there through
former affiliations with cultural clubs, she personally was not simply recreating cultural
experiences she had already had. In fact, growing up in a predominately white school, she
hadn’t had any clubs available to her in that realm. However, she did later say that she had some
cultural dancing experience from her Filipino church, which made me wonder if she simply was
unaware of how her former experience had created a predisposition to engage in similar
activities. Still, she identified herself as a minority; most students consciously seek to find a
replacement or advancement of previous experience. Maira (2002) commented that, “College
also offers the first opportunity many youth have to participate in ethnic or pan-ethnic
organizations that are created and led solely by their peers, not by adults from their parents’
generation (p. 126).” The older generation has thus used community organizations and
structures to equip the younger generation to be a self sustained cultural force.
Now that I have established some of the basic factors leading to involvement, I would
argue that there is a third factor that motivates students to be involved: the benefits they gain
from such an organization. I observed three main reasons for participation in the PSA, and I
believe that these benefits can be applied broadly to similar cultural organizations. The first
benefit would be the family environment created through the organization. Sofia Rose referred
to the amount of time spent with her friends in PSA activities several times to illustrate the way
that the organization serves as a functional family when a student, typically, moves away from
their genetic family. This family continues even after graduation. Sofie referred to the
networking events that the PSA organizes to allow alumni to come back and meet current
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students. Not only do students develop a warm and inclusive group of friends to spend time with
during their undergrad years, but they find that network constantly expanding to include
individuals scattered all over the map and social ladder.
However, this is not necessarily a
unique feature of PSA. In the EUI project, “An Investigation Into How Korean American
Freshmen Chose CFC and What They Gain From Their Church,” Huntley (2007) describes
similar social interactions created through the Korean church on campus (p. 5). However, there
are distinct programs that PSA organizes that enhance the environment. The organization sets up
a “Big Brother, Big Sister” program that assigns freshmen to upperclassmen, creating a resource
for freshmen who easily feel lost on such a large campus. Also, PSA intentionally organizes
social events that are welcoming to newcomers and allow them to meet a lot of new people, like
an annual trip to a corn maze. Furthermore, these new relationships are with fellow FilipinoAmericans, allowing students to connect culturally in addition to their social connections.
Increased cultural awareness is the second benefit that I identified in why students choose
to participate in PSA. During my observation, I was able to watch the students prepare their
cultural dance segment. The coach and choreographer explained the story behind the dance,
revealing the deeper meaning of the dance behind the aesthetic beauty. Dance is a significant
part of how the Filipino students explore and celebrate their culture. In the EUI project, “Asian
Americans and Cultural Identity at the University of Illinois”, the researchers stated common
symbols of culture are ethnic clothing and food (Choi et. al., p. 17). However, in raw data
provided by their observation, the students specifically noted that the PSA presented a dance in
addition to these other cultural markers (p. 4).
The context that this specific cultural dance was being prepared for was the variety show
at the end of the FACT conference. This conference is one of the foundational components of
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the PSA’s yearly schedule. Sofie Rosa explained how the conference had begun at the
University of Illinois, and has now grown to boast over 1,000 delegates from universities all over
the Midwest region. The conference serves as a way for the PSA to “celebrate and educate”
other students, both Filipino and non, about their culture (Choi et. al., p. 19). As the students
collaborate to construct a meaningful and successful conference, with programs ranging from
language education to how to view “the homeland” (p. 6), they educate themselves. Maira
(2002) points out that as students form their own educational and promotional events, their
creations reflect the needs and political agendas of the students themselves (p. 128). Thus,
PSA’s FACT conference and other cultural events serve as both celebratory and vehicular for
their political voice to be heard on campus.
This political activism and sense of self leads into the third benefit students receive from
participation in the PSA: personal development. Sofie Rosa provided me with many examples of
how her involvement, specifically in the executive board, had grown her leadership abilities,
cooperation with others, communication, and learning how to contribute to “a family”.
After looking at ways that individual students have become involved and benefitted from
the PSA, I’d like to take a step back and broaden these experiences to what the organization
offers the University as a whole. The PSA first and foremost serves to increase students’ ethnic
awareness and pride on campus, specifically among the Filipino population. Also, because of
the ethnic specificity of the group, they are able to address issues of more specific importance to
Filipino students. In prior decades, ethnic organizations have formed along more pan-ethnic
lines as a response to collective racism; Asian American students formed into political groups
because of shared experiences of racial discrimination (Maira, 2002, p. 127). In Maira’s study of
South Asian American college student organizations (2002), she states that these student
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organizations are still political; however, the changes in group identity reflect the changing needs
created by the academic institutions’ emphasis on ethnic identity in such areas as “student
organizations, academic study, and institutional funding” (p. 127). Applying that argument to
our campus, it seems that the need for an ethnic specific student organization, such as the PSA,
arises out of students’ desire to be recognized and valued for their self-identified ethnicity, not
just their region of origin.
By creating such a welcoming and inviting environment, the PSA creates an evergrowing group of students exposed to ethnically specific events, both social, celebratory, and
educational. As students are educated on their culture and begin to value it more, these events
also create an avenue for students to draw attention to the issues that are personally affecting
their experiences here as both students and Filipinos, better directing the University in future
decisions. For example, the workshop referenced by Choi and her fellow researchers (2009)
dealt with the need to learn the Tagolog language in order to access their Filipino culture (p. 5).
Thus, the University would be directed to initiate classes making that resource available to
students.
A third way that the group serves the University, and others, is by providing a model of a
successful student organization. Sofie described the efficiency of the organization of the
executive board, where each person is designated to a specific event they will be responsible for
through the year. This allows the students to focus and truly excel in their planning and
organization of their individual event. Also, though the organization would benefit from more
funding from the University, it is not integral to their success. In fact, Sofie suggested that the
most important form of support the University could offer would simply be participation. She
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spoke of wanting to see more of the faculty at PSA events, and listening to the voice that the
organization does provide for the students.
Research Narratives: Author: Kelsey Sauder
Title: Student Involvement in PSA: Motivation and Benefits
Course: AAS346 (Asian American Youth) Fall 2011—Soo Ah Kwon
Research Question (09/19/2011): Are there specific recreational sports that Asian Americans
prefer to others in the University system? What are the reasons for this preference? (i.e. social
reasons, experiential, cultural reasons) Are Asian Americans purposefully separating from other
races within their athletic interactions?
Refined Research Question (09/26/2011): Why do University of Illinois students participate in
the Philippine Student Association’s Rice Bowl? What experiences do they seek to gain from
their participation that they couldn’t receive from Intramural sports? Who is participating?
Final Research Question (10/20/2011): What are the major purposes for students participating
in the PSA? Are there other organizations in the University that can accomplish the same
purposes? What factors lead to their involvement?
Research Plan (09/26/2011): I plan to conduct an initial formal interview with a member of the
PSA’s team, and use the information that I learn from her to inform my subsequent interviews. I
plan to attend a practice of the team and conduct an observation of the people involved with the
team. I would also like to conduct an observation of a random intramural team practice or game
and compare the two observations. Then I plan to conduct brief, informal interviews with the
players themselves. Some possible questions include: How did you learn about the Rice Bowl?
Why did you decide to participate? Have you participated in University Intramural sports? How
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did your experiences compare? What are the requirements to be a Rice Bowl team member?
What do you gain from your participation in the Rice Bowl?
Refined Research Plan (10/20/2011): To gather data pertinent to my new research questions, I
will conduct an observation of a PSA dance rehearsal for the FACT show. Following that
observation, I will conduct an interview to get more information on my research questions, and
any other topics that arise from the observation.
Data Observation (10/20/2011): After looking at the PSA’s website calendar, I discovered that
there was an event for the “FACT V-Show Practice.” There were no events relating to the Rice
Bowl, and because I hadn’t received a response to my email inquiring about Rice Bowl practices,
I decided to simply familiarize myself with the PSA in a casual setting. As I walked towards the
FAR Aerobics room, I saw a Filipina girl carrying a plastic sword. I asked if she knew who was
in charge of the PSA practice. She responded that she would be in charge in a few minutes, so I
briefly explained that I wanted to observe their practice for a class. She quickly agreed, and I
walked into a room blaring with American hip hop music. I was surprised by the size of the
dance; nearly 25 Asian men and women were arranged in a three line formation, dancing in sync,
hip hop style. I quickly moved around the coats and computers laying by the perimeter of the
wall, and positioned myself in a small alcove in the long back wall where I wouldn’t be in the
way of the dancing.
As I began to take notes, I first noticed the actual dancing. The hip hop style moves
transitioned into partnered spins and back into choppy movements. I could observe in the
mirrored wall across from me that most of the dancers were wearing sweats, or casual tshirts
with jeans. One boy called out the count, “5-6-7-8.” Every few seconds, someone would laugh
as one of their neighbors made a mistake, and they would jokingly correct each other or threaten
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to kick them out. They all referred to each other by their first name. When the song ended, the
majority of the group started gathering their things from where they had left them along the wall,
but a few boys continued dancing solo to the next song that came on. The girls and boys that
moved to the edge of the room formed into small clusters. The girls would talk and laugh, then
hug each other and walk out. A few girls remained sitting against the wall, eating, talking, and
stretching. The boys that moved to the side sat down with their laptops and began to type on
them, talking to each other all the while.
As the solo dancers continued, the girl I had spoken to when I first came in began to pull
out long bamboo poles from a closet on the side of the room. She set the poles up in a tic tac toe
formation on the floor. Three girls, one who had been there earlier, and two who walked in
while the setup was taking place, began to practice a step dance over and through the poles. The
lead girl set up another formation of poles. She remarked that some of the people in the room
“weren’t even cultural,” (meaning part of the cultural dance), and took out her phone with a look
of annoyance. The random dancing continued throughout the room for another minute, and then
a group of six boys walked in carrying a random assortment of props: more bamboo poles, a
wooden shield, a parasol, and painted fans. The group definitely all knew each other, and it was
clear that this wasn’t their first practice. They grabbed the props they needed and began
practicing individually.
One girl stood out to me in particular. She took the plastic sword and began waving it
above her head as she went through the step dance the other girls had been doing before. A few
of the guys gathered around to watch her. She seemed to enjoy the attention, and said, “Oh, I did
this in high school.” The rest of the observation carried on in similar fashion, with students
referring to first names that everyone else in the group seemed to know, teaching each other
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various dances. One girl approached me and introduced herself. She told me she was the
coordinator for the fashion show, and when I told her I was doing an observation for class, she
began explaining that they have a few different acts for the show. The first practice, the hip hop,
was the business casual section, and now they were doing the cultural practice. She pointed out
two of the girls, including the one I had gotten permission from to observe, and said they were
cultural coordinators and had choreographed the dance. She explained that this segment, the
cultural dance, would be performed at the FACT conference on November 4th. She also told me
that the students were a mix of freshmen through seniors, and pointed out one boy as the PSA
president. I asked her for her email in case I had any further questions, and then she moved
away. I observed the girls try to explain the story behind the dance to the boys for a few more
minutes before gathering my things and leaving.
Originally, I was hoping that by observing this practice, I could answer some of my
research questions about what students hope to gain from their involvement in PSA activities.
Even though this wasn’t a Rice Bowl practice, I wanted to see how they interacted with each
other, what the ethnic demographics were, and how structured the practice seemed. However, I
was intrigued by other aspects of the observation. For example, the girl’s remark about having
done the dance in high school raised the question: How many of these students were involved in
some kind of cultural club or group in the past? Also, as I saw the students interacting together,
it was clear that PSA events are not the only times that they have together. Did they meet
through PSA, or did they get involved in the organization because their friends were involved?
What percentage of their social time is spent with PSA members? Some of my original
questions were touched on: I was absolutely the only non-Asian in the room, showing a clear
racial uniformity. However, I would be curious to know, on average, how many of the students
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in the PSA are full vs. half Filipino? What is the breakdown of generational position (how
many 1st generation, 2nd generation, 3rd generation, 1.5)?
As far as structure of the dance practice, it seemed more like time to hang out. I was
unclear who was actually in charge, as several people were teaching at different times, and they
all seemed to have different responsibilities (ie the group that arrived with the props).
After conducting this observation, I would like to broaden the focus of my research to
include the PSA as a whole, instead of the specific Rice Bowl Activity. My new research
questions are, “What are the major purposes for students participating in the PSA? Are there
other organizations in the University that can accomplish the same purposes? What factors lead
to their involvement?”
Interview (11/02/2011): After conducting an initial observation of a PSA FACT Fashion
show dance practice, many new questions sprang up in my mind. My initial research question
had been about what students gain from participating in the PSA’s Rice Bowl team, as opposed
to University Intramural sports. I had hoped to gain a more general feel of the organization from
the observation. However, I was struck by the social interactions of the students, and a few
comments that I overheard about previous experience with cultural clubs. Also, after reading
Nancy Abelmann’s piece, I was more interested in how students form their social circles and get
involved in certain activities. At the end of the observation, my research question changed to the
more general, “What are the major purposes for students participating in the PSA? Are there
other organizations in the University that can accomplish the same purposes? What factors lead
to their involvement?”
When conducting my observation, I was approached by a girl who told me she was the
coordinator of the show. When I explained I was doing some research for a class, she gave me
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her email and said she would answer any questions I had in the future. A few days later, I
emailed her and set up an interview for the next week. As we sat down, I started with basic
questions about her personal experience with PSA, then progressing into questions about the
organization as a whole, the various activities they plan, and the organization’s role on campus.
Sofie Rosa met me outside of the room where the dance practice had been held a week
ago. We didn’t know where a good place to conduct an interview would be, so she simply sat
across from me in the hallway of the dorm basement. As we talked, I learned that she is a junior
that has been involved in PSA for all three years here at U of I. She is also involved in a
teaching organization and MAASA (an organization that participates in “a travelling Asian
American conference”). She spends fifteen to twenty hours a week in PSA activities, and when I
asked her how much of her time is spent with friends from PSA, she simply said, “A lot.” She
explained that her boyfriend and roommate are both members, as well as many of her friends
within her major. In fact, she told me that she met most of her college friends through PSA.
Our conversation was very natural and comfortable; it was clear that she was excited to
be spreading the word about PSA. When I asked about how she had gotten involved with PSA at
the beginning of college, she said that there were two main people that had lured her in: one was
an alumni from her high school, the other a girl her older sister introduced her to at a wedding.
There are only about two or three other people from her high school involved in PSA, although
she clarified that her high school is predominately white. She explained how that had limited her
high school cultural activities; much like many of the individuals interviewed in Maira’s piece,
her cultural experiences before college were largely separate from school and her friends; her
family attended a Filipino church where she learned some cultural dancing. However, she told
me that the majority of other PSA members get involved in PSA through Filipino clubs or
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cultural groups at their schools. She also emphasized their recruitment at the University’s annual
Quad day; “The Filipino flag is waving the whole time, and we do a dance performance. We get
a ton of people through that.”
She estimated that the total number of members was around 100. When I questioned her
about the average participation of members, she hesitated before explaining that there are usually
about fifteen to twenty people per class who are very involved; however, that number dwindles
as classes get older and students “get involved in other things”. When I asked what contributed
to the different levels of participation, she named personal interest (“what you get out of it”): she
named friends, the family experience provided through “Big sister, big brother”( a program
where an upperclassman adopts a freshman), and the amount of time spent together. However,
she also said that the organization has a wide range of appeal because of the variety of activities
that they offer.
Some of the activities that the PSA organizes are the Rice Bowl game, the Fashion Show,
the FACT (a Filipino student conference that is hosted at the U of I and boasts over 1,000
preregistered delegates), the Battle of the Bamboo (a dance competition), and philanthropy work
with a charity back in the Philippines. They also host many social activities through the year, as
well as events with alumni that allow students to network with graduates.
As I asked questions more specific to the fashion show, it was clear that this was her area
of expertise. She gave detailed information about the cultural background of the dances and how
it connected modern music with the Filipino heritage. But even more than the cultural heritage,
she emphasized the “family atmosphere” that the participants create through the practices and
performances.
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As I wrapped up with a few broad questions, Sofie shared with me that PSA has added to
her personal experience at the U of I by teaching her how to work with people, leadership role,
communication, and really being a part of the “family in PSA”. She added that to the University
as an institution, the PSA is growing and increasing ethnic awareness and pride on campus. She
even expressed a desire to see Illinois’s PSA held up as a model for other schools; she spoke of
one school she visited where “people see a group of Asians and think it’s weird.”
As I looked over her responses after the interview, several themes emerged. It seems that
for most PSA students, prior connections, whether through family and high school friends or
through cultural activities, lead them to the PSA when they arrive on campus. Sofie also
mentioned how new friendships can get people involved; she said that sometimes people will tell
their roommates or classmates about PSA activities, and they will get involved themselves, even
if they aren’t Filipino. I find this circumstance particularly interesting, because it takes away the
motivation of identity exploration. She also emphasized the idea of the “family” that the
organization creates for its members. Not only do relationships initially draw people in, but they
also seem to be a major benefit of involvement in the group. Not only do students form
relationships with current students, they are also able to network with alumni as a resource for
the future. One slightly less emphasized benefit was cultural awareness and pride. It was clear
that being involved in PSA has greatly increased Sofie’s and others’ ethnic pride.
Analysis: The University of Illinois prides itself on its ethnically diverse campus, both
demographically and institutionally. In this analysis, I will examine one specific student
organization at the University: the Philippine Student Association (PSA). Specifically, through
my research I hope to shed light on these three questions: What are the major purposes for
students participating in the PSA? Are there other organizations in the University that can
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accomplish the same purpose? What factors lead to their involvement? As I collected data
pertaining to these questions, I saw several themes emerge. First, there are three main purposes
for participating in the PSA, including the creation of a family environment, increased cultural
awareness, and personal development. Second, there are two main areas that contribute to
students’ initial involvement with the group: relationships and similar prior experiences. Finally,
I examine how this organization compliments other student organizations and the unique benefits
it provides the University’s environment and students.
As students begin their college careers, they leave behind a variety of family and
community situations to build a new sphere of interaction on their campus. However, they are
not beyond the influence of their home-lives. The first predictor of involvement in the PSA that
I observed was relationships; students choose to participate both because they have previous
relationships with current members, and because they form new relationships with participants.
For example, in my interview, Sofie Rosa explained how an alumni from her high school and a
friend her sister introduced her to in high school were the main reasons that she got involved
with PSA. Maira (2002) confirms that social networks formed before college influence a
students’ new relationships and participation in groups upon entering school (p. 130). However,
the past doesn’t always dictate the future. Another trend that arose in my data was involvement
through new friendships. At another junction in our interview, Sofie Rosa shared how another
member of PSA had become involved through their roommate, despite the fact that they weren’t
Filipino at all; they had been intrigued by the glowing descriptions given by their new roommate,
and decided to investigate for themselves. Drawing from these examples, I conclude that
relationships, both previously and newly formed, are a significant factor in students’
participation with cultural groups like PSA.
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Relational connectivity isn’t the only factor that can influence a new college student
deciding where to commit their time and energy. Former cultural exposure and experience can
also play a factor. Students who have been involved in culturally specific clubs through church,
school, or community seem to have a greater likelihood of seeking out ways to continue their
cultural participation. For example, in my observation, one of the dancers casually began to do
an intricate step dance with some of the props around the room. When some of the other
participants expressed their admiration for her skill, she responded that she had done that kind of
dancing in high school. Abelmann (2009) describes how a specific interviewee was active in his
high school’s Korean American club and a Korean church, and then got involved with a different
Korean American church when he moved to college (p. 33-34). Although prior involvement
seems to influence college cultural participation, it is not a prerequisite. Indeed, in my interview
with Sofie Rosa, she explained that, although most students in PSA were directed there through
former affiliations with cultural clubs, she personally was not simply recreating cultural
experiences she had already had. In fact, growing up in a predominately white school, she
hadn’t had any clubs available to her in that realm. However, she did later say that she had some
cultural dancing experience from her Filipino church, which made me wonder if she simply was
unaware of how her former experience had created a predisposition to engage in similar
activities. Still, she identified herself as a minority; most students consciously seek to find a
replacement or advancement of previous experience. Maira (2002) commented that, “College
also offers the first opportunity many youth have to participate in ethnic or pan-ethnic
organizations that are created and led solely by their peers, not by adults from their parents’
generation (p. 126).” The older generation has thus used community organizations and
structures to equip the younger generation to be a self sustained cultural force.
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Now that I have established some of the basic factors leading to involvement, I would
argue that there is a third factor that motivates students to be involved: the benefits they gain
from such an organization. I observed three main reasons for participation in the PSA, and I
believe that these benefits can be applied broadly to similar cultural organizations. The first
benefit would be the family environment created through the organization. Sofia Rose referred
to the amount of time spent with her friends in PSA activities several times to illustrate the way
that the organization serves as a functional family when a student, typically, moves away from
their genetic family. This family continues even after graduation. Sofie referred to the
networking events that the PSA organizes to allow alumni to come back and meet current
students. Not only do students develop a warm and inclusive group of friends to spend time with
during their undergrad years, but they find that network constantly expanding to include
individuals scattered all over the map and social ladder.
However, this is not necessarily a
unique feature of PSA. In the EUI project, “An Investigation Into How Korean American
Freshmen Chose CFC and What They Gain From Their Church,” Huntley (2007) describes
similar social interactions created through the Korean church on campus (p. 5). However, there
are distinct programs that PSA organizes that enhance the environment. The organization sets up
a “Big Brother, Big Sister” program that assigns freshmen to upperclassmen, creating a resource
for freshmen who easily feel lost on such a large campus. Also, PSA intentionally organizes
social events that are welcoming to newcomers and allow them to meet a lot of new people, like
an annual trip to a corn maze. Furthermore, these new relationships are with fellow FilipinoAmericans, allowing students to connect culturally in addition to their social connections.
Increased cultural awareness is the second benefit that I identified in why students choose
to participate in PSA. During my observation, I was able to watch the students prepare their
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cultural dance segment. The coach and choreographer explained the story behind the dance,
revealing the deeper meaning of the dance behind the aesthetic beauty. Dance is a significant
part of how the Filipino students explore and celebrate their culture. In the EUI project, “Asian
Americans and Cultural Identity at the University of Illinois”, the researchers stated common
symbols of culture are ethnic clothing and food (Choi et. al., p. 17). However, in raw data
provided by their observation, the students specifically noted that the PSA presented a dance in
addition to these other cultural markers (p. 4).
The context that this specific cultural dance was being prepared for was the variety show
at the end of the FACT conference. This conference is one of the foundational components of
the PSA’s yearly schedule. Sofie Rosa explained how the conference had begun at the
University of Illinois, and has now grown to boast over 1,000 delegates from universities all over
the Midwest region. The conference serves as a way for the PSA to “celebrate and educate”
other students, both Filipino and non, about their culture (Choi et. al., p. 19). As the students
collaborate to construct a meaningful and successful conference, with programs ranging from
language education to how to view “the homeland” (p. 6), they educate themselves. Maira
(2002) points out that as students form their own educational and promotional events, their
creations reflect the needs and political agendas of the students themselves (p. 128). Thus,
PSA’s FACT conference and other cultural events serve as both celebratory and vehicular for
their political voice to be heard on campus.
This political activism and sense of self leads into the third benefit students receive from
participation in the PSA: personal development. Sofie Rosa provided me with many examples of
how her involvement, specifically in the executive board, had grown her leadership abilities,
cooperation with others, communication, and learning how to contribute to “a family”.
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After looking at ways that individual students have become involved and benefitted from
the PSA, I’d like to take a step back and broaden these experiences to what the organization
offers the University as a whole. The PSA first and foremost serves to increase students’ ethnic
awareness and pride on campus, specifically among the Filipino population. Also, because of
the ethnic specificity of the group, they are able to address issues of more specific importance to
Filipino students. In prior decades, ethnic organizations have formed along more pan-ethnic
lines as a response to collective racism; Asian American students formed into political groups
because of shared experiences of racial discrimination (Maira, 2002, p. 127). In Maira’s study of
South Asian American college student organizations (2002), she states that these student
organizations are still political; however, the changes in group identity reflect the changing needs
created by the academic institutions’ emphasis on ethnic identity in such areas as “student
organizations, academic study, and institutional funding” (p. 127). Applying that argument to
our campus, it seems that the need for an ethnic specific student organization, such as the PSA,
arises out of students’ desire to be recognized and valued for their self-identified ethnicity, not
just their region of origin.
By creating such a welcoming and inviting environment, the PSA creates an evergrowing group of students exposed to ethnically specific events, both social, celebratory, and
educational. As students are educated on their culture and begin to value it more, these events
also create an avenue for students to draw attention to the issues that are personally affecting
their experiences here as both students and Filipinos, better directing the University in future
decisions. For example, the workshop referenced by Choi and her fellow researchers (2009)
dealt with the need to learn the Tagolog language in order to access their Filipino culture (p. 5).
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Thus, the University would be directed to initiate classes making that resource available to
students.
A third way that the group serves the University, and others, is by providing a model of a
successful student organization. Sofie described the efficiency of the organization of the
executive board, where each person is designated to a specific event they will be responsible for
through the year. This allows the students to focus and truly excel in their planning and
organization of their individual event. Also, though the organization would benefit from more
funding from the University, it is not integral to their success. In fact, Sofie suggested that the
most important form of support the University could offer would simply be participation. She
spoke of wanting to see more of the faculty at PSA events, and listening to the voice that the
organization does provide for the students.
Recommendations: Based on my findings, I believe that ethnic-specific student organizations
can enhance a student’s experience more than a pan-ethnic organization can. Thus, I would
recommend that the University publicize existing organizations that fit this description, as well
as provide funding for developing new organizations. I would also recommend a conference
where all such organizations can present their ideas and requests before the University for
consideration. Also, following my interviewee’s suggestion, I think the University should
research the structure of various student organizations to help improve and give suggestions as to
the most efficient and effective division of administration within these groups.
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