Mission Statement:

ASIABU (Asian Studies Initiative At Boston University) is an academic-cultural group of Boston University, approved in 2007 by the Student Activities Office (SAO). The purpose of ASIABU is to serve as the forum between students and faculty in Asian Studies at Boston University, in order to promote opportunities to learn about Asia and to develop career goals related to Asia for students, regardless of ethnic background. Its aim is also to foster collaboration with faculty in this rapidly expanding and developing field across the University.

Activities to be promoted include:

• An Asian Studies reception each semester;
• Participation in student fairs to present programs and opportunities in Asian Studies at BU and in Boston to incoming and continuing students;
• Organization of academic and cultural activities (exhibitions, film series, talks);
• Support of BU programs abroad in Asia;
• Development of liaisons with Asian government and private foundations and offices offering opportunities for study and research in Asia or related to Asia;
• Contact with BU alumni clubs in Asia.

ASIABU Student Founding Committee 2006 - 2007

Undergraduate members:
Ran Suzuki, Jackie Griffith, Elyse Goldberg, Charmine Cheung, Jacob Curtis, Sam Berry, Miko Tan, Monica Kang

Graduate members:
Ceren Ergenc, Jinba Tenzin

ASIABU Board 2007-2008

Undergraduate members:
President: Elyse Goldberg
Vice President: Jacob Curtis
Treasurer: Kat Pano
Secretary: William Loo

2007-2008 Graduate Student Representative:
Ceren Ergenc

2007-2008 Faculty Advisor
Professor Eugenio Menegon, History Department

ASIABU Press:

Asian studies faculty seek community, Daily Free Press, October 30, 2006

Initiative plans to focus Asian studies disciplines at BU, Daily Free Press, February 8, 2007

Corrections: Initiative plans to focus Asian studies disciplines at BU, Daily Free Press, February 9, 2007

EVENTS:

April 3-6, 2008 -- Harvard Project for Asian and International Relations Academic Conference

This coming spring, the Harvard Project for Asian and International Relations (HPAIR) Undergraduate Conference on Asia will be held for the first time in the United States! ASIABU has organized a delegation of ten students to attend this conference with full funding from the Student Activities Office as well as the Provost of Undergraduate Studies. Hundreds of select undergraduate students from across the world attend presentations by prominent academics, graduate students, and advanced undergraduate students on all kinds of Asian topics.

March 24, 2008 - Pre-Departure HPAIR Luncheon

Boston University students selected to attend the Harvard Project for Asian and International Relations met with faculty advisors, Professors Menegon, Fewsmith, and Grimes, as well as the Associate Provost of Undergraduate Studies to discuss the upcoming conference and the future of Asian studies at BU.

For photographs of the event, please click here.

November 16, 2007 - "Chinese Rap: Kuaiban and Popular Performance Arts in China"

Performance by Dr. Jan Walls (see http://web.mac.com/janwwalls)

Sponsored by: BU East Asian Studies Interdisciplinary Program, BU Department of Modern Languages and comparative Literature, ASIABU (Asian Studies Initiative at Boston University), Boston Children's Museum

For photographs of the event, please click here.

October 23, 2007 Fall 2007 Asian Studies Reception.

An occasion for undergraduate and graduate studnets in Asian Studies to meet their peers, mingle with Asian Studies faculty, enjoy some Asian refreshments, and find out more about Asian Studies at BU!

Photographs of the event coming soon.

April-May, 2007 - ASIABU Executive Board Dinner and Summer ASIABU Planning BBQ

The ASIABU Executive Board and faculty advisor, Professor Menegon, met to discuss plans for the upcoming semester at a dinner on April 10, 2007 and a BBQ on May 30, 2007. The BBQ also served as a good-bye party for parting E-board members, and an introduction for the new Fall 2007 E-board.

For photographs of the event, please click here.

February 7, 2007 - Spring 2007 Asian Studies Reception

This gathering was a great occasion for undergraduate and graduate students to meet their peers in Asian Studies, exchange names and contacts, and mingle with Asian Studies Faculty who joined the event (Professors Bob Murowchick, Richard Whitehead, John Berthrong, David Hebert, Cao Tianyu, Julian Go, Jaemin Roh, Mariko Ito Henstock and Eugenio Menegon). 

Asian refreshments were served, while Charmine Cheung (undergraduate), Ceren Ergenc (graduate), and Professor E. Menegon welcomed a lively group of forty participants, introducing the new ASIABU student group and presenting resources in Asian Studies at BU and in Boston.

Location:  Charles River Campus, School of Theology Building, 745 Commonwealth Avenue, Faculty Lounge Room 325, 6 - 8 PM

For photographs of the event, please click here.