35 YEARS OF ASIAN AMERICAN STUDIES AT UW-MADISON

WELCOME TO THE ASIAN AMERICAN STUDIES PROGRAM

Students posing for Asian American Studies Program graduation photo

WELCOME TO THE ASIAN AMERICAN STUDIES PROGRAM

The Asian American Studies Program is an interdisciplinary program that focuses on the scholarship and experiences of Americans, Pacific Islanders, and immigrants to the United States from Asian and Asian American heritage groups. The program sheds light on Asian American experiences and concerns, both historically and in contemporary times.

The program offers a certificate in Asian American Studies, and a HMoob American Studies emphasis. Throughout the academic year the program fosters community through gatherings, speaking events, study breaks and more.

Spring '25 with Asian American Studies

Events

A Tradition Revisited.

Read our latest edition of BRIDGES 2.0 to tap into the accomplishments, growth and journeys of our AAS faculty, students and community in 2024/2025.

Program News

  • 2025 Amy Ling Yellow Light Award Recipients

    Established in 2005, the Amy Ling Legacy Fund has supported our Asian American Studies program through funding our mission on campus and off. This year, we are honored to announce the 2025 winners of the …

  • Faculty Spotlight: Rachel Kuo Talks Feminisms, Social Movements & Making Zines

    Dr. Rachel Kuo (she/her) joined the UW-Madison community in Fall 2024 as an Assistant Professor in Gender and Women Studies, and in our Asian American Studies program. Previously she served as an Assistant Professor of …

  • 2024 Amy Ling Yellow Light Award Recipients

    In honor of the memory and legacy of our beloved founding director, Professor Amy Ling, the Program in Asian American Studies is proud to announce the Amy Ling Yellow Light Awards: 2 Creative Endeavor and …

  • 35 Years of Asian American Studies: Past, Present, and Future

    Join us in celebrating the 35th Anniversary of the Asian American Studies Program at UW-Madison and opening of the AASP Oral History Project exhibit currently on display in the Class of 1973 Gallery. The event …

  • #AtlantaSyllabus

    Syllabus PDF Available Here On March 16, 2021, eight people were killed at Atlanta-area spa businesses — six of whom were Asian women. Despite the fact that two of the women were Chinese and four were Korean, news media were quick to deny racist motivations. Worse yet, an official spokesperson for the sheriff’s office investigating…

New Junior Faculty

Kong Pheng Pha

Professor Pha will be joining us as an Assistant Professor of Gender and Women’s Studies and Asian American Studies. He will teach AAS 170 Hmong American Experiences in the U.S in the fall and AAS 240 Hmong Refugee Texts in the spring.

Mai See Thao

Professor Thao will be joining us as an Anna Julia Cooper Postdoctoral Fellow, and will begin in Fall 2024 as an Assistant Professor of Anthropology and Asian American Studies.

Rachel Kuo

Professor Kuo will be joining us this fall as as an Assistant Professor of Gender and Women’s Studies and Asian American Studies. In the spring she will teach AAS 240 Asian American Activism