The Chancellor’s Committee on the Status of Asian Americans was the last of the Chancellor’s Status Committees to be established, and was largely the result of student demands.

Since 1991, there have been ten or so different Asian American student organizations working for an Asian American Studies Program which formed, merged, died, and re-emerged. They were initially dedicated to establishing an Asian American Studies Program; as students realized the difficulty of achieving this directly, they began to campaign in addition for a Chancellor’s Committee and for an Asian American Resource and Cultural Center.

Some major events leading to the formation of the CCSAA:

• 1991: The Asian American movement started at UIC with the foundation of the Asian American Collegiate Organization, which had a political focus and began to rally for an Asian American Studies Program at UIC. The movement encountered significant obstacles due to large university budget cuts at this time.
• 1996: Students Promoting Asian American Concerns is formed and seeks the creation of a Chancellor’s Committee.
• April 1999: After many years of lobbying by students and staff for university administrative support the Chancellor’s Committee on the Status of Asian Americans was approved in May of 1999 during Chancellor David Broski’s tenure.
• Fall 1999: The first CCSAA is convened, headed by the two founding Co-Chairs, Victoria Chou and Richard Lim.

• Consists of UIC faculty, staff, and graduate and undergraduate students interested in promoting the welfare of Asian Americans on campus.
• Is led by two co-chairs, one who is a faculty member and one who is a staff member, each of whom serve for two years.
  Is nominated at the end of each academic year by the Co-Chairs of the CCSAA (new members generally from our subcommittees); the membership for the next academic year are chosen and appointed by the Chancellor during the summer.
• Can expect to attend board meetings once a month and subcommittee meetings as often as necessary.

If you are interested in volunteering on one of our subcommittees or future activities, please contact us at ccsaa@uic.edu. We always welcome new members.

In promoting the academic, professional, cultural and social development of Asian-American faculty, staff, and students at the University of Illinois at Chicago, the Chancellor’s Committee on the Status of Asian-Americans (CCSAA) is devoted to the following tasks:

• Communicating the various elements concerning the status of the Asian-American community at UIC to administration.
• Leading the cultivation of a positive, equitable environment where Asian-Americans may thrive in all areas and levels of their UIC experience.
• Developing university programs designed to improve the quality of opportunities and curricula available to Asian-Americans.
• Enhancing UIC’s relationship with the various Asian-American alumni and communities throughout the Chicago-land area.