Conference: Southeast Asian Americans

A Conference on Southeast Asian Americans
Building Scholarship and Cross-Campus Connections

Place: Carleton College, Northfield, Minnesota
Date: May 12-13, 2007

On campuses across the United States, a new generation of young scholars is engaged in research on the history, immigration, and contemporary life of Southeast Asian Americans in the United States. Undergraduate students are carrying out exciting research projects about the dynamic changes taking place in communities of Southeast Asian Americans and the relationship of these communities to the larger society and global environment. The “Conference on Southeast Asian Americans” has two principal aims. First, the conference will provide a forum for undergraduates to share and discuss their research. Second, the conference will offer a space for faculty and undergraduates to develop collaborative relationships for future research endeavors. The conference will focus on studies of Southeast
Asian Americans who are immigrants or descendents of immigrants from the mainland of Southeast Asia, including Cambodia, Laos, Myanmar, Thailand, and Vietnam. We are especially interested in papers about the ethnic Burmese, Cambodian, Hmong, Khmu, Lao, Lue, Mien, Thai, Thaidam, and Vietnamese.

Scope of Paper Topics
The conference will feature panel presentations by undergraduates of research papers of approximately 25-40 pages in length. Most of these papers will represent academic work produced in advanced undergraduate classes or independent research projects, but papers written at any college level of work will be considered for presentation on a panel. We encourage papers written from a wide variety of disciplinary perspectives on any topic of concern to Indochinese Asian American communities and individuals. For example, papers may focus on history; economics; identity formation; the sociology of work, families, and community organizations; political engagement; gender;
the environment; art and literature; education; language; religion; or public health.

Procedure for Submitting Paper Proposals
Students who would like to present a paper should submit an abstract (about 250 words) of their paper and the name and email address or phone number of a faculty recommender who can provide information about the student’s academic work (a letter is not necessary; the name of a faculty recommender is sufficient). If a paper has already been completed (or mostly completed), it is recommended that the student submit the paper or draft paper in addition to (or instead of) an abstract. We will accept proposals (i.e. abstracts) starting January 15, 2007. Proposals will be accepted on a rolling basis until the final deadline of March 30, 2007.

Agenda
A plenary session will convene on Saturday, May 12, 2007, at 9:00 a.m. Three sessions of panels will be scheduled during the late morning and afternoon of May 12. The evening will feature a cultural performance. On the morning of Sunday, May 13, participants will gather to reflect on the conference and what was learned, and discuss future directions for research. Participants will then have time to drive to visit sites of interest (and have lunch at a restaurant) in the Hmong American and Vietnamese American communities in St. Paul, Minnesota.

Housing and Costs
Students at Carleton College will provide free housing in their dormitory rooms to as many out-of-town guests as they can accommodate. We will also provide information on local hotels and guest accommodations. The registration fee for the conference will be nominal (amount to be announced in early winter 2007 on a conference website at http://apps.carleton.edu/curricular/posc/. It will cover only the cost of meals and incidentals, such as publications of
conference materials.

Faculty Advisory Committee (partial list)
Naran Bilik, Carleton College
Gary Yia Lee, Concordia University
Mai Na M. Lee, University of Minnesota-Twin Cities
Linda Trinh Vo, University of California-Irvine
Carolyn Wong, Carleton College
Kou Yang, California State University at Stanislaus

Contact: Carolyn Wong email: cwong@carleton.edu phone: 507-646-4680