Anna Yang interview
Item
Title
Anna Yang interview
Creator
Yang, Anna
Banh, Jenny
Relation
Central Valley Southeast Asian Successful Voices
Coverage
Fresno, California
Date
2017
Rights
Copyright has been transferred to Fresno State
Identifier
SCMS_casv_00028
extracted text
>> Excuse me as I eat while you talk to me, okay.
>> Hello, welcome. We are starting our interview. I'd like to thank you so much for actually consenting to be
interviewed for our new archive at Fresno State called Successful Southeast Asians. If you could say your name, spell it,
as well as give me verbal permission to actually interview you.
>> Okay. My name is Anna Yang. It's A-N-N-A and then Y-A-N-G. And I give you full permission to have this
interview.
>> Great, thank you. Okay. What is your gender?
>> I'm a female. I'm a girl.
>> Okay. What is your birth year?
>> 1989.
>> What is your ethnic group?
>> Hmong.
>> What is your undergraduate major?
>> My undergraduate major was history.
>> What is your generation [inaudible]? Are you first generation? Are you 1.5? You came here as a child, or are you
second or third?
>> I'm a first generation.
>> Okay. Actually, I'm sorry, where were you born?
>> I was born in Santa Ana.
>> Okay.
>> Yeah.
>> And then, and I think your parents are here as well, right?
>> Yes.
>> So then I think that would be, if you're born in the United States and your parents, you're second generation.
>> Oh, okay. Oh I'm sorry, yes.
>> Only if you're not born here you're considered first generation.
>> Oh, okay.
>> What is your father and mother's highest education?
>> Actually, I think my father's highest education is probably like primary school, you know, back in [inaudible]. My
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mom doesn't have an education, so.
>> Okay. What is your family composition? How many brothers and sisters do you have?
>> There's nine of us, and I'm the youngest.
>> Oh wow. Okay.
>> Yeah.
>> What are the genders of you?
>> I have five brothers, three sisters. So I have two, it's an older brother then a sister then a brother and a brother then a
sister then a sister then a brother. Oh, I missed somebody.
>> Okay.
>> So anyways, but yes, well let's just say my oldest brother is like 55, so. Yes.
>> That's a big span.
>> Yes, there's a really big span between all of us.
>> Oh my goodness, interesting. What is your GPA or if you remember, your graduate or undergrad?
>> My undergrad GPA? I think it was probably like a 3.2.
>> That's great.
>> And I think my master's program, I think I got like a 3.1
>> Wow, okay. That' still very good. What is your ultimate degree aspiration?
>> Actually, right now I currently have my master's. And I think in the next year or so I kind of might want to, you
know, pursue a PhD or something.
>> Oh wow, that's great.
>> Yeah.
>> Excellent. What high school did you go to, and was it private or public?
>> I went to public school, and I went to Roosevelt High School.
>> Where is that?
>> It's on Tulare and Cedar.
>> Okay.
>> And when I was there, people used to call my school ghetto because we used to have like a lot of gangs, and you
know, bad things happen there and kind of like, you know, we had a program for like all the teenage girls are really
pregnant. You know, they could bring their kids to school and drop them off at the daycare. And there was quite a bit of
[inaudible]. So I grew up in that kind of high school, but I never saw it that way. Yeah.
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>> Okay. Thinking back on your socioeconomic background, was it working class, middle class, upper class?
>> It was definitely lower class.
>> Yeah.
>> I mean we really, we grew up like on the welfare system, yeah, yeah.
>> What was the, if you think about your high school, what was the racial and ethnic demographic of your high school?
>> Oh, do you mean like in regards to like, more like?
>> [Inaudible] like what percentage of what, if you think, I mean guessing? Was it an African-American school? Was it
Latino school.
>> Yeah, it was definitely more Latinos there. And yeah, I would say it was definitely more Latinos. And then there was
a mix of like Asian.
>> Oh, okay. What type of Asian?
>> Definitely there was a high population of Hmong, Hmong people. I think there was also a Cambodian, Vietnamese. I
think those were the top three groups that I'm aware of, yeah.
>> Excellent. So why do Hmong go to college, and why do they not go?
>> I think it just depends. Again, the whole gender thing. I think it depends. If I'm a girl and I'm not really married in
high school, then typically the next step is college, right.
>> Okay.
>> So I don't know if that's just how I see it or that's how kind of like I've seen it is if you're not married then you go to
college.
>> Okay, wow. Why wouldn't you go to college?
>> So if you're married, then you have to stay home with the babies.
>> Oh, okay.
>> Yeah, I don't know. Like for me, my mom wouldn't let me date in high school. And I never saw the reason to really
date in high school. So she encouraged me to go to college. And so.
>> Interesting that your mom encouraged you.
>> Yeah, she was like, I think she was a sensible person. I think she was very pro-education because she didn't have an
education. And so I think she saw the value in that. And really encouraged me and my family to go to college. And it
was just me and my sister that actually, you know, got our masters.
>> Wow, that's impressive.
>> And went beyond like a BA.
>> So did your other siblings, did they go to college?
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>> They, so, my sister attempted. My two, three brothers attempted, and only one of them actually did like a two-year
program at Fresno City and finished. The other did not finish?
>> So what makes you and your sister so unique? Because that's still very good. Why did you and your sister graduate
with a master's. That's actually even a rare [inaudible].
>> Well, I really think it's A, our mindset. And it's our family that encouraged us to go. Because A, when my brothers
and them got here, they were much older already. So they struggled in the school system. And then whereas me and my
sister already grew up with the idea of college as, you know, the mountain you climb to success at the top because you
want to be as smart as everybody else.
>> Interesting.
>> So I mean, we
>> Were your brothers first generation? They were born over there.
>> Yes.
>> In [Inaudible].
>> Yes, it's just me and my second brother that is, I guess, second generation here.
>> And then what about your sister? Was she second generation?
>> No, she's first generation.
>> Interesting. Okay. So in looking at how your family cultivated college, what did your mom tell you? Did she say,
like what words did she say, like what did she say?
>> She said, you need to go to college so that you can become a doctor.
>> Oh really?
>> Yeah, she was very specific. I was actually, when I was actually in high school, and this is a joke that maybe most,
maybe Hmong and Asian people can relate to your parents tell you, okay, you're going to become a doctor, a lawyer or a
teacher.
>> Okay.
>> And I didn't really become any of those. But I think what they really meant was you do something with your life in
terms of education.
>> Okay, interesting.
>> Or at least that's what I took away from that conversation. And I think that's what really is what she meant by, you
know, I need you to go to college. I need you to become somebody.
>> Wow, that's interesting.
>> Yeah.
>> In terms of like gender, was that a unique thing that your mom said for you to go to college. Because you are female.
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>> You know what, I do have to say that I see her probably encouraged me and my sister more and not my brothers.
>> Interesting.
>> Yes.
>> Let's explore that.
>> Okay.
>> Why, why, because the Asian culture, in general, is patriarchal, so naturally you might think you'd encourage the
males.
>> Yeah. So for my own perspective, it seems as if for the girls in our, you know, in our culture and our family, is that if
we want to be noticed in our clan or something, you know, that is either that is only through education and a good job.
>> Oh, education good job.
>> Education and good job if you want to be noticed in a good way. So if you don't, you know, If you just finish high
school and you just kind of work at McDonald's or something. I think it's really frowned upon. So I think we have to try
extra hard to be seen as decent in the eyes of the males in our culture. So I think that's why when Hmong women
succeed, we're really proud of ourselves because that's how we get noticed in a positive light. And I think for the guys,
there really isn't a push to do that because even if you don't, you know, graduate from college or something like that,
you're still a male in the culture. And so you still have that like that status.
>> Interesting, okay.
>> That's just from what I see.
>> So your mom wanted you to have high status by pushing you to become a doctor.
>> Yes.
>> And education.
>> Yes, yes.
>> Okay. Interesting.
>> Yeah.
>> Great, okay. Speaking of Hmong students, looking at Hmong students, particularly a gender, right, you kind of
answered the question, but why do you think there is such a deep contrast in that the Hmong women are graduating in
contrast among men who are not. I mean it's such a big deal that our president [inaudible] knows we're going to have a
huge, what do you attribute to this like huge disparity? Because it's from the same background. They're both from, you
know. If everyone's from the working class, same culture, same class, same why the difference at graduation.
>> I think it comes down to expectations. At least for me, it comes down to expectations. And whether or not it makes a
difference. So, again, just kind of going back to what I just said, like me and my brother, right, we go to college. And
even if he doesn't like finish college, there's not as much, he's almost like given like a free pass. Like it's okay. I know
it's difficult. But if I go to college and then I don't make it, it's like, is it because you're partying, you know, you're not
making good decisions. And you're a bad daughter. So I think there's really a fine line, whereas some guys may feel that
they don't actually need to try 100% or do their 100%, especially in education because they're still going to be, in a
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sense, forgiven. You know, slap on the hand kind of thing.
>> So would your mom forgive them? Did your mom also push the males? Or she did not push the males?
>> It was encouraged, but when they stopped going to school, it was just kind of like, oh, it's okay, you know, kind of
thing.
>> Okay. But if that happened to you?
>> Oh, I would probably get beaten.
>> Really.
>> I mean.
>> That's very interesting, yeah.
>> Yeah, I mean, I probably wouldn't get beaten.
>> Yeah.
>> You know, it's.
>> Metaphorically.
>> I probably would get beaten. Yeah, so.
>> Interesting, okay.
>> And I think, but I think my family's a little bit different because A, my dad passed away a long time ago. So we
didn't have a father figure in my family forever, and even now, we don't have like really the father figure. So it's really
just my mom who single-handedly kind of like try to steer us. So I think she was really trying to make the girls focus on
education.
>> Good point.
>> But then make sure that the guys kind of play the role as the men, whatever that role is.
>> Interesting. If we contrast mom with let's say South Asian. South Asian is the highest graduation at 70%, if you can
believe it, from India, right, but in this area. Why do you think South Asians from India but Americans, why do you
think that they're graduating, and it's mostly males who are graduating, right? Not the women. I mean it's women too,
but is very much women. Why do you see the contrast? Same area of Fresno. Why are they graduating at 70%? Why do
you see the difference in that difference?
>> I strongly believe it's culture still.
>> Okay.
>> I think that, I don't know how it's like for Southeast Asia, like in general. But I still believe that an [inaudible] like,
you know, obviously the, it's a patriarchal like society, [inaudible]. I think it's really come down to the fact that we're in
America now, and it's not like back then in Laos and Thailand and China. And it's really like, oh I'm a girl, and I have
almost the same, I have, okay I think I know what I want to say. So, I think one of the reasons why we try to succeed
more in education is because in the sphere of our culture, we will never be as quote/unquote good as a man. And
because in a clan setting, we're still, we still have to be, you know, humble, modest, quiet and kind of behind the man
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who leads the family. But in education, we don't have to be. We can be successful, we can be unique, and we can be
smart.
>> Okay.
>> And we don't have to, in a sense, keep our mouth shut. And we can speak our opinion because it's academics. And I
think that because we see that, then we go that way. Whereas, the guys are like well, it doesn't matter about education.
I'm still a man in my culture. If I marry a woman in my culture, I'm still going to be the head. So it doesn't matter if I
have an education or not.
>> So that's why you attribute the large number of Hmong PhDs and, but primarily female.
>> Yeah, it's primarily female.
>> You see it's kind of a way for women to be heard, right.
>> Yes.
>> Interesting, okay. Have you ever, I'm sorry, what's your least and favorite subject?
>> Okay, so my least favorite subject, and it's because I'm not good at it, is math.
>> Math, okay.
>> And my favorite subject is actually history, it's history and creative writing.
>> Oh, okay. What makes a good professor for you to pass a class, thinking back?
>> So whether or not I even pass the class actually.
>> Or, I mean, do well.
>> Do well. So definitely a very passionate professor. Somebody who is in love with what they're talking about. I think
that's when you believe actually what's being said to you or being taught to you. I think that's what it is for me
personally. If a professor is passionate and he or she is engaged with what they're trying to pass on to you. Then you
believe them. Then you, I think I'm able to retain that more than if somebody just passively comes and says, okay, well
this is, you know, get out your book and read page 360 to 500 and tell me what you think. Or if somebody just comes in
and scribbles like a number and says, okay, solve it. I think that, to me, is very, it makes me sleepy.
>> Okay, great. Have you ever been mentored?
>> I have been mentored actually.
>> By who, and what happened?
>> At different parts of my life?
>> I mean college.
>> College, okay. Mentored.
>> Somebody gave you advice, I guess.
>> Oh actually, no. I don't remember being mentored in college.
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>> What about grad school.
>> Good morning, good morning. This is Joe.
>> I was actually mentored, but it wasn't until my last year of college. And my graduate program, my last year, I
actually, it's a librarian at Fresno State. Her name is Britt Foster.
>> What's her name?
>> Britt Foster.
>> Britt Foster. It's a female?
>> Yeah.
>> Okay.
>> And I believe she is the librarian for, if it's not STEM, it's, she's still the liaison for the [inaudible] program. Because
I interned with her. So she became kind of like my mentor.
>> Okay.
>> Yeah, for my graduate at the end of the year. Yeah, so she really helped me actually.
>> Is she a co-ethnic?
>> No, she's Caucasian.
>> Oh, interesting. Okay. Thinking back of your high school years, what was the actual teacher expectation of you?
Was it neutral, low, high?
>> It was high.
>> Oh really?
>> Yeah, it was high.
>> Tell me why.
>> Well, when I was in high school I was in all the honors classes. So on the honors and AP classes, so I think that
expectation, there's expectations there obviously during those classes.
>> Right.
>> And it was always, I had really good teachers in high school. They always encouraged me. And if I didn't do good on
something, they would try to help me in a genuine way.
>> Okay.
>> So I had a lot of encouragement there. So.
>> Thinking back on your high school and the honors classes and also the experience at Fresno State, was it
predominantly Hmong females that you saw versus Hmong males? Or did you see an equal number at ever level.
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>> Yeah it was predominantly Hmong females.
>> Oh, okay, interesting. Even from the high school honors?
>> Yes, Yes, I don't, there was only like one guy.
>> Wow, okay.
>> Yeah, yeah.
>> What about your college?
>> Actually, you know, I didn't have any classes with any Hmong males at all.
>> Goodness, okay.
>> And I was like the 21-unit kind of person, taking random classes. I actually take it back. I did take a Hmong class,
but there's Hmong people in [inaudible].
>> Right.
>> Yeah, so I did take one Hmong course, and there was Hmong people in there.
>> Males was it predominantly?
>> I think it was pretty even actually.
>> Okay.
>> In the Hmong course where they taught like Hmong course. So you had to be ready to speak Hmong ready, and that
was like teaching you how to read and write which was actually a really fun class. But, you know, in all my other
classes where I had to deal with like sociology, just like that, what are basic classes. I don't ever remember a Hmong guy
in my class.
>> What about Southeast Asian males in general? Did you see many Southeast Asian males? Cambodians, Vietnamese.
>> You know, just, yes, but I couldn't tell you exactly, you know, what their ethnicity was.
>> Okay.
>> But there was definitely some Asian men, but they were not Hmong.
>> Thinking back to your high school, were the teacher expectations of your co-ethnic, was it neutral, low, high? For
the Asians. Was it a high expectation? Was it neutral?
>> I think it was, you know, honestly, I couldn't really tell. In regards to like the ethnic portion, I just know that for me
it was high expectations, you know. In the classroom that I was in. So if they were in those classes, which they weren't.
>> Great. That's a good point.
>> So if, but now that you say that, I do remember a time when, in high school, if not, there was a teacher, and he
taught, you know, an honors class. And he also taught basic like just English class. So of course, higher expectations for
the honors class but not a high expectation for the ones who didn't take the honors class.
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>> Good point. So even from high school, there's some [inaudible]. Do you think going to college, do you think your
high school sufficiently prepared you for college?
>> Let me see. Yes and no, I think. Yes, in regards to like setting me up education-wise. Because again, I took the
honors and the AP classes and so I kind of had that thinking going in already. But no, in regards to like you don't get
that type of feeling or that type of like support when you're in college. So in high school, everybody knows everybody,
and you know all the teachers. And you know, you can go meet them during lunchtime and all that stuff. But I think
when you get into college it's such a big campus. The feelings are, the [inaudible] school changes. Even when I
graduated as a senior, you know, I still didn't have the same feeling that you would have when you're in high school
kind of thing.
>> Good point. So again, this is all optional, the barrier section.
>> Okay.
>> Looking back, what do you think the barriers that you had, and barriers are defined as things that kind of like
prevented you or some barrier, right. Do you have any, for example, financial, psychological, gender, social,
community, grandparents, kids. Do you think you had any barriers going to college?
>> Not on my undergrad year. Because A, my mom was healthy. My sister and my brother lived at home. And so I don't
think I really had a barrier, per se. I think the only concern I had was, actually I take it back. There's two concerns that I
kind of had which is money. Obviously, finances, you know.
>> Financial barrier.
>> Yeah. So my mom, she doesn't work, you know. We've been on the welfare system. She's on SSI and all that stuff,
disability. And so, of course, you know, from an early age I had to start working already. And so going to college.
>> How old are you, and what did you work at?
>> Oh so when I was 13. My original working is any time I go do something I get paid. So I was actually a babysitter
for the longest time.
>> Oh wow.
>> I started babysitting when I was 13. I babysat maybe a couple of times a week.
>> Wow, how did you find these people?
>> They were teachers, actually.
>> Oh, okay.
>> At your high school.
>> Yeah, at my high school.
>> Wow, okay.
>> They were teachers. And it was actually, they weren't actually my teachers. But they had another student, which is
actually one of my best friends, and then she stopped babysitting. And she said, well Anna can do it, because you know,
I grew up with like a thousand kids. I have 32 nieces and nephews, 35 nieces and nephews.
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>> Oh my goodness.
>> And so I grew up with taking care of kids. So my friends stopped babysitting, and they told me if I wanted to
babysit. So one thing led to another. I just started babysitting.
>> Wow, okay.
>> And so.
>> That's very good at 13?
>> Yeah, yeah, yeah. And so I would get dropped off and then I would just babysit while they were away. And so.
>> Wow, okay.
>> So yeah, I started kind of working when I was a little bit younger. So, definitely when I was in college, you know,
it's not just like kind of optional where okay, I can come babysit on Friday night. It's I have a schedule that I had to
work. And so keeping kind of that together was definitely difficult because, you know, mom doesn't work, so where is
the money coming from. I kind of had to make my own money to kind of help and support. And then, of course, there's
also the expectations of you're a daughter, and so even if you have night classes, you know, if your night class ends at
six, you have to be home. You can't just say you're going to be studying at school all the time. So there's still like the
expectations of like, you still have to fulfill your role as a daughter to the family. You still have to come home, make
dinner. In the morning, you still have to cook rice. You still have to clean the house and, you know, that kind of, I think
those are kind of my barriers in undergrad.
>> You didn't have any kids that you'd have to take care of, grandparents anything like that? You had the barrier.
>> Oh I just have to take care of my mom, yeah.
>> Okay. So we're trying to make Fresno State a warmer environment. Do you think that, was there any barriers in the
feeling of warm environment at Fresno State? For example, we have had, not our school, but we've had, in terms of
chilly versus warm environment, we've had instances where African-American male students have been stopped on
campus and have said, you know, are you student? What are you doing in the library? When they're just a student, you
know.
>> Yeah.
>> Has there ever been a chilly or warm environment? I mean, in Fresno State? What can we do to make it warmer?
>> I haven't had, I didn't really have a chilly experience at Fresno State. I think I had a pretty decent experience at
Fresno State. And I think, I think one of the things that could have been done a little bit differently to make me feel
more engaged with the university or that I felt like there were places I could go to is more visibility of organizations on
campus. And like.
>> Wow, okay.
>> Because I know that there's like those booths and stuff like that. But honestly, I never knew for the longest time why
those booths were there.
>> Okay.
>> And again, I'm the classic Asian girl that, you know, just goes to class and go to the library and I just go home after
that.
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>> Did you join the Hmong club?
>> I did not join the Hmong club.
>> Oh, okay.
>> So I do know that there was a Hmong club. But I didn't know about the Hmong club until after sophomore year.
>> Okay.
>> Yeah, and the only reason why I knew there was a Hmong club was because I knew some people that were joining.
And they were like, oh, do you want to join? And I actually didn't join because, I was just, it was, so.
>> Okay. All right, okay. Anything else you think hampered you or any other thing I didn't ask you about barriers for
your graduation? Did you graduate in four years, six years?
>> Four years.
>> That's amazing.
>> Yeah.
>> That is very, wow.
>> I changed my major twice.
>> I mean, were there any barriers to you graduating to four years? Because that's [inaudible].
>> Actually, so when I got into, I came in as a liberal studies major at Fresno State. And I did a year as a liberal studies
major just kind of [inaudible] courses and stuff like that. And I realized I don't want to be a teacher.
>> Oh, okay.
>> And there was really, my mom was really upset because I said I didn't want to be a teacher anymore. And then I said
that I wanted to be, I said I didn't know what I wanted to be, but maybe I wanted to be an astronomer. She hated that
idea.
>> Okay.
>> And so I actually changed my major to history, and I told her that I wanted to be a history professor.
>> Okay.
>> But not like a regular, you know, like elementary school teacher. And so I think I was able to finish in those four
years because by sophomore year I realized I wanted to be a librarian.
>> How did you know as a sophomore year you wanted to be a librarian?
>> Because I had wanted to be a librarian in eighth grade.
>> How did you know by eighth grade you wanted to be a librarian?
>> So when I was in eighth grade, I knew this librarian, and her name was Bellamy Glenda.
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>> Okay.
>> Sorry, Glenda Bellamy.
>> Okay.
>> And she was from [Inaudible] Middle School, and she was like the best person in the world. And we used to always
like hang out in the library and stuff like that.
>> You hung out with a librarian?
>> Yeah.
>> As a kid?
>> Yeah. But I was in eighth grade.
>> Okay.
>> You know, I loved to read and stuff like that. So, of course, I just gravitated towards libraries. So I think ever since
then my experience with her, I've always wanted to be a librarian. But I think that the idea of being a librarian for my
family was very like obscure.
>> Right, right.
>> Because like, well, what are you going to do, shelve books? Well no, not really. And so I think when I got into my
sophomore year I realized, okay, I tried to be the, because I did the health academy in high school to try to be a doctor. I
didn't do well. I figured, I realized I was afraid of hospitals. And then I tried the whole teacher thing. And I knew I didn't
want to be a lawyer.
>> Okay.
>> So then I figured sophomore year, I wanted to be a librarian. And so the only way to be a librarian, I went and talked
to a librarian at Fresno State actually. I can't remember her name, but.
>> Is she Hmong-American?
>> No, she was a Caucasian as well.
>> Okay.
>> Yeah, I just remember asking her like, I want to be a librarian. What do I need to do? And she said, you need to get
your masters in library information and science to be a librarian if you want to work in the academic setting. And so I
was like okay, well what do I do? And she was, there's a lot of colleges. And so she really gave me.
>> [Inaudible] mentor.
>> You know, it was just like a 30-minute conversation, but she really I think helped me to steer my path, my life in a
sense. And then I knew I needed to get out in four years because I still had three years to go.
>> Right.
>> And so, that was when I really just focused on and I just got my BA and got out. And I think because I needed that
aim to get to my master's program. And I didn't want to like fiddle around in my undergrad. Because I needed to get to
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my masters.
>> Okay, great.
>> That was for me, personally.
>> Excellent. Inspiring story. So the next part of the interview I'm going to ask you for successes.
>> Okay.
>> So, Anna, you are very unique, right. In four years, actually very unique but also in general. In this regional area of
Fresno, we have very few BAs in this area as well. And you have an MA, so that's even regionally or even like globally.
So what is it about your personality, like why did you make it when the mass majority, if it's globally, and that's just 4%.
If it's America, then it's 70%, or even the Southeast Asian community or gender it's much, I mean what about your
personality? If we could investigate your personality.
>> Okay.
>> What about your personality that made you graduate and also, your master's, I mean it's very unique.
>> So I've always, I think I've always been intrinsically motivated. And I think that stemmed from when I was younger.
So my dad passed away when I was five years old, and the Hmong culture, or maybe in any culture, you know, when
the head of the family kind of passes away, you get family and cousins who really speak bad about you. You know, your
family like, for example, I think it's, you know, they said things like you know, his family as he's passed away, they're
just going to grow up to be bad people, you know, gangsters and whatnot. And I think I was a child and I heard that.
And I still remember that conversation. And so I've been.
>> You wanted to prove them wrong?
>> Yes.
>> Oh.
>> So that basically is, I want to make sure that those people are wrong and that the memory of, you know, my father
and my mother, that they did good and that we did come here for a reason. And it is for us to succeed. So, you know, us
coming from Laos and Thailand. And coming here is to live the American dream, right. And that's, to me, the American
dream isn't like a house and a picket fence and a car. I think to me the American dream is the hope that I could actually
do something and that I have actually an opportunity. Whereas if I had lived over there, I could have probably been
married and had five kids working on a farm somewhere.
>> At least.
>> Yeah, at least, at least. And so I think for me, it's I chose to be successful, to prove people wrong. But really, it's just
to, I think, you know, say, you know, thanks to my parents and that they brought us here kind of, I just think it's kind of
sad when you have, you know, an opportunity sitting right in front of your face and you don't take advantage of it. So.
>> Good point. So you've always had this, so you were like five.
>> Yes.
>> Ten, twelve, I mean, and you thought you've been on earth so long.
>> Yeah.
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>> Wow, okay. Excellent. Thinking about you family, and you just talked about, you talked about family, your mom
encouraged you to go to college, and gender. Do you think, is there anything else that helped you such as financial,
cultural, gender, like kind of flip with the question of barriers. What were the things that helped you graduate
financially, gender, psychological, community? Did the community do anything? [Inaudible].
>> You know, I think, I mean, I think personally I've always just wanted to succeed in higher education. But I think in
the past couple of years maybe, maybe five or ten years, you start to hear people, the elders in the community kind of
saying, you know what, we need to be like everybody else. We need to be smart and successful for our culture to kind of
like last here in a sense, you know. And so I think hearing that too gave me a push as well.
>> So like to represent your culture.
>> Yeah.
>> Community.
>> Yeah, so you go and be good in higher education, get a good job in a company or at a school or from a high up,
because when you represent the Hmong community. And so that's, it was also, you know, just a second little push there.
>> It's a big push.
>> Yeah.
>> Why do you think, because right, you're very giving. Librarians in general are very giving and helpful. You picked a
helpful job. So why do you think you have that [inaudible] other than your father, why do you have that [inaudible]?
Helpfulness. Why are you so helpful?
>> You know, I'm not exactly sure. I think I just like to see, I think I just like to helpful. I just like to see them happy.
>> Okay. I'm sure those elders have told many people, which it represent, do better, but why did that affect you whereas
[inaudible].
>> I think I want to be an example of success for especially my nieces and my nephews, if they listen to me. That I want
to be an example that says, you know, my mom didn't have an education. We came here. We lived on that packet of
food stamps forever. We lived in the ghetto. We lived in apartments where, you know, there was like 13 of us and we
shared a two-bedroom apartment, you know. And that you can, you can grow out of those environments into one where
you choose to be there.
>> So something else about you, you've always been an honor student. You have a very high GPA. Do you attribute
high intelligence as one of the reasons why you have a bridge, successful bridge?
>> I want to say, I think high intelligence, I don't know if I have high intelligence.
>> You do.
>> Maybe just, I just, I think it's also emotional competency.
>> Okay.
>> So I think it's a good combination of wanting to be better than my situation in life. And knowing that I can do it. I
think believing in myself was one of those things.
>> Oh believing in yourself, okay. Excellent. And is there anything I didn't ask you about kind of like bridges,
successful bridges, do you think? Looking back, you talk about yourself. If we could unpeel again, you have high
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intelligence.
>> Okay.
>> Giving, community, parents.
>> Oh my gosh, I don't even know.
>> Do you think any of the analysts helped you? You've always been honors, I mean.
>> I don't know if things actually.
>> Emotional competency.
>> I think it's, you know, I think it's just kind of going back to what I just said a while ago, which is the whole when I
was younger, people were saying, you know, you're going to be bad or something. So you try to be better. I mean we
grew up with that kind of just sentiment behind our backs, you know. Other people are like always looking into your
family and saying, oh you know, there's not a dad there then there's just going to be bad people. And I think that
continues until you become somebody that they can't say anymore. Or they can't like say that stuff about you anymore.
>> So would you say you're kind of like, definitely a trailblazer, but you say you're a little defiant?
>> Yeah.
>> Okay. Go against the norm?
>> Yeah.
>> Not the norm, but I'm just saying, you know.
>> Yeah, I know what you mean.
>> [Inaudible] expectation.
>> Yeah. So I think it's really like, because it said that, it's like no, you shouldn't be saying things like that. And so I'm
going to become more awesome now.
>> Okay.
>> I think because of that, really pushed me.
>> Interesting, okay. Also, thinking back in terms of success, were there any successful media or any media kind of TV
shows that showed Asian women that you could have used. I don't know, like some people, have you seen any negative
or positive images of Asian women or Hmong women or, that positively pushed you into. I don't know, like Wonder
Woman, I don't know. Doesn't have to be Asian, but was there an Asian? Like did that push you in any way? Captain
fan?
>> I was going to say, I don't know because I grew up watching like anime, like.
>> Oh, Japanese anime?
>> Yeah. I was like, I watched like, I don't know if it was technically Japanese anime, but I watched
>> Yeah, it is.
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>> like Sailor Moon. I watched like Goku and.
>> So Sailor Moon is very feminist and very like strong women.
>> Yeah.
>> Do you think there is some [inaudible] of the effect it has on girls that's [inaudible].
>> Oh okay.
>> Do you think that this empowered you, these animations showing very strong women fighting and winning?
>> Yeah, I do agree. Because, yeah actually, kind of think about it. Yeah, I think so.
>> Why did you like Sailor Moon. What do you?
>> Okay well A, they're magical girls.
>> Okay, they're magical.
>> They transform
>> Okay.
>> And they fought bad guys.
>> Okay.
>> I don't know, like even me now, I still like to.
>> Okay.
>> But I think that it's just that they can make a difference, you know. They can, I don't know.
>> Did you read Nancy Drew at all, ever?
>> Actually, you know, I did. I did read Nancy Drew. I did read a lot. I read all those like American Girl books.
>> Okay.
>> I'm a huge reader.
>> There's a huge, like [inaudible] said about Hillary Clinton and Ginsburg and all of that. And also being Justice Sonia
Sotomayor, all Nancy Drew fans.
>> Oh really.
>> And they talk about how it had a lifetime effect on them.
>> Oh wow.
>> Can you explore this? Why did you read Nancy Drew?
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>> Okay, so I read Nancy Drew when I was actually in seventh grade.
>> Okay.
>> And I can't even remember what it's about. But I do remember it was like so captivating. Like, because you know,
she's a detective, or, right, she was a detective, right? Nancy Drew. And it's just.
>> Were you conscious as a child that it was a woman?
>> Yeah.
>> Solving problems.
>> Yes, yes. I was conscious that it was a girl and that she was the one that was taking care of herself in a sense. Or yes.
>> That's intriguing.
>> Yeah, but I don't know.
>> You have Nancy Drew. You have all those other things. But also Sailor Moon. That's very intriguing, okay. Great.
So the last part is I'm just going to ask you [inaudible] questions. Small classes.
>> Small classes. Smaller classes?
>> Makes a difference or no?
>> I think so, yeah.
>> Okay, so you prefer small classes.
>> I prefer small classes.
>> More ethnic, Asian, Hmong professors?
>> I think so.
>> You want more?
>> Uh-huh.
>> Okay. What about co-ethnic classes?
>> To me that doesn't really matter as much.
>> Okay. Ethnic clubs?
>> Yeah.
>> Yeah, okay. What college success workshop do you want?
>> I think a college success workshop should be, there should definitely be one on how to handle like finances as a
college student.
>> Okay.
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>> I want to say that I think there might have been one that I attended.
>> Okay.
>> But I think there should be one that is the realities of being a college student and like dealing with finances. I think
there should definitely be something about like work college balance, like life balance kind of things.
>> Okay. Anything else that you want?
>> I think there should be one especially for fourth years or whoever is in their program. Like how do they, you know,
how do they like get jobs after college?
>> Yes.
>> You know, how do you get jobs after college? Like what's next after college? Like I think really helping, like
[inaudible] like pan our paths. It's really important because I think that was what was so difficult like for some of the
people that I knew after college is. For me personally, I need to get out in four years because I needed to get to my
master's program because I wanted to be a librarian. Then I needed to go and interview and all that stuff. I know there
were people who are like, okay, I'm done with four years. Now, what the heck do I do?
>> Do we do it for Asians or Asian males. Do you want a specific workshop for Asians?
>> I think that would be nice too.
>> All right, great. Any other needs or wants before I get to the last question? You think would make people, do you
have friends who didn't graduate at Fresno State? In fact, what do they need? What do they need that could have just
held them?
>> Let me see.
[ Inaudible ]
I think, so I did have some guy friends, and we went to Fresno State together, but some of them actually didn't finish or
graduate. And I think it's because A, they had girlfriends and they started families. Or B, they were lazy. I think they
found that they would rather work because they got money. So that instant gratification versus and education, which
would eventually to so what, like I don't know what. So I think they kind of weighed that and said I'd rather just work
and not go to college so I can have money so I can to do whatever I need to do right now. But yeah.
>> So we have a lot of Hmong women that have children. But they still graduate. So is it a gender issue?
>> I think so.
>> Because we have a lot of [inaudible].
>> I think it's a gender, definitely a gender-cultured like [inaudible] issue. Because I think even if we were to still have,
even if I was to have a child and I was still wanting to get my education, because I know that in order for me to have a
place or a face or a voice or like a notice in the Hmong community, I need to have a high education and a good job. So.
>> Good point. So I'm actually at the last question. So for instance, people in probably like around six more years, third
generation of college students come in, right. We obviously want to get higher graduation rates, quadruple, triple, more
than that. What advice do you have for third generation college students for them to graduate and be like you, very
successful. What advice do you have, like ten things, like that you want them to do to be successful, to get, you know,
some, will teeter and whatever issue they'll [inaudible]. What are the ten pieces of advice you have for the third
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generation?
>> Okay, so I have a couple pieces of advice.
>> Okay.
>> And some examples. If you think that going and getting your education means that, it means, not getting your
education is okay, that you're still going to, if you're thinking more about making money, okay. I'm going to draw back
to money, because I think money is a great motivator for a lot of people. You know, I graduated with my bachelor's and
my master's, and I'm making, in my job right now as a librarian, I'm making so much more money than my brother who
only finished high school, has been working for 15 years.
>> Wow.
>> I make so much more money than him.
>> Good point.
>> And that's why, and that's why I've been encouraging him to go back to school. So he's been trying to back to school.
>> Okay.
>> And he has a family. He started when he, he started his family when he was a little bit, I don't even know how old he
was, but I just remember he was probably like 20, 21. But he didn't see the importance of education because he wanted
to start working to get money. So money when you're 21 is instant gratification. But if you go to college and you land a
job, long-run, you don't have to work as hard, you know. So I think that's one of the benefits is if you're thinking more
about a job equals money, higher pay. It does exist, at least for me.
>> Okay.
>> I think another advice is if you feel like you're not smart enough to go to college, don't think that way. You know,
you need to find help in some way, shape or form. If that's either through tutoring, they need to find help. Either through
tutoring, ask for a counselor. If you think you're not smart enough to go to college, don't worry. There's a lot of people
there that are struggling as well too.
>> Ask for help.
>> Yeah, and like I'm sure that, you know, when you get there it's going to be different from like when you were like in
high school, you know. When you find something you're very passionate about, it becomes easier. And I think that's one
thing. And I think another advice is let's just say you're in the middle, you started college, okay, and you're in the first or
second year of college and you're ready to give up. Because you're like, you know what, I think I'd rather just spend my
time doing other things. You're halfway there already. So, why do you want to pull out? And if you are trying to pull out
of college, and you're halfway there, I think it's really important for you to analyze what your ultimate goal is. And
really see how this education will help you get to that goal. [Inaudible] it's just like, okay I'm tired. I'm just going to pull
out. You know, I have like five Ds. I'm going to pull out. If you have five Ds, you definitely get some assistance.
There's great tutoring on campus. You just need to go find that. Yes, you need to definitely ask for help. I don't know, I
think it's just like one of those things where, you know, don't give up. When you're barely starting out, don't give up.
You just started the race. And when you get to the finish line, you know, and see what's on the other side. Because I
mean that's the whole point of life, right. Is to get to the finish line. So, I don't know. I think that's kind of. I think
another thing would be understanding your priorities. That there are some priorities that you have to put above other
priorities. And one of them is your education, I think. Because I think it's easy to say, you know, I'm not going go to
school today. I think I'll hang out with all my friends who didn't graduate from college. You know, who's not going to
college. But in the long run, you know, when you're finished and you get a job, you're the one that's making big bucks
and you can go to Hawaii and then your friends can't go to Hawaii because they can't take time off because they work at
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Walmart, you know.
>> Good point.
>> I don't know. I think you have to try to find, I think you have to try to figure out, or for yourself, that succeeding in
education is because you want to give yourself an opportunity to live a life that you could have only imagined. So.
>> Any specific advice to Southeast Asians, people probably listening to this?
>> Specific advice to Southeast Asians.
>> Gender or females and males, or minorities in general. Like what, I mean even self-care advice. What is the self-care
that you do to kind of keep your level of energy up? Because they're going to have a lot of stress, and they're going to
feel overwhelmed.
>> So for me, so that goes back to like work life balance is for me, any time I feel stressed out, if I feel like I can't
handle this, I introvert myself form everything that's happening. And I just, I try to reanalyze why I'm doing these
things. And through me, finding a purpose for these things. Then I reenergize myself basically. And so,
>> Alone time
>> yeah, so definitely needing alone time. And you know, it's nice to kind of keep a book or a chart that says, the reason
why I'm doing this is because of this. Because sometimes we'll need a purpose.
>> Right, purpose.
>> Yeah. And like my purpose cold be, because I want to have a lot of money, right. But in order to have a lot of money
is either A, you get a high education, you get a big job, you know. Or, you get really lucky somehow, and then you get a
lot of money. But that's only by luck. It's hard to come by sometimes. Whereas, if that's not in your control, you have
control over going to college and doing all these things. And then that way it's you working hard on it, not just you're
sitting around and luck just comes to you. I think it's more gratifying the other route than this route.
>> Okay, good point. Do you do any yoga or physical exercise or things like that.
>> Yes, I always, I actually play sports.
>> Oh.
>> So yeah.
>> So physical exercise.
>> Yeah, physical exercise. I played sports all throughout my life.
>> Okay. What sport?
>> And my family is very sporty.
>> Oh, okay.
>> We play volleyball a lot.
>> Oh, okay.
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>> All the time.
>> Okay.
>> Just lately we haven't been playing. But I also, my four years in undergrad at Fresno State I played badminton.
>> Great. Okay. So playing sports.
>> Playing sports. And it's really nice if you get into a college and you like sports. Finding like a sports club onsite.
Because actually, now that I think about it, I was a part of the badminton club at Fresno State.
>> Wow, okay. That's great.
>> Yeah, and so there was a bunch of people in the badminton club, and they're from like the community, you know.
And it's predominantly Asian people actually.
>> Okay.
>> And it's really interesting when you talk to some of them. They're like playing badminton. They're like Olympic
players. And they're like, oh yeah, I'm like a senior analyst at some company. And you're like, oh my gosh. I'm just a
freshman back in college. But I think that's one of the other things too is finding a club or a sport that you like and
joining it. I think when you do something like that, you're more attached to the university, or attached to, you know,
your education.
>> Excellent.
>> There's more reasoning for you to go to school.
>> Great. That's it.
>> Okay.
>> That's the last question. I'm going to turn this off. Thank you so much.
>> Yeah.
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>> Hello, welcome. We are starting our interview. I'd like to thank you so much for actually consenting to be
interviewed for our new archive at Fresno State called Successful Southeast Asians. If you could say your name, spell it,
as well as give me verbal permission to actually interview you.
>> Okay. My name is Anna Yang. It's A-N-N-A and then Y-A-N-G. And I give you full permission to have this
interview.
>> Great, thank you. Okay. What is your gender?
>> I'm a female. I'm a girl.
>> Okay. What is your birth year?
>> 1989.
>> What is your ethnic group?
>> Hmong.
>> What is your undergraduate major?
>> My undergraduate major was history.
>> What is your generation [inaudible]? Are you first generation? Are you 1.5? You came here as a child, or are you
second or third?
>> I'm a first generation.
>> Okay. Actually, I'm sorry, where were you born?
>> I was born in Santa Ana.
>> Okay.
>> Yeah.
>> And then, and I think your parents are here as well, right?
>> Yes.
>> So then I think that would be, if you're born in the United States and your parents, you're second generation.
>> Oh, okay. Oh I'm sorry, yes.
>> Only if you're not born here you're considered first generation.
>> Oh, okay.
>> What is your father and mother's highest education?
>> Actually, I think my father's highest education is probably like primary school, you know, back in [inaudible]. My
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mom doesn't have an education, so.
>> Okay. What is your family composition? How many brothers and sisters do you have?
>> There's nine of us, and I'm the youngest.
>> Oh wow. Okay.
>> Yeah.
>> What are the genders of you?
>> I have five brothers, three sisters. So I have two, it's an older brother then a sister then a brother and a brother then a
sister then a sister then a brother. Oh, I missed somebody.
>> Okay.
>> So anyways, but yes, well let's just say my oldest brother is like 55, so. Yes.
>> That's a big span.
>> Yes, there's a really big span between all of us.
>> Oh my goodness, interesting. What is your GPA or if you remember, your graduate or undergrad?
>> My undergrad GPA? I think it was probably like a 3.2.
>> That's great.
>> And I think my master's program, I think I got like a 3.1
>> Wow, okay. That' still very good. What is your ultimate degree aspiration?
>> Actually, right now I currently have my master's. And I think in the next year or so I kind of might want to, you
know, pursue a PhD or something.
>> Oh wow, that's great.
>> Yeah.
>> Excellent. What high school did you go to, and was it private or public?
>> I went to public school, and I went to Roosevelt High School.
>> Where is that?
>> It's on Tulare and Cedar.
>> Okay.
>> And when I was there, people used to call my school ghetto because we used to have like a lot of gangs, and you
know, bad things happen there and kind of like, you know, we had a program for like all the teenage girls are really
pregnant. You know, they could bring their kids to school and drop them off at the daycare. And there was quite a bit of
[inaudible]. So I grew up in that kind of high school, but I never saw it that way. Yeah.
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>> Okay. Thinking back on your socioeconomic background, was it working class, middle class, upper class?
>> It was definitely lower class.
>> Yeah.
>> I mean we really, we grew up like on the welfare system, yeah, yeah.
>> What was the, if you think about your high school, what was the racial and ethnic demographic of your high school?
>> Oh, do you mean like in regards to like, more like?
>> [Inaudible] like what percentage of what, if you think, I mean guessing? Was it an African-American school? Was it
Latino school.
>> Yeah, it was definitely more Latinos there. And yeah, I would say it was definitely more Latinos. And then there was
a mix of like Asian.
>> Oh, okay. What type of Asian?
>> Definitely there was a high population of Hmong, Hmong people. I think there was also a Cambodian, Vietnamese. I
think those were the top three groups that I'm aware of, yeah.
>> Excellent. So why do Hmong go to college, and why do they not go?
>> I think it just depends. Again, the whole gender thing. I think it depends. If I'm a girl and I'm not really married in
high school, then typically the next step is college, right.
>> Okay.
>> So I don't know if that's just how I see it or that's how kind of like I've seen it is if you're not married then you go to
college.
>> Okay, wow. Why wouldn't you go to college?
>> So if you're married, then you have to stay home with the babies.
>> Oh, okay.
>> Yeah, I don't know. Like for me, my mom wouldn't let me date in high school. And I never saw the reason to really
date in high school. So she encouraged me to go to college. And so.
>> Interesting that your mom encouraged you.
>> Yeah, she was like, I think she was a sensible person. I think she was very pro-education because she didn't have an
education. And so I think she saw the value in that. And really encouraged me and my family to go to college. And it
was just me and my sister that actually, you know, got our masters.
>> Wow, that's impressive.
>> And went beyond like a BA.
>> So did your other siblings, did they go to college?
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>> They, so, my sister attempted. My two, three brothers attempted, and only one of them actually did like a two-year
program at Fresno City and finished. The other did not finish?
>> So what makes you and your sister so unique? Because that's still very good. Why did you and your sister graduate
with a master's. That's actually even a rare [inaudible].
>> Well, I really think it's A, our mindset. And it's our family that encouraged us to go. Because A, when my brothers
and them got here, they were much older already. So they struggled in the school system. And then whereas me and my
sister already grew up with the idea of college as, you know, the mountain you climb to success at the top because you
want to be as smart as everybody else.
>> Interesting.
>> So I mean, we
>> Were your brothers first generation? They were born over there.
>> Yes.
>> In [Inaudible].
>> Yes, it's just me and my second brother that is, I guess, second generation here.
>> And then what about your sister? Was she second generation?
>> No, she's first generation.
>> Interesting. Okay. So in looking at how your family cultivated college, what did your mom tell you? Did she say,
like what words did she say, like what did she say?
>> She said, you need to go to college so that you can become a doctor.
>> Oh really?
>> Yeah, she was very specific. I was actually, when I was actually in high school, and this is a joke that maybe most,
maybe Hmong and Asian people can relate to your parents tell you, okay, you're going to become a doctor, a lawyer or a
teacher.
>> Okay.
>> And I didn't really become any of those. But I think what they really meant was you do something with your life in
terms of education.
>> Okay, interesting.
>> Or at least that's what I took away from that conversation. And I think that's what really is what she meant by, you
know, I need you to go to college. I need you to become somebody.
>> Wow, that's interesting.
>> Yeah.
>> In terms of like gender, was that a unique thing that your mom said for you to go to college. Because you are female.
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>> You know what, I do have to say that I see her probably encouraged me and my sister more and not my brothers.
>> Interesting.
>> Yes.
>> Let's explore that.
>> Okay.
>> Why, why, because the Asian culture, in general, is patriarchal, so naturally you might think you'd encourage the
males.
>> Yeah. So for my own perspective, it seems as if for the girls in our, you know, in our culture and our family, is that if
we want to be noticed in our clan or something, you know, that is either that is only through education and a good job.
>> Oh, education good job.
>> Education and good job if you want to be noticed in a good way. So if you don't, you know, If you just finish high
school and you just kind of work at McDonald's or something. I think it's really frowned upon. So I think we have to try
extra hard to be seen as decent in the eyes of the males in our culture. So I think that's why when Hmong women
succeed, we're really proud of ourselves because that's how we get noticed in a positive light. And I think for the guys,
there really isn't a push to do that because even if you don't, you know, graduate from college or something like that,
you're still a male in the culture. And so you still have that like that status.
>> Interesting, okay.
>> That's just from what I see.
>> So your mom wanted you to have high status by pushing you to become a doctor.
>> Yes.
>> And education.
>> Yes, yes.
>> Okay. Interesting.
>> Yeah.
>> Great, okay. Speaking of Hmong students, looking at Hmong students, particularly a gender, right, you kind of
answered the question, but why do you think there is such a deep contrast in that the Hmong women are graduating in
contrast among men who are not. I mean it's such a big deal that our president [inaudible] knows we're going to have a
huge, what do you attribute to this like huge disparity? Because it's from the same background. They're both from, you
know. If everyone's from the working class, same culture, same class, same why the difference at graduation.
>> I think it comes down to expectations. At least for me, it comes down to expectations. And whether or not it makes a
difference. So, again, just kind of going back to what I just said, like me and my brother, right, we go to college. And
even if he doesn't like finish college, there's not as much, he's almost like given like a free pass. Like it's okay. I know
it's difficult. But if I go to college and then I don't make it, it's like, is it because you're partying, you know, you're not
making good decisions. And you're a bad daughter. So I think there's really a fine line, whereas some guys may feel that
they don't actually need to try 100% or do their 100%, especially in education because they're still going to be, in a
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sense, forgiven. You know, slap on the hand kind of thing.
>> So would your mom forgive them? Did your mom also push the males? Or she did not push the males?
>> It was encouraged, but when they stopped going to school, it was just kind of like, oh, it's okay, you know, kind of
thing.
>> Okay. But if that happened to you?
>> Oh, I would probably get beaten.
>> Really.
>> I mean.
>> That's very interesting, yeah.
>> Yeah, I mean, I probably wouldn't get beaten.
>> Yeah.
>> You know, it's.
>> Metaphorically.
>> I probably would get beaten. Yeah, so.
>> Interesting, okay.
>> And I think, but I think my family's a little bit different because A, my dad passed away a long time ago. So we
didn't have a father figure in my family forever, and even now, we don't have like really the father figure. So it's really
just my mom who single-handedly kind of like try to steer us. So I think she was really trying to make the girls focus on
education.
>> Good point.
>> But then make sure that the guys kind of play the role as the men, whatever that role is.
>> Interesting. If we contrast mom with let's say South Asian. South Asian is the highest graduation at 70%, if you can
believe it, from India, right, but in this area. Why do you think South Asians from India but Americans, why do you
think that they're graduating, and it's mostly males who are graduating, right? Not the women. I mean it's women too,
but is very much women. Why do you see the contrast? Same area of Fresno. Why are they graduating at 70%? Why do
you see the difference in that difference?
>> I strongly believe it's culture still.
>> Okay.
>> I think that, I don't know how it's like for Southeast Asia, like in general. But I still believe that an [inaudible] like,
you know, obviously the, it's a patriarchal like society, [inaudible]. I think it's really come down to the fact that we're in
America now, and it's not like back then in Laos and Thailand and China. And it's really like, oh I'm a girl, and I have
almost the same, I have, okay I think I know what I want to say. So, I think one of the reasons why we try to succeed
more in education is because in the sphere of our culture, we will never be as quote/unquote good as a man. And
because in a clan setting, we're still, we still have to be, you know, humble, modest, quiet and kind of behind the man
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who leads the family. But in education, we don't have to be. We can be successful, we can be unique, and we can be
smart.
>> Okay.
>> And we don't have to, in a sense, keep our mouth shut. And we can speak our opinion because it's academics. And I
think that because we see that, then we go that way. Whereas, the guys are like well, it doesn't matter about education.
I'm still a man in my culture. If I marry a woman in my culture, I'm still going to be the head. So it doesn't matter if I
have an education or not.
>> So that's why you attribute the large number of Hmong PhDs and, but primarily female.
>> Yeah, it's primarily female.
>> You see it's kind of a way for women to be heard, right.
>> Yes.
>> Interesting, okay. Have you ever, I'm sorry, what's your least and favorite subject?
>> Okay, so my least favorite subject, and it's because I'm not good at it, is math.
>> Math, okay.
>> And my favorite subject is actually history, it's history and creative writing.
>> Oh, okay. What makes a good professor for you to pass a class, thinking back?
>> So whether or not I even pass the class actually.
>> Or, I mean, do well.
>> Do well. So definitely a very passionate professor. Somebody who is in love with what they're talking about. I think
that's when you believe actually what's being said to you or being taught to you. I think that's what it is for me
personally. If a professor is passionate and he or she is engaged with what they're trying to pass on to you. Then you
believe them. Then you, I think I'm able to retain that more than if somebody just passively comes and says, okay, well
this is, you know, get out your book and read page 360 to 500 and tell me what you think. Or if somebody just comes in
and scribbles like a number and says, okay, solve it. I think that, to me, is very, it makes me sleepy.
>> Okay, great. Have you ever been mentored?
>> I have been mentored actually.
>> By who, and what happened?
>> At different parts of my life?
>> I mean college.
>> College, okay. Mentored.
>> Somebody gave you advice, I guess.
>> Oh actually, no. I don't remember being mentored in college.
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>> What about grad school.
>> Good morning, good morning. This is Joe.
>> I was actually mentored, but it wasn't until my last year of college. And my graduate program, my last year, I
actually, it's a librarian at Fresno State. Her name is Britt Foster.
>> What's her name?
>> Britt Foster.
>> Britt Foster. It's a female?
>> Yeah.
>> Okay.
>> And I believe she is the librarian for, if it's not STEM, it's, she's still the liaison for the [inaudible] program. Because
I interned with her. So she became kind of like my mentor.
>> Okay.
>> Yeah, for my graduate at the end of the year. Yeah, so she really helped me actually.
>> Is she a co-ethnic?
>> No, she's Caucasian.
>> Oh, interesting. Okay. Thinking back of your high school years, what was the actual teacher expectation of you?
Was it neutral, low, high?
>> It was high.
>> Oh really?
>> Yeah, it was high.
>> Tell me why.
>> Well, when I was in high school I was in all the honors classes. So on the honors and AP classes, so I think that
expectation, there's expectations there obviously during those classes.
>> Right.
>> And it was always, I had really good teachers in high school. They always encouraged me. And if I didn't do good on
something, they would try to help me in a genuine way.
>> Okay.
>> So I had a lot of encouragement there. So.
>> Thinking back on your high school and the honors classes and also the experience at Fresno State, was it
predominantly Hmong females that you saw versus Hmong males? Or did you see an equal number at ever level.
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>> Yeah it was predominantly Hmong females.
>> Oh, okay, interesting. Even from the high school honors?
>> Yes, Yes, I don't, there was only like one guy.
>> Wow, okay.
>> Yeah, yeah.
>> What about your college?
>> Actually, you know, I didn't have any classes with any Hmong males at all.
>> Goodness, okay.
>> And I was like the 21-unit kind of person, taking random classes. I actually take it back. I did take a Hmong class,
but there's Hmong people in [inaudible].
>> Right.
>> Yeah, so I did take one Hmong course, and there was Hmong people in there.
>> Males was it predominantly?
>> I think it was pretty even actually.
>> Okay.
>> In the Hmong course where they taught like Hmong course. So you had to be ready to speak Hmong ready, and that
was like teaching you how to read and write which was actually a really fun class. But, you know, in all my other
classes where I had to deal with like sociology, just like that, what are basic classes. I don't ever remember a Hmong guy
in my class.
>> What about Southeast Asian males in general? Did you see many Southeast Asian males? Cambodians, Vietnamese.
>> You know, just, yes, but I couldn't tell you exactly, you know, what their ethnicity was.
>> Okay.
>> But there was definitely some Asian men, but they were not Hmong.
>> Thinking back to your high school, were the teacher expectations of your co-ethnic, was it neutral, low, high? For
the Asians. Was it a high expectation? Was it neutral?
>> I think it was, you know, honestly, I couldn't really tell. In regards to like the ethnic portion, I just know that for me
it was high expectations, you know. In the classroom that I was in. So if they were in those classes, which they weren't.
>> Great. That's a good point.
>> So if, but now that you say that, I do remember a time when, in high school, if not, there was a teacher, and he
taught, you know, an honors class. And he also taught basic like just English class. So of course, higher expectations for
the honors class but not a high expectation for the ones who didn't take the honors class.
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>> Good point. So even from high school, there's some [inaudible]. Do you think going to college, do you think your
high school sufficiently prepared you for college?
>> Let me see. Yes and no, I think. Yes, in regards to like setting me up education-wise. Because again, I took the
honors and the AP classes and so I kind of had that thinking going in already. But no, in regards to like you don't get
that type of feeling or that type of like support when you're in college. So in high school, everybody knows everybody,
and you know all the teachers. And you know, you can go meet them during lunchtime and all that stuff. But I think
when you get into college it's such a big campus. The feelings are, the [inaudible] school changes. Even when I
graduated as a senior, you know, I still didn't have the same feeling that you would have when you're in high school
kind of thing.
>> Good point. So again, this is all optional, the barrier section.
>> Okay.
>> Looking back, what do you think the barriers that you had, and barriers are defined as things that kind of like
prevented you or some barrier, right. Do you have any, for example, financial, psychological, gender, social,
community, grandparents, kids. Do you think you had any barriers going to college?
>> Not on my undergrad year. Because A, my mom was healthy. My sister and my brother lived at home. And so I don't
think I really had a barrier, per se. I think the only concern I had was, actually I take it back. There's two concerns that I
kind of had which is money. Obviously, finances, you know.
>> Financial barrier.
>> Yeah. So my mom, she doesn't work, you know. We've been on the welfare system. She's on SSI and all that stuff,
disability. And so, of course, you know, from an early age I had to start working already. And so going to college.
>> How old are you, and what did you work at?
>> Oh so when I was 13. My original working is any time I go do something I get paid. So I was actually a babysitter
for the longest time.
>> Oh wow.
>> I started babysitting when I was 13. I babysat maybe a couple of times a week.
>> Wow, how did you find these people?
>> They were teachers, actually.
>> Oh, okay.
>> At your high school.
>> Yeah, at my high school.
>> Wow, okay.
>> They were teachers. And it was actually, they weren't actually my teachers. But they had another student, which is
actually one of my best friends, and then she stopped babysitting. And she said, well Anna can do it, because you know,
I grew up with like a thousand kids. I have 32 nieces and nephews, 35 nieces and nephews.
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>> Oh my goodness.
>> And so I grew up with taking care of kids. So my friends stopped babysitting, and they told me if I wanted to
babysit. So one thing led to another. I just started babysitting.
>> Wow, okay.
>> And so.
>> That's very good at 13?
>> Yeah, yeah, yeah. And so I would get dropped off and then I would just babysit while they were away. And so.
>> Wow, okay.
>> So yeah, I started kind of working when I was a little bit younger. So, definitely when I was in college, you know,
it's not just like kind of optional where okay, I can come babysit on Friday night. It's I have a schedule that I had to
work. And so keeping kind of that together was definitely difficult because, you know, mom doesn't work, so where is
the money coming from. I kind of had to make my own money to kind of help and support. And then, of course, there's
also the expectations of you're a daughter, and so even if you have night classes, you know, if your night class ends at
six, you have to be home. You can't just say you're going to be studying at school all the time. So there's still like the
expectations of like, you still have to fulfill your role as a daughter to the family. You still have to come home, make
dinner. In the morning, you still have to cook rice. You still have to clean the house and, you know, that kind of, I think
those are kind of my barriers in undergrad.
>> You didn't have any kids that you'd have to take care of, grandparents anything like that? You had the barrier.
>> Oh I just have to take care of my mom, yeah.
>> Okay. So we're trying to make Fresno State a warmer environment. Do you think that, was there any barriers in the
feeling of warm environment at Fresno State? For example, we have had, not our school, but we've had, in terms of
chilly versus warm environment, we've had instances where African-American male students have been stopped on
campus and have said, you know, are you student? What are you doing in the library? When they're just a student, you
know.
>> Yeah.
>> Has there ever been a chilly or warm environment? I mean, in Fresno State? What can we do to make it warmer?
>> I haven't had, I didn't really have a chilly experience at Fresno State. I think I had a pretty decent experience at
Fresno State. And I think, I think one of the things that could have been done a little bit differently to make me feel
more engaged with the university or that I felt like there were places I could go to is more visibility of organizations on
campus. And like.
>> Wow, okay.
>> Because I know that there's like those booths and stuff like that. But honestly, I never knew for the longest time why
those booths were there.
>> Okay.
>> And again, I'm the classic Asian girl that, you know, just goes to class and go to the library and I just go home after
that.
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>> Did you join the Hmong club?
>> I did not join the Hmong club.
>> Oh, okay.
>> So I do know that there was a Hmong club. But I didn't know about the Hmong club until after sophomore year.
>> Okay.
>> Yeah, and the only reason why I knew there was a Hmong club was because I knew some people that were joining.
And they were like, oh, do you want to join? And I actually didn't join because, I was just, it was, so.
>> Okay. All right, okay. Anything else you think hampered you or any other thing I didn't ask you about barriers for
your graduation? Did you graduate in four years, six years?
>> Four years.
>> That's amazing.
>> Yeah.
>> That is very, wow.
>> I changed my major twice.
>> I mean, were there any barriers to you graduating to four years? Because that's [inaudible].
>> Actually, so when I got into, I came in as a liberal studies major at Fresno State. And I did a year as a liberal studies
major just kind of [inaudible] courses and stuff like that. And I realized I don't want to be a teacher.
>> Oh, okay.
>> And there was really, my mom was really upset because I said I didn't want to be a teacher anymore. And then I said
that I wanted to be, I said I didn't know what I wanted to be, but maybe I wanted to be an astronomer. She hated that
idea.
>> Okay.
>> And so I actually changed my major to history, and I told her that I wanted to be a history professor.
>> Okay.
>> But not like a regular, you know, like elementary school teacher. And so I think I was able to finish in those four
years because by sophomore year I realized I wanted to be a librarian.
>> How did you know as a sophomore year you wanted to be a librarian?
>> Because I had wanted to be a librarian in eighth grade.
>> How did you know by eighth grade you wanted to be a librarian?
>> So when I was in eighth grade, I knew this librarian, and her name was Bellamy Glenda.
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>> Okay.
>> Sorry, Glenda Bellamy.
>> Okay.
>> And she was from [Inaudible] Middle School, and she was like the best person in the world. And we used to always
like hang out in the library and stuff like that.
>> You hung out with a librarian?
>> Yeah.
>> As a kid?
>> Yeah. But I was in eighth grade.
>> Okay.
>> You know, I loved to read and stuff like that. So, of course, I just gravitated towards libraries. So I think ever since
then my experience with her, I've always wanted to be a librarian. But I think that the idea of being a librarian for my
family was very like obscure.
>> Right, right.
>> Because like, well, what are you going to do, shelve books? Well no, not really. And so I think when I got into my
sophomore year I realized, okay, I tried to be the, because I did the health academy in high school to try to be a doctor. I
didn't do well. I figured, I realized I was afraid of hospitals. And then I tried the whole teacher thing. And I knew I didn't
want to be a lawyer.
>> Okay.
>> So then I figured sophomore year, I wanted to be a librarian. And so the only way to be a librarian, I went and talked
to a librarian at Fresno State actually. I can't remember her name, but.
>> Is she Hmong-American?
>> No, she was a Caucasian as well.
>> Okay.
>> Yeah, I just remember asking her like, I want to be a librarian. What do I need to do? And she said, you need to get
your masters in library information and science to be a librarian if you want to work in the academic setting. And so I
was like okay, well what do I do? And she was, there's a lot of colleges. And so she really gave me.
>> [Inaudible] mentor.
>> You know, it was just like a 30-minute conversation, but she really I think helped me to steer my path, my life in a
sense. And then I knew I needed to get out in four years because I still had three years to go.
>> Right.
>> And so, that was when I really just focused on and I just got my BA and got out. And I think because I needed that
aim to get to my master's program. And I didn't want to like fiddle around in my undergrad. Because I needed to get to
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my masters.
>> Okay, great.
>> That was for me, personally.
>> Excellent. Inspiring story. So the next part of the interview I'm going to ask you for successes.
>> Okay.
>> So, Anna, you are very unique, right. In four years, actually very unique but also in general. In this regional area of
Fresno, we have very few BAs in this area as well. And you have an MA, so that's even regionally or even like globally.
So what is it about your personality, like why did you make it when the mass majority, if it's globally, and that's just 4%.
If it's America, then it's 70%, or even the Southeast Asian community or gender it's much, I mean what about your
personality? If we could investigate your personality.
>> Okay.
>> What about your personality that made you graduate and also, your master's, I mean it's very unique.
>> So I've always, I think I've always been intrinsically motivated. And I think that stemmed from when I was younger.
So my dad passed away when I was five years old, and the Hmong culture, or maybe in any culture, you know, when
the head of the family kind of passes away, you get family and cousins who really speak bad about you. You know, your
family like, for example, I think it's, you know, they said things like you know, his family as he's passed away, they're
just going to grow up to be bad people, you know, gangsters and whatnot. And I think I was a child and I heard that.
And I still remember that conversation. And so I've been.
>> You wanted to prove them wrong?
>> Yes.
>> Oh.
>> So that basically is, I want to make sure that those people are wrong and that the memory of, you know, my father
and my mother, that they did good and that we did come here for a reason. And it is for us to succeed. So, you know, us
coming from Laos and Thailand. And coming here is to live the American dream, right. And that's, to me, the American
dream isn't like a house and a picket fence and a car. I think to me the American dream is the hope that I could actually
do something and that I have actually an opportunity. Whereas if I had lived over there, I could have probably been
married and had five kids working on a farm somewhere.
>> At least.
>> Yeah, at least, at least. And so I think for me, it's I chose to be successful, to prove people wrong. But really, it's just
to, I think, you know, say, you know, thanks to my parents and that they brought us here kind of, I just think it's kind of
sad when you have, you know, an opportunity sitting right in front of your face and you don't take advantage of it. So.
>> Good point. So you've always had this, so you were like five.
>> Yes.
>> Ten, twelve, I mean, and you thought you've been on earth so long.
>> Yeah.
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>> Wow, okay. Excellent. Thinking about you family, and you just talked about, you talked about family, your mom
encouraged you to go to college, and gender. Do you think, is there anything else that helped you such as financial,
cultural, gender, like kind of flip with the question of barriers. What were the things that helped you graduate
financially, gender, psychological, community? Did the community do anything? [Inaudible].
>> You know, I think, I mean, I think personally I've always just wanted to succeed in higher education. But I think in
the past couple of years maybe, maybe five or ten years, you start to hear people, the elders in the community kind of
saying, you know what, we need to be like everybody else. We need to be smart and successful for our culture to kind of
like last here in a sense, you know. And so I think hearing that too gave me a push as well.
>> So like to represent your culture.
>> Yeah.
>> Community.
>> Yeah, so you go and be good in higher education, get a good job in a company or at a school or from a high up,
because when you represent the Hmong community. And so that's, it was also, you know, just a second little push there.
>> It's a big push.
>> Yeah.
>> Why do you think, because right, you're very giving. Librarians in general are very giving and helpful. You picked a
helpful job. So why do you think you have that [inaudible] other than your father, why do you have that [inaudible]?
Helpfulness. Why are you so helpful?
>> You know, I'm not exactly sure. I think I just like to see, I think I just like to helpful. I just like to see them happy.
>> Okay. I'm sure those elders have told many people, which it represent, do better, but why did that affect you whereas
[inaudible].
>> I think I want to be an example of success for especially my nieces and my nephews, if they listen to me. That I want
to be an example that says, you know, my mom didn't have an education. We came here. We lived on that packet of
food stamps forever. We lived in the ghetto. We lived in apartments where, you know, there was like 13 of us and we
shared a two-bedroom apartment, you know. And that you can, you can grow out of those environments into one where
you choose to be there.
>> So something else about you, you've always been an honor student. You have a very high GPA. Do you attribute
high intelligence as one of the reasons why you have a bridge, successful bridge?
>> I want to say, I think high intelligence, I don't know if I have high intelligence.
>> You do.
>> Maybe just, I just, I think it's also emotional competency.
>> Okay.
>> So I think it's a good combination of wanting to be better than my situation in life. And knowing that I can do it. I
think believing in myself was one of those things.
>> Oh believing in yourself, okay. Excellent. And is there anything I didn't ask you about kind of like bridges,
successful bridges, do you think? Looking back, you talk about yourself. If we could unpeel again, you have high
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intelligence.
>> Okay.
>> Giving, community, parents.
>> Oh my gosh, I don't even know.
>> Do you think any of the analysts helped you? You've always been honors, I mean.
>> I don't know if things actually.
>> Emotional competency.
>> I think it's, you know, I think it's just kind of going back to what I just said a while ago, which is the whole when I
was younger, people were saying, you know, you're going to be bad or something. So you try to be better. I mean we
grew up with that kind of just sentiment behind our backs, you know. Other people are like always looking into your
family and saying, oh you know, there's not a dad there then there's just going to be bad people. And I think that
continues until you become somebody that they can't say anymore. Or they can't like say that stuff about you anymore.
>> So would you say you're kind of like, definitely a trailblazer, but you say you're a little defiant?
>> Yeah.
>> Okay. Go against the norm?
>> Yeah.
>> Not the norm, but I'm just saying, you know.
>> Yeah, I know what you mean.
>> [Inaudible] expectation.
>> Yeah. So I think it's really like, because it said that, it's like no, you shouldn't be saying things like that. And so I'm
going to become more awesome now.
>> Okay.
>> I think because of that, really pushed me.
>> Interesting, okay. Also, thinking back in terms of success, were there any successful media or any media kind of TV
shows that showed Asian women that you could have used. I don't know, like some people, have you seen any negative
or positive images of Asian women or Hmong women or, that positively pushed you into. I don't know, like Wonder
Woman, I don't know. Doesn't have to be Asian, but was there an Asian? Like did that push you in any way? Captain
fan?
>> I was going to say, I don't know because I grew up watching like anime, like.
>> Oh, Japanese anime?
>> Yeah. I was like, I watched like, I don't know if it was technically Japanese anime, but I watched
>> Yeah, it is.
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>> like Sailor Moon. I watched like Goku and.
>> So Sailor Moon is very feminist and very like strong women.
>> Yeah.
>> Do you think there is some [inaudible] of the effect it has on girls that's [inaudible].
>> Oh okay.
>> Do you think that this empowered you, these animations showing very strong women fighting and winning?
>> Yeah, I do agree. Because, yeah actually, kind of think about it. Yeah, I think so.
>> Why did you like Sailor Moon. What do you?
>> Okay well A, they're magical girls.
>> Okay, they're magical.
>> They transform
>> Okay.
>> And they fought bad guys.
>> Okay.
>> I don't know, like even me now, I still like to.
>> Okay.
>> But I think that it's just that they can make a difference, you know. They can, I don't know.
>> Did you read Nancy Drew at all, ever?
>> Actually, you know, I did. I did read Nancy Drew. I did read a lot. I read all those like American Girl books.
>> Okay.
>> I'm a huge reader.
>> There's a huge, like [inaudible] said about Hillary Clinton and Ginsburg and all of that. And also being Justice Sonia
Sotomayor, all Nancy Drew fans.
>> Oh really.
>> And they talk about how it had a lifetime effect on them.
>> Oh wow.
>> Can you explore this? Why did you read Nancy Drew?
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>> Okay, so I read Nancy Drew when I was actually in seventh grade.
>> Okay.
>> And I can't even remember what it's about. But I do remember it was like so captivating. Like, because you know,
she's a detective, or, right, she was a detective, right? Nancy Drew. And it's just.
>> Were you conscious as a child that it was a woman?
>> Yeah.
>> Solving problems.
>> Yes, yes. I was conscious that it was a girl and that she was the one that was taking care of herself in a sense. Or yes.
>> That's intriguing.
>> Yeah, but I don't know.
>> You have Nancy Drew. You have all those other things. But also Sailor Moon. That's very intriguing, okay. Great.
So the last part is I'm just going to ask you [inaudible] questions. Small classes.
>> Small classes. Smaller classes?
>> Makes a difference or no?
>> I think so, yeah.
>> Okay, so you prefer small classes.
>> I prefer small classes.
>> More ethnic, Asian, Hmong professors?
>> I think so.
>> You want more?
>> Uh-huh.
>> Okay. What about co-ethnic classes?
>> To me that doesn't really matter as much.
>> Okay. Ethnic clubs?
>> Yeah.
>> Yeah, okay. What college success workshop do you want?
>> I think a college success workshop should be, there should definitely be one on how to handle like finances as a
college student.
>> Okay.
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>> I want to say that I think there might have been one that I attended.
>> Okay.
>> But I think there should be one that is the realities of being a college student and like dealing with finances. I think
there should definitely be something about like work college balance, like life balance kind of things.
>> Okay. Anything else that you want?
>> I think there should be one especially for fourth years or whoever is in their program. Like how do they, you know,
how do they like get jobs after college?
>> Yes.
>> You know, how do you get jobs after college? Like what's next after college? Like I think really helping, like
[inaudible] like pan our paths. It's really important because I think that was what was so difficult like for some of the
people that I knew after college is. For me personally, I need to get out in four years because I needed to get to my
master's program because I wanted to be a librarian. Then I needed to go and interview and all that stuff. I know there
were people who are like, okay, I'm done with four years. Now, what the heck do I do?
>> Do we do it for Asians or Asian males. Do you want a specific workshop for Asians?
>> I think that would be nice too.
>> All right, great. Any other needs or wants before I get to the last question? You think would make people, do you
have friends who didn't graduate at Fresno State? In fact, what do they need? What do they need that could have just
held them?
>> Let me see.
[ Inaudible ]
I think, so I did have some guy friends, and we went to Fresno State together, but some of them actually didn't finish or
graduate. And I think it's because A, they had girlfriends and they started families. Or B, they were lazy. I think they
found that they would rather work because they got money. So that instant gratification versus and education, which
would eventually to so what, like I don't know what. So I think they kind of weighed that and said I'd rather just work
and not go to college so I can have money so I can to do whatever I need to do right now. But yeah.
>> So we have a lot of Hmong women that have children. But they still graduate. So is it a gender issue?
>> I think so.
>> Because we have a lot of [inaudible].
>> I think it's a gender, definitely a gender-cultured like [inaudible] issue. Because I think even if we were to still have,
even if I was to have a child and I was still wanting to get my education, because I know that in order for me to have a
place or a face or a voice or like a notice in the Hmong community, I need to have a high education and a good job. So.
>> Good point. So I'm actually at the last question. So for instance, people in probably like around six more years, third
generation of college students come in, right. We obviously want to get higher graduation rates, quadruple, triple, more
than that. What advice do you have for third generation college students for them to graduate and be like you, very
successful. What advice do you have, like ten things, like that you want them to do to be successful, to get, you know,
some, will teeter and whatever issue they'll [inaudible]. What are the ten pieces of advice you have for the third
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generation?
>> Okay, so I have a couple pieces of advice.
>> Okay.
>> And some examples. If you think that going and getting your education means that, it means, not getting your
education is okay, that you're still going to, if you're thinking more about making money, okay. I'm going to draw back
to money, because I think money is a great motivator for a lot of people. You know, I graduated with my bachelor's and
my master's, and I'm making, in my job right now as a librarian, I'm making so much more money than my brother who
only finished high school, has been working for 15 years.
>> Wow.
>> I make so much more money than him.
>> Good point.
>> And that's why, and that's why I've been encouraging him to go back to school. So he's been trying to back to school.
>> Okay.
>> And he has a family. He started when he, he started his family when he was a little bit, I don't even know how old he
was, but I just remember he was probably like 20, 21. But he didn't see the importance of education because he wanted
to start working to get money. So money when you're 21 is instant gratification. But if you go to college and you land a
job, long-run, you don't have to work as hard, you know. So I think that's one of the benefits is if you're thinking more
about a job equals money, higher pay. It does exist, at least for me.
>> Okay.
>> I think another advice is if you feel like you're not smart enough to go to college, don't think that way. You know,
you need to find help in some way, shape or form. If that's either through tutoring, they need to find help. Either through
tutoring, ask for a counselor. If you think you're not smart enough to go to college, don't worry. There's a lot of people
there that are struggling as well too.
>> Ask for help.
>> Yeah, and like I'm sure that, you know, when you get there it's going to be different from like when you were like in
high school, you know. When you find something you're very passionate about, it becomes easier. And I think that's one
thing. And I think another advice is let's just say you're in the middle, you started college, okay, and you're in the first or
second year of college and you're ready to give up. Because you're like, you know what, I think I'd rather just spend my
time doing other things. You're halfway there already. So, why do you want to pull out? And if you are trying to pull out
of college, and you're halfway there, I think it's really important for you to analyze what your ultimate goal is. And
really see how this education will help you get to that goal. [Inaudible] it's just like, okay I'm tired. I'm just going to pull
out. You know, I have like five Ds. I'm going to pull out. If you have five Ds, you definitely get some assistance.
There's great tutoring on campus. You just need to go find that. Yes, you need to definitely ask for help. I don't know, I
think it's just like one of those things where, you know, don't give up. When you're barely starting out, don't give up.
You just started the race. And when you get to the finish line, you know, and see what's on the other side. Because I
mean that's the whole point of life, right. Is to get to the finish line. So, I don't know. I think that's kind of. I think
another thing would be understanding your priorities. That there are some priorities that you have to put above other
priorities. And one of them is your education, I think. Because I think it's easy to say, you know, I'm not going go to
school today. I think I'll hang out with all my friends who didn't graduate from college. You know, who's not going to
college. But in the long run, you know, when you're finished and you get a job, you're the one that's making big bucks
and you can go to Hawaii and then your friends can't go to Hawaii because they can't take time off because they work at
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Walmart, you know.
>> Good point.
>> I don't know. I think you have to try to find, I think you have to try to figure out, or for yourself, that succeeding in
education is because you want to give yourself an opportunity to live a life that you could have only imagined. So.
>> Any specific advice to Southeast Asians, people probably listening to this?
>> Specific advice to Southeast Asians.
>> Gender or females and males, or minorities in general. Like what, I mean even self-care advice. What is the self-care
that you do to kind of keep your level of energy up? Because they're going to have a lot of stress, and they're going to
feel overwhelmed.
>> So for me, so that goes back to like work life balance is for me, any time I feel stressed out, if I feel like I can't
handle this, I introvert myself form everything that's happening. And I just, I try to reanalyze why I'm doing these
things. And through me, finding a purpose for these things. Then I reenergize myself basically. And so,
>> Alone time
>> yeah, so definitely needing alone time. And you know, it's nice to kind of keep a book or a chart that says, the reason
why I'm doing this is because of this. Because sometimes we'll need a purpose.
>> Right, purpose.
>> Yeah. And like my purpose cold be, because I want to have a lot of money, right. But in order to have a lot of money
is either A, you get a high education, you get a big job, you know. Or, you get really lucky somehow, and then you get a
lot of money. But that's only by luck. It's hard to come by sometimes. Whereas, if that's not in your control, you have
control over going to college and doing all these things. And then that way it's you working hard on it, not just you're
sitting around and luck just comes to you. I think it's more gratifying the other route than this route.
>> Okay, good point. Do you do any yoga or physical exercise or things like that.
>> Yes, I always, I actually play sports.
>> Oh.
>> So yeah.
>> So physical exercise.
>> Yeah, physical exercise. I played sports all throughout my life.
>> Okay. What sport?
>> And my family is very sporty.
>> Oh, okay.
>> We play volleyball a lot.
>> Oh, okay.
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>> All the time.
>> Okay.
>> Just lately we haven't been playing. But I also, my four years in undergrad at Fresno State I played badminton.
>> Great. Okay. So playing sports.
>> Playing sports. And it's really nice if you get into a college and you like sports. Finding like a sports club onsite.
Because actually, now that I think about it, I was a part of the badminton club at Fresno State.
>> Wow, okay. That's great.
>> Yeah, and so there was a bunch of people in the badminton club, and they're from like the community, you know.
And it's predominantly Asian people actually.
>> Okay.
>> And it's really interesting when you talk to some of them. They're like playing badminton. They're like Olympic
players. And they're like, oh yeah, I'm like a senior analyst at some company. And you're like, oh my gosh. I'm just a
freshman back in college. But I think that's one of the other things too is finding a club or a sport that you like and
joining it. I think when you do something like that, you're more attached to the university, or attached to, you know,
your education.
>> Excellent.
>> There's more reasoning for you to go to school.
>> Great. That's it.
>> Okay.
>> That's the last question. I'm going to turn this off. Thank you so much.
>> Yeah.
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