As Easy as APC

When Michelle Wong ’10 and Vivian Hui ’11 get together, the phrase high energy takes on new meaning.  Words like supercharged and dynamo come to mind.  It doesn’t surprise you to learn these two live wires have been busy since the day they arrived at Texas A&M—so busy, as a matter of fact, the two close friends almost didn’t meet at all.

The delay in their getting together is ironic, given the number of things the two women have in common.  Both Michelle and Vivian originally come from Hong Kong.  Both their families moved to Texas.  Both women wound up at Texas A&M University—Michelle majoring in international business, Vivian in biomedical engineering.  They even had some friends in common.  What they didn’t have was time to get acquainted.

“One of our friends wanted to introduce us for the longest time,” Michelle admits ruefully.  “But I was busy, Vivian was busy, so we never met.  And the first time we did meet, I didn’t think we were going to be this close.”

But some friendships are meant to be.  When the right time rolled around, Michelle and Vivian found becoming friends as easy as APC:  the Asian President’s Council.  As president of the Hong Kong Students’ Association (HKSA), Michelle was already a member.  Vivian signed up with both HKSA and the Asian President’s Council listserv at a welcome event held at the Commons and eventually became an officer in APC.  Obviously, their paths were bound to cross.

“We started doing HKSA, and we’d see each other at APC meetings all the time.  So, eventually, yeah.”  Vivian grins at Michelle.  “It was pretty cool.”  

We’re All Aggies
In addition to being close friends, Michelle and Vivian are this year’s president and vice president of APC—an umbrella organization made up of a president, vice president, officers, and executive staff, as well as a delegate (usually the president) from each Asian organization on campus.  Michelle and Vivian are channeling their apparently limitless energy and a good deal of their all-too-limited time into unifying the numerous organizations.  They’re also trying to improve inter-group communication and collaboration.

“We try to get them to communicate better,” says Vivian.  “For example, we work with them to schedule their meetings so one group’s meetings don’t conflict with another’s.”

“We not only help them talk to each other,” Michelle adds, “we help them with different events.  We sponsor round tables where everyone can share information about their meetings or advertise events.  We try to be there for whatever they need.”

The common cause of A&M’s Asian organizations, the Asian Presidents’ Council included, is raising cultural awareness here in Aggieland by introducing fellow students to the rich variety of countries and cultures represented by Asian Aggies.  According to Vivian, the fact that a lot of people don’t know there are important differences between cultures is one reason APC coordinates Asian Heritage Month every March/April.  While highighting those cultural differences, Asian Heritage month gives folks in the Aggie family a chance to get to know one another.  

“I feel the Asians here are very open minded about getting to know other people,” Michelle explains.  “And not only the Asians.  A&M students and faculty as a whole are really nice people and genuinely interested in what you have to say, as well as in the experiences you have had.”

Vivian agrees, adding,  “We’re all Aggies, we all bring things to the melting pot.”

The Whole Experience
Not surprisingly, time management is an ongoing challenge for both Michelle and Vivian; it’s not easy to juggle academic demands, frequent meetings, and downtime with friends.  But neither one of them is ready to slow down.  The way they see it, not only is involvement an important part of the Aggie experience, it actually enhances their studies.

“If you don’t do things with other Aggies,” Vivian points out, “you won’t feel like an Aggie.  Getting involved adds to the whole experience.  And being in organizations is like being in the real world:  You have presidents and officers ... more interaction with people.”

Michelle says her involvement is one more incentive to excel academically.  “School has to be my first priority, so I’m constantly evaluating myself.  Is going to meetings all I do?  I know I need to maintain a certain GPA, or I’ll have to cut down on my involvement.  That’s one of the things that motivates me to study. ”  Balance is possible, she says, and the rewards are worth the effort it takes to achieve it.  “By coming to A&M you really get the full college experience.  You don’t have to be crazy and party to have fun, and you don’t have to just study.  You can do the full package and still be successful.”

If you would like to know more about the Asian Presidents' Council, please visit http://apcouncil.tamu.edu/.

Contributed by:
Kathy DiSanto, Communications Specialist
Office of the Vice President for Student Affairs
http://studentaffairs.tamu.edu/

Photography by:
Bryce Swihart, Graphic Designer
Department of Information Technology