Asian Pacific Islander Faculty & Staff Association (APIFSA)

Happy Asian American, Native Hawaiian, and Pacific Islander (AANHPI) Heritage Month. A single seed may look small, but the possibility of beauty and life awaits us as it blooms. UCLA APIFSA, UCLA Health InspirASIAN, DGSOM AAPI Alliance, and APAMSA are proud to bring a month-long celebration to our Bruin Community. Our theme this year is “Advancing Leadership through Innovation,” as we look into our rich heritage to creatively foster growth and actualize new potential. We will be hosting in-person and virtual events throughout the month of May for you to explore various topics relating to collaboration, experiencing community in identities and intersectionality, and a culinary demo from the UCLA Teaching Kitchen!

Dr. Melanie Ho, author of Beyond Leaning In, facilitates us in a thought adventure to empower us to grow and develop opportunities through transparent communication.

The Office of Management and Budget (OMB) recently revised Statistical Policy Directive Number 15, setting new standards for collecting race/ethnicity data after decades of community advocacy for data equity and visibility. Learn what it means for research, healthcare, and policy across diverse communities from leading UCLA experts.

We also have the opportunity for 6 Bruins to participate in a live cooking demo on campus with Chef Julia from the UCLA Teaching Kitchen. If you are interested, submit your interest to this form by Friday, May 10 at 12pm PT. We will draw 6 names from the list and notify potential participants on Friday, May 10. Participants will have until Monday, May 13th at 5pm PT to confirm that they will be able to attend. This event is only open to current UCLA faculty and staff.

The celebration culminates with our signature leadership panel discussion as we hear from UCLA Bruins who have left a lasting mark on UCLA and beyond. Our guest speakers for the leadership panel include:

• Dom Parero | Chief of Marketing, UCLA Health
• Steve Yu, MBA | Chief Operating Officer and Chief Financial Officer, UCLA South Bay
• Gerrie Zvara | Assistant Director of Organizational Effectiveness and Development, UCLA

Events in this month-long celebration are open to all UCLA Bruins and community members.

We encourage you to celebrate and learn with us by attending these upcoming events. Please check out the AANHPI Heritage Month celebration page for a detailed schedule of events, Zoom links, and other ways to celebrate! We look forward to honoring our culture and community throughout the month with all of you!