News

NAPA Appoints First Non‐NAPA Officers

Tuesday, December 15, 2015 — The National Asian Pacific Islander American Panhellenic Association (NAPA) is excited to announce the appointment of Christiana Cabrera, sister of Sigma Lambda Gamma, and Jose Pangelinan, brother of Sigma Lambda Beta, to the 2016‐17 National Board. Christiana will serve as Director of Programs, Work Groups, and Jose will serve as Director of Programs, Initiatives. These appointments signify the first time in NAPA history for non‐NAPA members to join the association’s National Board. With this development, NAPA advances its mission of providing a forum for member organizations to share ideas and resources across interfraternal partners. “NAPA is excited for this new chapter for our association,” says Chair, Hannah Seoh. “While we have always been supported by Mary Peterson as our long‐term external advisor, this is the first time we will have non‐NAPA members on the Board helping with day‐to‐day operations. We stand to gain much from Christiana and Jose’s Fraternity/Sorority Headquarters experience and feel fortunate that they were willing to volunteer with us. ” ABOUT CHRISTIANA CABRERA Christiana has three and a half years of experience as a director for the Sigma Lambda Gamma National HQ, serving Director of Expansion and Director of Education. She has extensive development expertise, due to the numerous programs she has created and revised for Sigma Lambda Gamma over the past three years: Panther Prep Academic Program, Amethyst Entity Development Program, and Associate Member Educator Certification. Additionally, she has previous experience in generating national, regional, and entity retreat content such as networking activities, values alignment workshops, resource navigation workshops, and panel discussions. She currently resides in Iowa City, IA. ABOUT JOSE PANGELINAN Jose Pangelinan was born in Guam and raised in California. He completed his Bachelor’s at the University of Texas at San Antonio, in Psychology, where he had the pleasure of joining Sigma Lambda Beta International Fraternity. Jose was involved and president of his chapter and Multicultural Greek Council. He currently works as the Director of Member Services at the Executive Office of Sigma Lambda Beta and resides in North Liberty, IA. ### About National APIA Panhellenic Association The National Asian Pacific Islander American Panhellenic Association (NAPA) is a collective of 17 intercollegiate fraternities and sororities with an interest in culture and serving the APIA community. NAPA advocates the needs of its member organizations, provides a forum to share ideas and resources within its members, and supports the development of positive relations through open communication with interfraternal partners to enrich the fraternal experience. National APIA Panhellenic Association contact: Angela Ju Director of Communications communications@napa‐online.org

NAPA and NAAPIMHA Continue Mental Health Initiative Partnership

NAPA and NAAPIMHA Continue Mental Health Initiative Partnership FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE 20 August 2015 CONTACT:  VIgor Lam | Director of Public Engagement (NAPA) public.engagement@napa-online.org Denver, CO – The National Asian Pacific Islander American Panhellenic Association (NAPA) and the National Asian American Pacific Islander Mental Health Association (NAAPIMHA) has renewed its partnership to bring mental health education and awareness to Asian and Asian American students on college campuses for the 2015-2016 year. Through the Friends DO Make a Difference initiative, collegiate chapters of NAPA will have access to programming and resources to promote mental health, reduce stigma, and encourage help-seeking in a community that may face cultural and language barriers when accessing treatment. The campaign continues to include materials with imagery and messaging targeting the APIA student audience. The two partnering organizations will be continuing its Mental Health Summit in Boulder & outreach initiatives in Atlanta, as well as expanding its outreach to campuses in Los Angeles and San Francisco. In addition, the partnership will continue to present and facilitate workshops at regional/national conferences focusing on APIA empowerment and mental health awareness. NAPA serves to advocate the needs of its fourteen member Asian Pacific Islander Desi American (APIDA) inter/national fraternities and sororities and provides a forum to share ideas and resources within its members. http://napa-online.org/ NAAPIMHA’s mission is to improve the mental health of Asian Americans, Native Hawaiians and Pacific Islanders living in this country. http://naapimha.org/ # # #

NAPA members attend the Advancing Justice Conference

On September 25-26, Vigor Lam, Director of Public Engagement, along with several members of NAPA organizations, attended the annual Advancing Justice Conference in Washington, DC. This year’s theme was “Asian Americans and Pacific Islanders Standing Together for Racial Justice.” Workshops and speakers included keynote Julian Castro, Secretary of the U.S. Department of Housing and Urban Development. It was great to see active and alumni of NAPA organizations represent and learn about the current trends and issues affecting the AAPI community nationally. The Advancing Justice Conference is the first and only national conference focusing on civil rights and social justice in the Asian American communities. Organizations and people in representation included numerous community organizations, community leaders, and undergraduate student leaders that will share knowledge and insights back on their respective campuses. Students had opportunities to network with workshop presenters and other attendees during the conference. NAPA is a powerful community partner and driving force for the youth in the Greek community to highlight issues of racial justice, capacity building, and community partnerships within our organizations.

1 More Week to Register for VineUp!

We are excited to invite you to NAPA’s new online career development and mentoring community! The National APIA Panhellenic Association’s new private online community is designed to support the professional and entrepreneurial development of our students and alumni through the connection of our members. For Students 80% of today’s jobs and internships are landed through networking and half of those are landed through direct introductions. However, most graduates have a very small professional network upon graduation, which can make it hard to land their first job. We are hoping to solve this problem for our members! Have you ever wanted to connect with someone that could help you get the introduction that would help you land an internship or job at your ideal company? Now you can! We have a database of graduates who are looking to share their advice and support with you! The community is our fantastic new online resource that includes more than 8 million employment and internship opportunities from around the world. Also included are opportunities provided by our administrators, our graduates, and our partners. Our goal with the community is to help our student members increase the size of their professional and entrepreneurial network through the generation of mentor mentee relationships with our alumni. For Alumni The VineUp community is our fantastic new resource full of international careers and information,including access to more than 8,000,000 employment opportunities from around the world. Included are jobs and internships provided by our administrators, fellow graduates, and our partners. We would also like to invite you to post job vacancies and internships to our community free of charge. All job postings are updated daily, giving you up-to-date, country-specific career development advice and services. The community is designed to support the sharing of skills and foster an environment that encourages mentoring relationships within our alumni and also between our students and alumni. Within the community we are hoping to connect our brightest students with alumni like yourself, that may be able to spare a few minutes a month to share advice and tips online or in-person. Choosing to share your knowledge with our student members and fellow alumni will help to provide our future world leaders with the best start that we could possibly wish for them. How Do I Join? To join the community simply click on the “For Members” link in the upper right hand corner. You will have the options to register manually or you can connect via your Facebook or LinkedIn making registration and updating of your profile information easy. During your registration process you will be prompted to enter the special access code provided to you by your national organization. This code will only be requested once and you will not need to memorize it. Once you have completed the steps you will have to verify your email address then, once your profile has been approved by our administrators, you will be able to access the community once it is officially launched. The platform has a mobile ready interface, so there is no need to download any apps. It works smoothly and easily on all devices and browsers. Help us make a positive difference in both the lives of our current and future alumni. We look forward to seeing you on VineUp!

Beta Chi Theta National Fraternity, Inc. Joins NAPA

The National APIA Panhellenic Association (NAPA) is pleased to announce that Beta Chi Theta National Fraternity, Inc. has joined the Association as its 14th member organization. The Fraternity was approved for membership in April and is being formally seated on May 4th, 2014. Pathik Patel, Beta Chi Theta’s National Vice President of Financial Affairs, commented, “Beta Chi Theta, is a fraternal organization that prides itself as an organization of gentlemen who believe in the values of community. These values, go hand in hand with those of NAPA. We deeply believe in the advancement of both NAPA and Beta Chi Theta through deeply rooted relationships, and mutual cooperation.” Beta Chi Theta was established in June 1999 at the University of California Los Angeles, and now has chapters stretching from coast to coast. Beta Chi Theta is built upon the pillars of Tradition, Service to Humanity, South Asian Awareness, Academic Excellence, A Unified Nationwide Network, and above all else, Brotherhood. Prashant Kher, Beta Chi Theta’s National President, commented, “We look forward to a successful and fruitful relationship with NAPA and all of the member organizations. We strongly feel that by working together, we can make cultural Greek organizations a major player and stakeholder in the Greek industry in the next 25-50 years.” NAPA Executive Chair Brenda Dang welcomed Beta Chi Theta stating, “The Association is pleased to announce the addition of an organization to our membership that has developed strong roots in the fraternal community. Their membership reinforces the diverse interests of collegiate men across the country. We are confident that they will play a critical role in the growth of the cultural Greek movement. Fraternities and Sororities are the largest leadership development organizations on collegiate campuses across the country and we look forward to Beta Chi Theta’s collaboration with our member organizations in our effort to advance the cultural Greek movement.” NAPA was founded in 2005. NAPA serves to advocate the needs of its member organizations and provide a forum to share ideas and resources within its members. NAPA supports the development of positive relations through open communication with inter-fraternal partners to enrich the fraternal experience. www.betachitheta.com www.facebook.com/betachitheta www.twitter.com/betachitheta

Alumni Spotlight: Victoria L. Chan

Victoria L. Chan is the daughter to Chinese immigrant parents. Originally based in New York City, she graduated with a double major in Political Science and African American Studies from Syracuse University. Victoria is a proud sister of Kappa Phi Lambda Sorority, Inc. Victoria speaks about some of her experiences as a member of an Asian Interest Sorority, “Committing myself to an Asian interest sorority meant making a lifetime decision to empower young women and uplift my community. We are constantly being scrutinized and stereotyped by Asian women, which is why it is important to work hard to break barriers. College is a scary place, so finding a family and a place to call home is very important. One of the most important aspects about being a leader in Greek lettered organizations is the concept of Greek unity. College is a time to explore different opportunities and experiences. My chapter collaborated with Phi Beta Sigma Fraternity, Inc. at Syracuse on lots of events and both organizations won fraternity and sorority of the year together! We must step outside of our comfort zones and intentionally learn about others in order for us to grow as people.” Victoria has worked as Jackie Chan’s executive assistant and has traveled from Mongolia to Miami, from Singapore to Spain, assisting in earthquake and drought relief efforts to being on the international promotional tour of “The Karate Kid” remake. She has been involved with non-profit performing arts programs since 2000. She has worked with the Britney Spears Foundation, American Idol, the Jonas Brothers Foundation, RUN4LIFE, 50 Cent’s G-Unity Foundation, Jackie Chan’s Charitable Foundation & Usher’s new Look Foundation. In 2011, she launched “elicit 4tography”, dedicated to helping non-profit organizations. She has been featured in the Hollywood Reporter, MTV, People Magazine, Daily News, VH1, and Empire Magazine. She was most recently mentioned in PeoplePets.com for the Jackie Chan Charity Bear Project, which she launched to benefit the JC Build a School Foundation. Victoria currently works as the Graduate Assistant of Greek Life at the University of West Georgia. She enjoys writing poetry and practicing yoga in her free time.

Alumni Spotlight: Clair Kuriakose

Clair Kuriakose, Distinguished Sister Euphoria of Sigma Sigma Rho Sorority, Incorporated. founded Shingari’s School of Rhythm on 2008 after she graduated form Saint John’s University.  Clair was captain of the SJU Bollywood dance team, Raaz and wanted to continue her passion in Indian Bollywood dance after her studies.  After she moved back to Texas, she started she started Shigari’s School of Rhythm in hopes to share her passion for dance for the younger generation. The school now has many locations nationwide including Houston, Dallas, Chicago, San Francisco and Los Angeles! In 2013 Clair started a new online branch to the school in hopes to spread Bollywood dance worldwide.  The online branch, www.bollywoodtrainer.com has now over 1000 users world wide. Shingari’s school of rhythm in association with bollywoodtrainer.com has won many awards for choreography and performance.  They have also had many opportunities to perform at live concerts including Jay Sean, Sonu Nigam, and AR Rahamnan. Recently Bollywoodtrainer.com has opened for the NBA prime time  game Dallas Mavericks vs Chicagobulls! Bollywoodtrainer.com wishes to continue to spread the Indian culture in 2014.

NAPA Partners with NAAPIMHA and Active Minds for AAPI Mental Health Awareness

The National Asian Pacific Islander American Panhellenic Association (NAPA) and the National Asian American Pacific Islander Mental Health Association (NAAPIMHA) and Active Minds are excited to announce a new partnership to bring mental health education and awareness to Asian and Asian-American students on college campuses. Through the Friends DO Make a Difference initiative, collegiate chapters of NAPA will have access to programming and resources to promote mental health, reduce stigma, and encourage help-seeking in a community that may face cultural and language barriers when accessing treatment. “We identified that mental health is a significant and unaddressed issue for many of our member organizations,” said Brian Gee, Executive Chair of NAPA. “We are excited to partner with two prominent organizations in the field of mental health to equip the collegiate leaders we represent with skills and knowledge needed to recognize and refer peers who might be struggling.” “Research has shown that Asian students on campus with mental health problems are significantly less likely to be receiving treatment than their peers in other racial/ethnic groups,” said Sara Abelson, Senior Director of Programs at Active Minds. The Friends DO Make A Difference initiative aims to have NAPA members start a series of dialogues and activities on a range of topics, recognizing that mental health is a part of their everyday lives. NAPA chapters participating in the Friends DO Make a Difference initiative will train chapter officers and advisors to identify signs and symptoms of mental health concerns and host events with their membership to connect them to mental health resources on campus. Upon completion of mental health training and programming, chapters will be recognized with a Friends DO Make a Difference Seal of Distinction. “The Friends campaign was designed to raise awareness of mental health among Asian American, Native Hawaiian and Pacific Islander students. The hope is to make campuses a safe place to talk about key issues as students learn how to support each other. We are excited to work closely with NAPA and Active Minds to develop student leaders who will advocate on behalf of mental health,” said DJ Ida, Executive Director of NAAPIMHA. “By working with the next generation of leaders, we hope to reduce stigma and open positive dialogue about mental health for years to come.” “We are excited to partner with NAPA and NAAPIMHA to reach an important and often underserved community of students when it comes to mental health awareness,” said Sara Abelson, Senior Director of Programs at Active Minds. The Friends DO Make a Difference initiative will support Active Minds’ mission to empower students to speak openly about mental health in order to educate others and encourage help seeking. About the National Asian Pacific Islander American Panhellenic Association The National Asian Pacific Islander American Panhellenic Association (NAPA) is an association of collegiate fraternities and sororities with an interest in culture and serving the APIA community. The organization serves to advocate the needs of its member organizations and provides a forum to share ideas and resources within its members. NAPA supports the development of positive relations through open communication with interfraternal partners to enrich the fraternal experience. Learn more at www.napa-online.org. About the National Asian American Pacific Islander Mental Health Association The National Asian American Pacific Islander Mental Health Association (NAAPIMHA) is a 501(c)3 nonprofit organization. NAAPIMHA’s mission is to promote the mental health and well being of the Asian American and Pacific Islander communities. Since its founding, NAAPIMHA strives to raise awareness of the role of mental health in an individual’s health and well-being, especially in Asian American Pacific Islander communities throughout the country. For more information visit: www.naapimha.org. About Active Minds, Inc. Active Minds is the young adult voice in mental health advocacy. By supporting a rapidly growing network of hundreds of student-led chapters at colleges and universities, Active Minds empowers students to speak openly about mental health in order to educate others and encourage help-seeking.  Active Minds is a national nonprofit headquartered in Washington D.C. Follow us on Twitter @Active_Minds. For more information visit: www.ActiveMinds.org.

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