Avery Kerman
akerman@uwyo.edu
The Associated Students in China (ASIC) at the University of Wyoming is an RSO that promotes the UW Chinese Program and the Chinese culture.
“One of the main goals of college kids is to try to open their minds,” Yan Zhang, faculty advisor of ASIC, said. “If you get involved with a foreign language, then you will learn cultural awareness and imagination.”
ASIC was formed to raise awareness of the Chinese culture and to get the Chinese students involved at the university.
“Our club is beneficial for our community because ASIC mostly consists of students in the Chinese program,” Virginia Allen-Dickerson, a junior in mechanical engineering and ASIC member, said.
Since the Chinese program is not very large at UW, the members of ASIC get to network well together internally from the program as well as externally with the non-Chinese language students.
“We are all in the same language classes, travel to China together and take minors classes, so we get to know each other really well,” Allen-Dickerson said.
Although a large portion of the group consists of native Chinese speakers and Chinese majors and minors, it is open to anyone with an interest in the culture.
ASIC member Levi Turner, who is a senior majoring in math and economics, is an example of someone outside of the Chinese community interested in exposing themselves to the culture.
“I joined the club because I have an interest in world languages, and in the first week of my Chinese class, Yan mentioned ASIC and how it would increase my exposure,” Turner said.
Turner added that ASIC gave him the opportunity to meet and interact with students that had the same interests in both the Chinese culture and ASIC does a variety of services and events for the university and the Laramie community.
“ASIC serves as ambassadors outside the school and do community service here in Laramie, at the high schools and even in China,” Zhang said.
One of the biggest events that ASIC participates in is the Chinese New Year Festival that is hosted by the Chinese Students and Scholars Association (CSSA).
“We help get volunteers for the Chinese New Year Festival,” Allen-Dickerson said. “The volunteers mostly serve the food, usher and perform skits and songs.”
Other events that ASIC is a part of include representing at the World Languages Day, the Autumn Festival and Safe Treat.
Chinese is becoming a critical language in many professions including business, politics and even the military. Non-Chinese students can benefit from the club to help them in their future careers.
“You might pick up a little Chinese just from attending the meetings and events,” Allen-Dickerson said.
The organization has been awarded in the past for its contributions ranging from the best RSO at UW in 2013 to the honorable mention for RSO Outstanding Adviser in 2005 given to Zhang.
“Yan is heavily involved with the club and its members. She takes a personal interest in each and every student who joins,” Turner said. “She is a phenomenal resource both inside and outside of ASIC.”
ASIC has many plans for the future to increase their service to the community and bring more networking opportunities to its members.
Two of the club’s biggest plans are to change the structure of it by adding more community service projects and strengthening the relationship with UW and the high schools around Laramie.
“As relations with China and the US become closer, in the future, we would be honored to be able to say that UW and ASIC have worked to promote and prepare students for the future and gain a new outlook on life,” Zhang said.
