APIASF addressing the "Model Minority" myth

Yesterday I attended a very worthwhile community event organized by the Asian & Pacific Islander American Scholarship Fund and hosted by Wells Fargo at their penthouse in downtown San Francisco. APIASF, formed in 2003, is the largest non-profit organization nationwide providing scholarship to the APIAs.  The speech by the President revealed some interesting facts about this minority group.  Asian Americans are often labelled "model minority" while the larger APIA group masks the divergence of income, education, etc. of the 48 ethnicities within this diverse group.  Many people think that Asian Americans are all rich, and highly educated so why a scholarship fund is necessary?  African Americans and Hispanic Americans Scholarship Funds have been in existence for over 20 years while APIASF has only existed for 6 years.

However, the facts review that APIA poverty rate at 13% exceeds that of the U.S. population of 12%.  While over 70% of Asian Indians attain a bachelor degree or more, on average less than 50% of Asian Americans attain a bachelor degree or more, with the figure for Pacific Islanders a mere 10% on average (source: American Community Survey, 2006-2008 average).  APIASF president further disclosed that out of the 1500 students the organization helped with scholarship, 45% of those funds went to students who are the first in their family to go to college. One of the recipient made a touching speech. She is a Cambodian American who would normally not go to college. With APIASF's scholarship funds, she went from being the first in the family to attend college to the first to get a PhD!

There is no better way to help our youth to gain a better life than providing as much education opportunities as we can.  APIASF indeed has a very meaningful goal.  Soon, I would volunteer to be a reader of their scholarship applications and hopefully make a donation to the Funds.

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• The Truth About the Asian-American Model Minority (race.change.org)