The ASA Executive Board

What it Means to be an Exec Member

Sacrifice. Being a member of the ASA executive board means you will be asked to do work, and sometimes it's not something you want to do. Flyering. Tabling. Meetings. Set up. Clean up. It ain't no walk in the park. But that's what it takes for an organization to run well. Sacrifice. Because when it all comes together and you look back on a job well done, you can say that you've been part of something great, something monumental. Learn leadership skills and hone your communication skills. You will have a say in how to allocate one of the largest programming budgets on campus. Be an exec member, change the world.

2009-2010 ASA Executive Board

The President is charged to be the leader of the organization. He/She sets the agenda for and runs executive board meetings. He/She is responsible for delegating tasks and ensuring that the organization is running smoothly. The President must also attend and actively participate in weekly Inter-Community Council and Council of Cultural Group Presidents meetings. These serve as great venues for collaborative work and great resources for speaking with administration and other campus leaders. The President may schedule additional meetings with the executive board, administration, faculty or other campus leaders as he/she sees fit.

In other words...
As the president, you really have to know ASA like the back of your hand. You gotta have a vision for where you want the organization to go, and you gotta have the ability to make it happen. You have to be able to effectively communicate with your executive board and constantly be checking in with what they're working on. You run the meetings and set the agendas. You get to meet with the other presidents and hot shots on campus as a member of the ICC and Presidents' Council. When problems arise, people will look your way to see where you are looking, and when tough decisions have to be made, it's yours and the organization's reputation on the line. But the president's word is not the end all be all; as with everyone else on the executive board, the president is accountable to everyone else on board, so decisions have to be made carefully.

The Executive Vice President assists the President in overseeing the daily activities of the organization and contributes an important voice in the development of long term goals, especially those involving internal affairs within the executive board. Whenever the President is unable to lead or attend a meeting, the Executive VP must fill the President's role and assume his or her responsibilities. The Executive VP should be comfortable collaborating with diverse student groups, know the logistics of student organizations well enough to make informed decisions, and maintain close communication with the rest of the members on the executive board and the general body. The Executive VP is also responsible for compiling the weekly digest, which includes information on ASA's upcoming events, other campus events, job and scholarship opportunities, and news pertaining to Asian and Asian American issues.

The event manager is responsible for registering all events with the Office of Student Activities and Facilities, handling reimbursements, managing the budget and handling the logistics of events (tables, chairs, microphones, etc.).

In other words...
The Treasurer of ASA is responsible for the management of the ASA operating budget, which consists of securing funding for the upcoming year, authoring an annual fiscal budget, and handing reimbursements. In addition, the treasurer provides financial consulting services for ASA project leaders to ensure that all ASA events are financially feasible. The Event Manager responsibilities include working with the Office of Student Activities and Facilities/Duke University Student Services to book venues for all ASA venues and prepare logistic equipment (tables, chairs, microphones, etc.)

The Executive Publicity Chair creates effective marketing strategies for ASA's events. Publicity venues include paper flyering, e-flyering, bridge painting, Internet sites, tabling, and more. He/She will work closely with the Freshman Publicity Chair, who is elected in September. The Chair should have experience with or an interest in marketing and design.

In other words...
The publicity chair is the one who makes sure that people know about ASA's various efforts and events throughout the year. For example, a big part of the job is designing effective flyers for the events and making sure that the flyers get put up by delegating flyering assignments to the whole exec board. Besides flyers, there are also various design tasks that often fall into the hands of the publicity chair - for example, this year I was also the one who designed the "i lunar new year" t-shirt for LNY. Despite the assigned roles of each officer however, the best thing about being on exec board is that you're not tied down to your specific responsibilities. Since I was the one who came across the China Tomorrow Education Foundation as a charity organization to work with, throughout the year I've been able to spearhead ASA's tri-campus charity effort and really make that project my own.

The Vice President of Academic Affairs is charged to work toward the development of Asian and Asian-American studies at Duke. He/She will focus on attaining more hires and expanding course offerings, so as to create a more substantial, comprehensive, and extensive program from what is thus far a recently nascent and limited area of academia at this university. He/She will work with current professors teaching in subjects related to Asian and Asian-American studies, as well as the currently existing Asian and African Languages and Literatures Department, and Asia Pacific Studies Institute.

In other words...
Traditionally this position has dealt with the expansion of resources for East Asian Studies at Duke. Really though, you can do anything you want with this position as long as it's related to academics in some way. You can work with faculty to try to get new classes established. You can contact alumni instead and invite them to talk to current students about what part of their college education was most useful in the real world. What you choose to do with this position is completely your choice, but what you need to do is have a vision and actually carry it out.

The position of Vice President of Political Affairs revolves around two key events that occur during the academic year. The first of these events is the fall political series currently titled "Voices", and the second is the celebration of Asian Pacific American Heritage Month. "Voices" runs for approximately a week to two weeks and serves to educate the Duke community about Asian political affairs, both inside and outside the country. Asian Pacific American Heritage Month events are held in the month of April at Duke University even though the Month is officially designated for May. It is also a series of events that serve to educate the Duke community about Asian culture and political affairs. The organization and planning of these two events becomes the role of the VP of Political Affairs. In addition to those, the person in this role should be aware of any current events in politics that deal with Asians or Asia, and be ready to respond to them with appropriate action as needed.

In other words...
The VP of Political Affairs is in charge of two main projects: Voices and APAHM (Asian Pacific American Heritage Month). Voices is a series of political forums in the Fall that touches on issues that either impact or interest Asians on campus. This is a fun opportunity to work with other student groups on campus and shed a light on problems that might otherwise go unnoticed. In the Spring, the VP of Political Affairs is in charge of organizing events throughout the month of April celebrating Asian culture. This is a position for those who are creative, social, interested in influencing campus dynamics, and dedicated to Asian culture.

The Vice President for Cultural Affairs is responsible of designing programs and events whose main aims are to celebrate the diversity of Asian Pacific heritage throughout the academic year. The VP for Cultural Affairs is the chair of the annual Lunar New Year (LNY) festival. As the chair of this show, he/she is expected to be highly organized and able to work under pressure. This upcoming year, LNY will have two co-chairs. The VP for Cultural Affairs is responsible for show-related committees. In addition to being fully in charge of all the logistical and technical details of the show, the chair is also in charge of overseeing committees such as DVD producing, ushering, and program/menu.

In other words...
The VP of Cultural Affairs coordinates Lunar New Year, Duke's premiere East Asian cultural showcase. The position requires strong organizational skills, as the VPCA will be working with different business departments, including marketing/publicity, logistics, ticketing/sales, and PR, for what is the ASA's most visible event. The VPCA must also maintain and work with a network of student groups, performers, and audience groups to put together the show. Outside of LNY, the VPCA may produce other cultural events as well; examples in the past two years include a commemorative concert for the Chinese composer Ma Si-Cong and a charity fundraiser concert.

The Vice President of Community Relations is two-fold. For the first month after school starts, the VP of Community Relations will be in charge of making programming to welcome the Freshman. This has historically included organizing the Freshman Picnic, the Big Sib/Lil Sib Program, and the Beach Retreat (with the Social Chair). After the first month draws to a close, the VP of Community Relations will be in charge of Alumni Relations. This will include contacting ASA alumni asking for donations and informing them of or inviting them to various ASA programs, most notable of which is LNY. Mid-way through the Spring Semester, the VP of Community Relations will be in charge of helping ASA recruit prospective freshmen by organizing tables during the Activities Fairs which will be held during Blue Devil Days. In addition to relations to the community, the VP will spearhead any efforts to raise money for charity and maintaining good relations with the other triangle schools (NC State and UNC).

In other words...
Much like how smart babies are nurtured by the music of Mozart in the womb, strong ASA members must be built through active engagement before and during their Freshman year at Duke. As Community VP, you must engage impressionable young minds with fun, social, and perfectly legal programming including but not limited to 1) pre-orientation letters 2) orientation week activities 3) network building programs and 4) Freshman beach retreat. After the initial bombardment, you will be responsible to help out where needed while keeping a watchful eye on the Freshman class. The last "F", Fundraising, refers to the brand new Triangle charity work involving 1) heading fundraising events 2) communicating with our charity of choice and 3) coordinating with NC State and UNC.

The Vice President of Social Affairs is responsible for facilitating activities and events that encourages community and intermingling within ASA and intramingling between ASA and the larger Duke community. These events include, but are not limited to the Annual Beach Retreat, LNY afterparty, and Mixers with N.C. State and UNC. Accordingly, the Social Chair should be in constant contact and discussion with the N.C State and UNC Social Chairs to help promote our events as well as theirs. The VP of Social Affairs also has additional responsibilities to head the committees for Great Hall decoration, T-shirt sales, and Serving during the Lunar New Year show. This a position in which creativity, persistence, and resilience is a must.

In other words...
The job of the Social chair is to get everyone together and make sure they have fun, be it with picnics, retreats or parties. VP Social works closely with VP community early on to meet and introduce freshmen to ASA. As social chair one is responsible for booking the venues and setting the dates for Club parties/semi-formals/and mixers and should thus maintain friendly relations with local club owners and promoters. If you enjoy meeting tons of new people and really putting yourself out there, then social chair is what you're looking for.

The historian's primary responsibility is to archive the year's activities as a reference to future ASA executive boards. In the past, information was generally transferred orally and many of the same mistakes were made. The Historian will ensure information about ASA's events are documented. In addition, the Historian will manage the ASA archives and assist the rest of the board in other ASA activities.

In other words...
It doesn't take rocket science to figure out how to do the job for this position. You get evaluations of every event from each exec member who runs an event, you collect souvenirs from important events, and you cut out articles from The Chronicle that involve ASA. However, your position is not just 'historian', but is also 'ASA Exec member'. You attend all the events, you help flyer throughout campus, and you bring up ideas and issues. Most importantly, you can implement whatever ideas that you have if you're willing to work at it. Given the ease of this position, it puts you in a position to do so much more.

The Freshman Representative serves as a liaison between the freshmen class and the executive board, and he/she is the voice of the freshman class. Duties also include acting as secretary, taking minutes at executive board and general body meetings.

The Freshman Publicity Chair will work alongside the Publicity Chair to create effective marketing strategies for ASA's events. Publicity venues include paper flyering, bridge painting, Internet sites, tabling, and more. The Chair should have experience with or an interest in marketing and design.