Early in his NIU presidency, John Peters made a point of visiting regularly with various student groups in an effort to understand how – or if – the university was meeting their needs. Out of those meetings Peters formed the impression that Asian American students found great support in their individual cultural organizations, but lacked a unifying presence on campus.
In 2003, Peters formed a Presidential Task Force on Asian Americans. The group met for about a year, finally forwarding a report that confirmed the president’s suspicions.
Peters had some help in coming to those conclusions in the person of Robert Boey, a member of the Board of Trustees and a passionate advocate for Asian students.
The Asian American Resource Center (AARC) was first housed in a “temporary” home at 429 Garden Drive known as the Jacob House – a formerly residential house donated to the university. After fairly extensive renovations, the new center had about 1,500 square feet of usable space, which students and staff quickly filled with furniture and Asian décor.
Michelle Bringas, the center’s first and only director, called the establishment of a free-standing Asian American center “a defining moment in the university’s history.”
“We are taking the lead in Illinois with the first stand-alone Asian American center in the northern Illinois region,” Bringas said. “This is a visible space that our students can call home.”
The “temporary” home on Garden Drive remained the Asian American Center for 14 years. Meetings held in the facility were limited to just ten people or less, as that was the capacity of its largest room. For larger gatherings, Asian American students had to go to the Holmes Student Center.
In 2018, the Center relocated to the 375 Wirtz Drive, a building on campus that had been shared by University Health Services and campus police. The new center provided a conference room, offices, a small kitchen and bathrooms – and capacity of about 50 – 80 people.
“Our goals remain the same,” said Bringas. “We want to hear that Asian American students come here at least in part because they hear about how well they’ll be supported. That brings joy to my heart.”
Click on photos to enlarge
