Constructing Campus Ecologies to Equitably Serve Asian American, Native Hawaiian, and Pacific Islander Students: A Multiple Case Study of Asian American & Native American Pacific Islander-Serving Institutions

Mike Hoa Nguyen

Minority-Serving Institutions (MSI) play a pivotal role in advancing the educational opportunities for students of Color. Asian American and Native American Pacific Islander-Serving Institutions (AANAPISI), one of the most recent MSI designations to be established by Congress, were born out of the necessity to build the capacity of colleges and universities to serve and support the unique and complex educational needs of Asian American, Native Hawaiian, and Pacific Islander (AA&NHPI) students, especially Southeast Asian American (SEAA) and Native Hawaiian and Pacific Islanders (NHPI). This study delves into the transformative processes that AANAPISIs undertake to construct comprehensive campus-wide ecologies to equitably serve AA&NHPI students. Through a qualitative, multiple-site case study design, encompassing of differing AANAPISIs across the United States and Pacific Islands, this investigation aims to uncover how AANAPISIs shape a holistic campus ecology to serve students, in addition to their federally funded programmatic initiatives. Findings will contribute to the emergent literature base on AANAPISIs and AA&NHPI students. Implications will directly inform the work of policymakers and institutional leaders/practitioners, as they seek to develop and implement effective, equity-centered, and transformative strategies.

About Mike Hoa Nguyen

Mike Hoa Nguyen is Assistant Professor of Education at New York University. His research critically examines the benefits and consequences of racialized public policy instruments in expanding and/or constraining educational systems, with a specific focus on how these dynamics shape access, learning, opportunity, and success within and beyond schools. He is the principal investigator of the Minority-Serving Institutions (MSI) Data Project, a research and resource initiative with the mission to advance a greater understanding of MSIs and their unique contributions to postsecondary education. An extension of this work explores Asian American & Native American Pacific Islander-Serving Institutions (AANAPISI) and their role in building capacity to serve Asian American, Native Hawaiian, and Pacific Islander (AA and NHPI) students, staff, faculty, and administrators. In addition to his academic work, Dr. Nguyen has extensive professional experience in federal government, having served as a senior staff member in the United States Congress. He also serves on the Board of Directors for Asian Pacific Americans in Higher Education (APAHE) and Southeast Asia Resource Action Center (SEARAC). Prior to NYU, Dr. Nguyen was Assistant Professor of Higher Education at the University of Denver. He was also appointed by the Governor of Colorado to the History, Culture, Social Contributions, and Civil Government in Education Commission and by the Mayor of Denver to the Denver Asian American and Pacific Islander Commission, where he collaborated with a multiracial and intersectional community-based coalition to incorporate AA and NHPI curriculum into Colorado's K-12 educational standards. He is the proud son of Vietnamese American refugees.