As a final project for a course through the Department of Asian and Asian American Studies, “Women in U.S.-Asian Relations” (AAS/POL 307), students conducted interviews with women who are cross-cultural “travelers” between the United States and Asia.
Before conducting their interviews, the students examined the ways women historically sought to increase understanding between the U.S. and Asia over a 125-year time period (from the 1850s to the 1970s). They learned about transformative occupations — from writers and poets to missionaries, journalists, film makers, diplomats, medical and social workers, scientists, scholars, and chefs – to determine how women used motivational discourse and social networking, mentoring, and partnering to interpret China, India, Japan, Korea, the Philippines, and Vietnam for diverse audiences in America and Asia.
In addition, the students examined the trajectory of American history in the early 1800s when women were precursors, at the turn of the 20th century when women took on roles as progressives, and in the mid-1900s when women challenged the status quo both domestically and abroad. They traced the broader context of U.S.-Asian relations, encompassing the U.S. Civil War and Reconstruction era, American missionary movements in Asia, Chinese exclusion laws, WW2 Japanese internment camps, the Korean War, the ascendancy of the Chinese Communist Party, Philippine independence, Indian political movements, and the Vietnam War.
Working in groups, the students then prepared a list of interview questions, corresponded with the interviewee to request an interview, and recorded their interviews using audio and/or visual formats. In their final reports and class presentations, they reflected upon what they learned from the interviewees and each other.
We thank all of those who contributed to these projects and hope you enjoy browsing this collection.
-Peg Christoff
This project is a joint effort between the Department of Asian and Asian American Studies and the Stony Brook University Libraries.
View the public digital collection here
Read interview transcripts and presentations for each interviewee by clicking on their name below.
Interviews labeled (Restricted Access) require Stony Brook University Net ID and password. Please contact Digital Projects Librarian, Victoria Pilato, if there are any issues, at victoria.pilato@stonybrook.edu
• Adams, Margarethe – Professor, Stony Brook University, Department of Music
Interviewed by: Naveed Ahmed, Daniel Coyne, Susmita Chakraborty, Brian Khaneyan
• Barale, Lucille – Adjunct Professor, Attorney, Consultant
Interviewed by: Paul Nguyen, Stefanie Chen, Christolin Michel
• Barlow, Tani – Professor of Humanities and Professor of History, Rice University
Interviewed by: Anqi Li, Shangqing Zheng
• Barnett, Rosemarie – Immigration Rights Attorney
Interviewed by: Laura Vega, Mariko Kora
• Brehm, Carolyn L. – VP, Procter & Gamble Global Government Relations & Public Policy
Interviewed by: James Lynn, John Desmond
• Burt, Clarissa – Associate Professor of Arabic Language, Literature, and Culture, United States Naval Academy
Interviewed by: Christopher Gomez, Michael Munson, Seth Williams
• Chan, Gloria S. – Professional Development Coach, Senior Vice President at Coach Diversity Institute, Founder of ALCLife
Interviewed by: Isabela Kernin, Bryanna Mojica
• Chandran, Latha – Pediatrician, Chief of Residents at Stony Brook University Hospital, Medical Educator
Interviewed by: Emely Liranzo, Victoria Jaramillo, Alyssa Shevlin
• Chang Bloch, Julia – Founder/President of the US-China Education Trust
Interviewed by: Melissa Kelly, Maria Marrero, Stephanie Paguay
• Chou, Jennifer – Founding member/former Deputy Director of Programming at Radio Free Asia
Interviewed by: Drazen Baracca, Raven Dorsey, Ericka Berman, Megan Miller
• David, Mary – Lawyer, Advocate for Anti-Human Trafficking
Interviewed by: Theresa Decicco, Mehtasim Mahfuz, Alexa Reynolds
• Davis, Nancy – Research Program Director, East West Center (Restricted Access)
Interviewed by: Nicole LiBretto, Sean Dwyer
• Doi, Yuriko – Stage Director, Choreographer, Performer, & Former Founding Artistic Director of Theatre of Yugen
Interviewed by: Tiffany Huang, Kelly Liu, David Youngkyun Lee
• Economy, Elizabeth – C. V. Starr Senior Fellow, Director for Asia Studies (Council on Foreign Relations) (Restricted Access)
Interviewed by: Beyza Gurler, Stephanie Schieda
• Ennis, Erin – Senior VP, US-China Business Council
Interviewed by: Smith, Patrick
• Gunness, Kristen – China Analyst (Rand Corporation) (Restricted Access)
Interviewed by: Aijaz Wasay, Diego Molina
• Hall, Amy – Vice President of Eileen Fisher
Interviewed by: Aracely Jimenez-Hudis, Emily Seiller
• Hamrin, Carol – Senior Associate at the Global China Center
Interviewed by: Asha Samuel, Arianny Santana, & Shamarie Williams
• Ho, Ling Ling – Research Specialist, University of Wisconsin, Madison, Genetics Department (Restricted Access)
Interviewed by: Ryan Frisina, Timothy Antelepyan
• Horsely, Jamie – Professor of Chinese business, Yale Law School
Interviewed by: Daniel Halbig, Alexandra Vlahakis
• Johanson, Vanessa – Country Director, Myanmar United States Institute of Peace (USIP)
Interviewed by: Krystyn V. Phillips
• Kamsky, Virginia – Founder, Chairman, Chief Executive Officer, Kamsky Associates, Inc. (Restricted Access)
Interviewed by: Nadia Tavares, Hao Wang, Angela Zheng
• Kim, Elaine H. – Retired Professor, University of California, Berkeley, Asian American Studies, Writer, Editor (Restricted Access)
Interviewed by: Eunjeong Choi, Seonghyeon Park
• Kolenda, Helena – Program Director, Asia, Henry Luce Foundation
Interviewed by: Kristen Winters, William Ozdal
• Larson, Jane Leung – Freelance writer/historian
Interviewed by: Paul Chan, Kevin Lee
• Lawrence, Susan V. – Specialist in Asian Affairs, Congressional Research Service (Restricted Access)
Interviewed by: Danielle Johnson, Julian Osorio
• Lipson, Roberta – Chairwoman, United Family Healthcare (Beijing, China)
Interviewed by: Benjamin Tucker
• Liu, Dimon – Architect, Human Rights Activist, Writer (Restricted Access)
Interviewed by: Amir Ahmed, Rezaul Hassan, Longchen Ni, Simon Sharp
• Lui, Eileen – Founder of “Children of Tomorrow”, Coach/Mentor, Entrepreneur, Marketing Communications (MARCOMs) Consultant, Author, Certified Fitness Trainer, Housewife
Interviewed by: Sandy Cho, Katie Lim
• Mistry, Kathleen – President of Mistry Enterprises Inc., Founding Board Member of Middle East North Africa Consultants Association (MENACA) (Restricted Access)
Interviewed by: Nichollette Aretakis, Nonie Lee, Jamie Mathew
• Murck, Alfreda – Independent Scholar; formerly museum curator at the National Palace Museum
Interviewed by: Tenzin Norzin
• Park, Sarah – Manager, Martin’s Cleaners
Interviewed by: Joshua Kim, Yawen Tang
• Payne, Nancy – Vice President of PeaceTech Lab, United States Institute of Peace (USIP)
Interviewed by: Kyuri Kim, Junbum Hwang, Hosun Jung
• Richardson, Sophie – Human Rights Watch, Director
Interviewed by: Yalda Khwaja, Lola Ashirmetov, Kofi Ramirez Osei-Tutu
• Ross, Madelyn – Director of China Studies, Johns Hopkins University
Interviewed by: Denisse Ceballos, Ayodele Ajibade
• Shapiro, Norah – Filmmaker for “Miss Tibet: Beauty in Exile” (Restricted Access)
Interviewed by: Nida Kuruvilla
• Siddique, Jumaina – Program Officer, South Asia United States Institute of Peace (USIP) (Restricted Access)
Interviewed by: Carlo Antonio, Tajmin Begum
• Slater, Marilyn – World War II Nurse
Interviewed by: Lauren B Slater
• Small, Whitney Foard – Strategic Communications Manager, Union Group, Thailand (Restricted Access)
Interviewed by: Zach Robinson, John Feinberg
• Smith, Sarah-Ann – Former Foreign Service Officer, U.S. State Department, Author, Public Speaker
Interviewed by: Flora Ho, Aashishpal Singh
• Spencer, Kay – Program Officer, Myanmar, Asia Center: United States Institute of Peace (USIP) (Restricted Access)
Interviewed by: Travis Puckett, Kevin Chow
• Staats, Jennifer – Director, China Programs, United States Institute of Peace (USIP)
Interviewed by: Danielle Stepnoski & Julie Mei
Please contact Jennifer Staats directly for information about her interview
• Sultan, Hodei – Senior Program Manager, Asia Center United States Institute of Peace (USIP) (Restricted Access)
Interviewed by: Matthew LoMastro & Alejandra Ramirez
• Toma, Alexandra – Executive Director, Peace and Security Fund
Interviewed by: Rubab; Marie; Julia Cunningham
• Van Hollen, Cecilia – Professor and Head of Studies of Anthropology, Yale-NUS (Restricted Access to the 2018 class only)
Interviewed by: Jennifer Palmer, Jacqueline Olewnicki
• Wang, Nancy – Social Worker, Dancer, Storyteller
Interviewed by: Trent Chen, Feng YingZong, Bae Chang Seong
• Yao Maasbach, Nancy – President of Museum of Chinese American (MOCA)
Interviewed by: Melissa Yanfen Huang, Tenzin Kunsel
• Young, Alice – Founder and Principal – Alice Young Advisory, LLC (Restricted Access)
Interviewed by: Viviana Torres, Alex Cheung
• Young, Grace – Life Coach, Author, Chinese Cooking Expert (Restricted Access)
Interviewed by: John Pollard, Gabriela Hernandez
