The Educational Opportunity Program hosted a series of open houses from Oct. 10-15, showcasing the projects and services offered by its five cultural resource centers at the Student Resource Building. 

Under the Education Opportunity Program (EOP) the five cultural resource centers provide a range of resources targeted at income-eligible and first-generation undergraduates. Wesley Haver / Daily Nexus

The centers include African diasporic Cultural Resource Center; Middle Eastern, North African, South Asian Resource Center; Asian Resource Center; American Indian and Indigenous Cultural Resource Center and Chicanx/Latinx Cultural Resource Center.

Under the Education Opportunity Program (EOP), these cultural resource centers provide a range of resources predominantly intended for income-eligible and first-generation undergraduates, such as academic advice, study sessions, counseling and cultural celebration. The Daily Nexus attended three of the open houses, speaking with organizers and attendees about their experience with the resource centers.

Asian Resource Center

The Asian Resource Center (ARC) hosted its open house on Oct. 14 to introduce students to its program and their space to the campus community.

The open house showcased Asian cultural decorations and a presentation introducing students to the ARC. At the beginning, EOP staff handed out free boba drinks to students with tickets. 

The center also hosts other keystone events throughout the school year, including Lunar New Year and Asian Pacific Islander Desi American (APIDA) graduation.

Fourth-year history and French double major Max Yim, who is a peer mentor along with second-year environmental studies major Jeanette Huang, helped to organize the event. Yim said that his tasks vary but mainly consist of holistic counseling and introducing students to what ARC offers. This year, his goals as peer mentor include further highlighting APIDA culture and increasing ARC’s presence on campus. 

“We don’t showcase APIDA culture as much as we should because we really focus on resources, which is completely fine, but there’s a wealth of Asian American artists here at [UC Santa Barbara], and I really want to do something that showcases their achievements and culture,” Yim said. “In a campus that’s not as diverse as the other UCs, it’d be great for more people to have awareness of this and the ARC in general because they exist as wonderful safe spaces for people of those ethnic communities.”

First-year economics major Edward Lin saw the open house in passing and chose to attend “for fun,” finding it to be helpful in connecting more with his Asian American identity.

“One of my biggest worries before coming [to UCSB] was the lack of diversity, but the Asian community is something that you discover once you get here and they’re actually very welcoming and have a strong presence,” Lin said. 

First-year pre-biology major Vera Chu also visited the ARC for the first time, and plans to utilize it in the future. She hopes more students find out about the center and take advantage of its resources. 

“If I did not come to this open house, I probably would never have stepped foot inside the Asian Resource Center ever,” Chu said. “And it’s nice to know as a freshman that I can come in here, whether it’s when I want to study, talk to people or get advice for my academics and [success] in school.”

Despite the increased Asian American representation and solidarity the ARC has fostered over the years, Yim said that there will always be room for improvement in spreading awareness. 

“UCSB has definitely done a better job at showcasing just a lot more of its ethnic communities and people of color over my four years here, but there’s definitely a fair bit of work to be done, and there can always be more efforts towards showcasing not just the ARC but other cultural groups and initiatives,” Yim said. 

Chu said she feels her Asian American identity is highly supported on campus, whether that be through her going to the ARC or joining cultural clubs.

“There is definitely a strong Asian community here, and UCSB is doing a good job of promoting that,” Chu said. “From what I’ve seen, I think we are supported, and I don’t feel like a minority.” 

When reflecting on the event, Yim said that students should ultimately be proud of their Asian identity and feel confident in coming to the ARC for any reason. 

“We exist to serve you all, and we exist as a center for the student population, so please use our resources,” Yim said. “I hope we get more attendees at the ARC and future events, because it’s always a great time to see people having fun at the events you’re a part of and getting fulfillment.” 

American Indian and Indigenous Cultural Resource Center

The American Indian and Indigenous Cultural Center (AIICRC) held its open house on Oct. 14. A smudging ceremony — a cultural practice used by many Indigenous communities — was demonstrated at the event, among other displays.

After sage was passed around, students participated in a non-denominational prayer and started the event. 

The open house aimed to build community, advertise future workshops and events and connect American Indian-identifying students, according to organizers. 

“The AIICRC is a space for students, staff, faculty and community members to develop an understanding of and appreciation for their Indigenous identities,” the EOP website reads.

The AIICRC is headed by EOP counselor Luther Richmond, along with two peer mentors who put together the event. 

Third-year sociology major and AIICRC peer mentor Vivian Marie LaPena said that she works to help students with questions ranging from financial needs to academics to virtually anything else.

“[The AIICRC] gives a safe space for me and other students,” LaPena said. “It’s helped me meet my best friends here.”

The AIICRC hosts weekly gardening events, beading tutorials, other community building workshops and the annual Harvest Dinner, a 48-year-long UCSB tradition honoring Native and Indigenous students.

“It really helps to have some place where you have people to talk to — about the reservation and other things like that,” doctoral student Damian Yazzie said. “Events like [the open house] are just nice. Everyone’s really busy. So it’s like one time where we get to just talk and hangout with everybody.”

Graduate student Megan Baker was introduced to the AIICRC by the Graduate Student Association.

“There’s a lot of work that I want to do at the school that’s involved with the Indigenous community in the area, and I think this is a great place to be able to reach out to the surrounding community, as I’m new to Santa Barbara,” Baker said. “My first impressions are overwhelmingly super positive. This seems like a really established place. It looks really lived in, which makes me feel comfortable.”

Chicanx/Latinx Cultural Resource Center

On Oct. 15, the Chicanx/Latinx Cultural Resource Center (CLCRC) held its open house featuring Latin music and conchas, a Mexican sweet bread. 

The open houses showcased the projects and services offered by its five cultural resource centers at the Student Resource Building. Wesley Haver / Daily Nexus

The event was organized by peer mentors fourth-year art major Richie Sarinana, fourth-year psychological & brain sciences major Roslyn Amaya and fourth-year biology major Ingrith De La Cruz Rivas, along with new CLCRC and El Centro coordinator Jimmy Ojeda Pedraza.

The peer mentors and coordinator began the open house by discussing the resources that they provide, along with organizations they partner with. 

These resources include academic, cultural and psychological support, such as a partnership with Counseling & Psychological Services and student organizations like Raices de Mi Tierra, a folklórico dance group at UCSB. 

Attendees participated in activities such as the Mexican board game Lotería and a scavenger hunt with prizes for the winners. 

“I feel like we tend to be first-gen students and we go into higher education not knowing too much … [it’s important to be] educated on how you can take advantage of your time here and what this institution can do for you,” Sarinana said.

Amaya said that her goal for the event was increasing awareness for the center’s resources.

“Even though UCSB is a Hispanic-Serving Institution [and] a lot of students have resources, it’s difficult to find these resources in general, they feel hidden,” Amaya said.

Sasha Velasquez, a first-year anthropology major and EOP member, said she found the event informative. 

“I didn’t know about the resources that were here … it’s cool to meet people and find people with similar experiences to me,” Velasquez said.

Other attendees, such as first-year political science major Desiree Garrido, expressed similar sentiments. 

“It’s really nice, I like seeing the representation of Latin countries and I like to have a space where I can find people I relate to,” Garrido said.

The presentation highlighted the importance of El Centro and CLCRC, as they are student resources on campus that have existed for many years.

“One of my goals is to revitalize El Centro. It used to be a building that housed many organizations such as the Chicano studies department and other organizations,” Pedraza said.

“[Latino/a students] are not alone and there are so many resources on campus that want to help them succeed … our events tend to be something students look forward to, ‘Celebración de la Familia’ [is our] biggest event of the year. It’s really fun and educational,” Sarinana said.

The center’s next event is “Celebración de la Familia,” happening during Parents & Family Weekend at El Centro on Nov. 2.

A version of this article appeared on p. 5 of the Oct. 24, 2024 edition of the Daily Nexus.

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