VSA bridges gap between students while uplifting Vietnamese culture

The Vietnamese Student Association is encouraging social engagement and RSO collaboration through its community club meetings centered on Vietnamese culture.

By Rachel Meatte

The Vietnamese Student Association (VSA) began several years ago at the University of Washington Tacoma and aimed to unite students and learn about Vietnamese heritage while providing a voice for Vietnamese students. 

Registered Student Organizations typically consist of members centered around a cause or activity they are passionate about. 

UWT’s Chess club gives students opportunities to play chess tournaments with other students of all levels. The Black Student Union (BSU) is a club dedicated to giving African Americans a voice and educating the greater community about Black heritage and culture. Currently, the VSA is encouraging students of all backgrounds to participate in student-led activities that could help brighten their UWT experience. 

VSA vice president Katie is a junior studying business administration and enjoys helping make the club inclusive to all who want to participate. 

“Our goal is to spread awareness and educate people on Vietnamese culture while also building a community at UWT,” Katie said.  

Like many students, Katie understands the socially isolated experience many students face when attending a commuter school like UWT. People drive to school only to leave the campus right after their class, creating a larger epidemic of students feeling socially isolated from life. 

“It’s so hard to be in college and not talk to anyone, you feel so alone. Going out of your way to getting to know the community is beneficial to you. You can meet new people and make new friends to do stuff with after school,” Katie said.  

Katie moved to Washington state from Arizona for school and was introduced to different clubs on campus last year. 

“I didn’t have many friends and would go to class and then go home. Last year I joined Filipino American Student Association (FASA) and VSA and got to know so many people. I could do so much more now that I made so many friends,” Katie said.  

The VSA is open to all students regardless of their heritage. The club invites everyone to join their weekly meetings every other Wednesday where they hold discussions relating Vietnamese culture. “Lesson of the day,” is an educational activity where the club teaches a small piece of Vietnamese language such as greetings to attendees. They also highlight pieces of current pop culture relating to Vietnamese culture such as songs, artists or any current events. 

This year’s VSA is an entirely new makeup of officers following the graduating class of last year which took away the majority. Katie also mentioned that they are attempting to fundraise to have more benefits for the following year. 

“We’ve had games like Bingo dares and other activities we can find to raise money for our organization to have more fun events next year,” Katie said. 

The club’s media coordinator Xai, also known as Leiani is a freshman currently studying business marketing. She and the other officers are trying to reach out to RSO’s who might be interested in collaborating for an event to boost student awareness. 

“We are trying to collaborate with the UWT Volleyball club, maybe host a tournament between our clubs,” Xai said. “BSU is so nice and welcoming, maybe we could hold an event with all of us together. We want to try and find some event all of us can partake in.” 

The BSU hosted their most popular event on campus at the UW YMCA, “Prom Night” which has existed for years at UWT. This was held in collaboration with the Tabletop club, which hosts weekly game tournaments ranging from board games, card games and Roleplaying games such as Dungeons and Dragons. Both clubs benefited significantly from the event and put on a great event for students attending. 

The VSA is one of many clubs UWT offers as a safe place for students to unwind and connect with others around them. Other RSO’s like the HuskyKai Japanese Student Association, Pacific Islander Student Alliance, Middle Eastern South Asian Association and the Latinx Student Union all provide spaces for students to engage in different cultural backgrounds.  

“We just want to have an open community. Not only Vietnamese people who may be out of touch with their heritage, but anyone who is willing to learn about Vietnamese culture,” Katie said.  

To learn more about the VSA or contact them with any questions you can email the club at uwtvsa@uw.edu.