INDIANAPOLIS (WISH) — The Asian American Alliance is working to ensure young Asian talent sees Indianapolis as a place where they can build a future.

A survey conducted at the Retreat for Asian Youth Leadership Conference on Sept. 22 revealed many high school students feel a lack of diversity and limited career advancement opportunities in Indianapolis.

Rupal Thanwala, president of the Asian American Alliance, says the lack of diversity in leadership positions are pushing talent to look elsewhere.

“In Indiana, they do not see a lot of Asian American roll models in the key leadership positions,” she said.

Thanwala says the students see more representation on both the East and West coasts. The students also questioned if staying in Indiana limits their career options.

“Mrs. Thanwala, do you think there’s discrimination? Do you think there’s a glass ceiling? Is Indiana a very conservative state where we cannot be successful or given those opportunities? Is it for real?”

Connecting with local schools about starting Asian American clubs, mentorship and support initiatives has been one way the alliance has addressed the issue.

“We had one girl come from northern Indiana, and she said there were only three Asians in the entire school, and I cannot be myself. Having programs like this would give them some confidence,” Thanwala said.

For the alliance, keeping young talent also means showcasing success stories of Asian Americans thriving in fields, as many have family members who are doctors, in academia, and in science, technology, engineering, and mathematics positions. The alliance found many students are interested in the arts, athletics or becoming entrepreneurs.

“We do not know how to select those pathways, or our families don’t know how to support us when we even bring up those conversations,” Thanwala said.

While nothing is an overnight fix, Thanwala says, it’s important to remind students that they define their own success. Some surveyed students said they’d consider moving back to Indianapolis at some point in their career to start a family.

“My intention is yes. I want them to be successful, but I want them to be in Indiana, because I want to make sure that our talent stays here,” she said.