Hula dancers took the stage in student housing on April 9 to celebrate the start of Asian Pacific Islander South Asian American Heritage Month with the cross-campus collaboration event, Storytelling from the Deep Blue. 

Housing and Residential, the Asian Pacific American Resource Center, Associated Students and the Alumni Association worked together to host the celebration event for students. According to Cal State Fullerton, the campus celebrates APISAA Heritage every April at Cal State Fullerton for inclusivity and participation from the community. 

To celebrate Pacific Islander student communities and cultures, the event included live hula performances, lei making, campus resources and catered food from Matiki Island BBQ and Sojeata in Fullerton. 

The cultural celebration event was themed around the Pacific Islander culture of Oceania and the rich history that makes up the diverse student communities on campus. Hula performances from Diamond Bar hula company, Kapiliwaiokeao, were used to narrate that history through dance, while hula teacher Kalani Viloria told their stories out loud. 

The event was brought to life by housing community coordinator Ashely Ongalibang who came up with the idea after seeing a lack of campus programming done for Pacific Islander students during her time as an undergraduate student in 2017. 

“I just remember being an undergrad and not having a lot of spaces for me,” Ongalibang said. “I met a lot of Pacific Islander students that lived in housing, and so decided to kind of create that space that I wanted.” 

According to Ongalibang, the purpose of the event was to provide space for these communities to feel seen on campus.

To host the celebration event for students, Ongalibang partnered with the coordinator of the Asian Pacific American Resource Center, Hathiya Chea. Along with the help from ASI, the pair coordinated the hula performances, catered Hawaiian food, cultural resources and lei making for students.

According to Chea, she hopes students who attended the event learned more about APISAA Heritage Month and the history behind each population that it celebrates. 

“Hopefully, they walk away understanding more about the rich history and heritage and really support and be an ally to our Pacific Islander students on campus,” Chea said. 

The event featured cultural resources for identifying students like United American Indian Involvement Inc. Located in Los Angeles, it is an organization that provides support services for American Indian, Alaskan Native and Native Hawaiian people living in Orange County and Los Angeles. 

Valentin Contreras, a workforce development specialist from the organization, said that UAII is a place for American Indian, Alaskan Native and native Hawaiian people to receive the tailored support they need during their academic journeys. 

“Counseling services, behavioral mental health services, whatever sort of help they might need, they have a place to receive those services with us,” Contreras said. 

Students like fourth-year political science and Asian American studies double major Alexandra Gates also attended to celebrate her heritage. Gates is the chairwoman for CSUF’s Filipino student community-based collective, Bayanihan Kollective, and said that events like this one help her feel most connected to the CSUF community as a whole. 

“I would say during our events, I feel most connected to the Filipino community and the greater CSUF community as a whole,” Gates said. 

ASI and the Alumni Association also helped sponsor the event this year to celebrate those student communities during their Heritage Month. 

“We want to make sure that we uplift our Pacific Islander students and make sure that they are seen, recognized, and feel represented on campus,” Chea said.