Asian American InterVarsity, also known as AAIV, is a faith-based fellowship for Asian American college students seeking God. It maintains its mission of community and is welcome to all, especially during a challenging time such as the pandemic. In this interview, AAIV leaders Jane Chui, a CU Boulder alumna, and Rebecca Wu, a senior majoring in psychology and neuroscience, will provide insights into the ministry and what they stand for.
- Her Campus CU Boulder: “What’s your favorite memory or event of AAIV? Has there been any moment in particular that inspired you?”
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Rebecca: “I really like when we have social gatherings with all our students. It’s one of my favorites because over the semester you get smaller crowds for Bible studies. It’s also good to see them in a different social setting. For example, we had a hot pot event a year ago, and that was really fun. We had a lot of people be able to have community, and we also got to see a lot of new people to open up and talk about themselves.”
- HCCU: “This year has been filled with headlines on racial discrimination, including that against Asian Americans. What are your thoughts on this, and how has it affected you personally?”
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Jane: “I feel like, in America especially, a lot of issues are not really talked about, and I think one of them is definitely racial discrimination, and with COVID, I think it amplified it a lot and kind of showed what kinds of issues are not discussed openly. I think it shows that there’s so much change that needs to happen, and sometimes, we might ourselves need to be that change to initiate that change.”
Rebecca: “I think racial discrimination has been here forever, at least in our country. I think it’s pretty hard to change that because discrimination has been part of history for all races. If we don’t take that step towards that change, then we probably will never have that change in our society. Sometimes I think I’ve been really privileged to live in a community where I didn’t have to experience so much of that, while other people might not be as lucky as I am. So I think it’s definitely something that we need to raise awareness for, but also respond back to appropriately as well.”
- HCCU: “Before COVID-19 took over, have you experienced any challenges as a fellowship? If so, what do you think was your biggest challenge?”
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Rebecca: “I think it’s just the common idea where some people just don’t come physically to our meetings or gatherings because they normally say, ‘Oh, I can’t make it’ or ‘I just have something else I’d rather do’. We totally understand that, but sometimes it always gets tedious to ask these same people. All of a sudden, they’re like, ‘Oh’, but we were expecting them to actually say no. So personally my challenge as a leader is to continue to persevere and maintain that habit to stay in touch with other people and be accountable.”
Jane: “I think another thing, I wouldn’t say challenge, but something we could probably improve on is that, at the time, before COVID, we were a really tightly knit group, and expanding outward was a goal as leaders that we wanted to have for our group.”
- HCCU: “As women of color, what has it been like to lead AAIV?”
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Rebecca: “I actually think it’s been fun. I do obviously have responsibilities, especially as a female Asian American leader. Although there’s a lot of responsibility to do, I feel like it has been a privilege and a reward to be able to talk to other Asian American students and build deep conversations. It’s a privilege for me to be in a position of leadership because you know a lot of things. To be able to be relied on is really rewarding in itself.”
Jane: “For me, when I was an undergrad, I had leaders that were also women of color and Asian as well. I think it’s really cool to show that women, and also women of color, could lead. I think it’s cool that AAIV really values that and that we as leaders get to make a lot of decisions for our fellowship. I think it’s really special, especially when you’re leading an ethnic-specific group, that you have someone that represents that group. It’s easier to talk through as there are sometimes cultural barriers that are hard to come through. I think being in the same ethnic group makes it a lot easier for people to open up and be themselves.”
- HCCU: “Were there any moments where you felt like your leadership really shone through?”
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Rebecca: “I think it shines through when there are students in our fellowship who have some sort of change, or they feel there’s some call or desire for them to be closer to God. If I see that happen in their behavior or what they say, then I feel like maybe I’m doing something right. The reason is because as a student, before I was a leader and Jane was our leader with someone else, I feel like their leadership shone through for me, and they took care of me and helped me with any questions I had or issues I was going through. I hope other students feel it that way, in a similar sense.”
Jane: “(To Rebecca) I’ve definitely seen your leadership grow; you definitely take lead in studies that we’re going through. I feel like you’ve become a better mentor for people as well. You may not know it, but you’ve been helping them through and listening to them as a student and as a person. For me, I never realized it, but throughout the years, one thing I enjoy in seeing myself grow is being less introverted. I’ve been going into how to outreach to people, especially new people. That’s definitely one thing I never really thought I would be doing. That’s one thing God invited me to do, and I did.”
- HCCU: “For any college women planning to become leaders like you, what would be your advice for them?”
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Rebecca: “Don’t become like me. I think every woman has their own calling. They’re all different leaders, and they’re gifted in different ways. So don’t be like me. To truly find out who you are, just do something you really want to do. Doing what you want to do can really help you flourish as a leader. It’ll make you and your life happier.”
Jane: “I feel like all the time, fear gets in the way, or even self-doubt. You’d think, ‘Oh, I don’t have the skill to do it’ or ‘someone better will probably be a better leader’, but the point is that God made each of us unique with different skills, and God will use those skills uniquely for you to be a leader and to reach people because there’s no one way to talk to someone. There’s that one special, heartfelt way for each of us.”
- HCCU: “What is the most important lesson that you feel like God has taught you? How has it helped you grow in your faith?”
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Rebecca: “I feel like my theme for my entire college career has been courage and not to fear. As someone who is super introverted and sometimes hates going out of my way to talk to strangers, there’s this fear of rejection that often happens when you do ministry because there are people that might not be Christians, or they’re just not interested. There’s also the fact that some people might not want to come to our fellowship anymore. But then I feel like God has been calling me for four years now, saying that it’s okay to be scared, but it’s not okay to run away from your fears. You actually have to take that leap of faith and see what God is calling you to do, even if it’s outside of your comfort zone. Also, I’m seeing myself grow as an individual to teach other people. God has proven to me that having faith in Him and taking that next step is really important.”
Jane: “For me, what I learned that has developed through college and also into post-college is faith and community. I think just doing faith alone is not what God intended for us to do. Doing it with community and having support through it not only helps my faith, but it’s like a two-way thing. My community supported me when I needed it the most, and I was able to use my strength to support the community that I’m in. It’s been really rewarding to see how God works through people and that He’s willing to work through me as well.”
- HCCU: “If you could be one character from the Bible, who would you be and why?”
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Jane: “The first thing that popped into my mind was Ruth. Her husband died, and she’s left with her mother-in-law who tells her to leave and live a better life, telling her ‘You don’t need to support me’. What I really like about Ruth is that she continued to stay faithful to her mother-in-law, and, even though she was a foreigner, she was still willing to serve her mother-in-law. I think that characteristic of her is really admirable. With her story progression, because of her faithfulness, God really provided for her and also her mother-in-law.”
Rebecca: “I’ll say King David. Yes, I know he’s a man. God chose him to be king because He said he is a man after God’s own heart. He spent most of his life as a shepherd, soldier, and then a king. I feel like that’s one thing I have in common with David: there’s something to pursue when you follow God. There’s something really attractive to doing that when you’re following God, something that makes you really want to go after His own heart. That’s why I want to be a woman after God’s own heart, but also a woman who’s really invested in praising God, where other people can be inspired to do the same thing.”
- HCCU: “What would you say are the main mission and values of AAIV?”
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Rebecca: “Ultimately, as a fellowship, our specific goal is to have students, especially Asian American students, to pursue Jesus and have a greater desire to know Jesus. We want other Asian American students to feel accepted and to have a deeper relationship with Christ. We value a lot of community and supporting one another. We also value a lot on just knowing who God is and how He can call students to bring God’s kingdom to campus.”
- HCCU: “What are your goals for AAIV? Where do you see AAIV 10 years from now?”
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Jane: “Currently our goal is to outreach to new students that identify as Asian American and are looking for a community. I actually really want to see AAIV 10 years from now grow as a bigger fellowship, but also like a more Asian American-specific fellowship. There are so many different sections, like, there’s second generation, and there’s Southeast Asian…I think it’d be really cool to see AAIV having little groups of those. But yeah, that’s what I hope to see in AAIV in ten years – that we are able to outreach to Asian Americans in general and having Asian American-specific groups as well on campus.”
As female leaders of color, Rebecca and Jane taught us that we should remain resilient in times of difficulty and find our ultimate strength through faith. As a member of AAIV myself, Rebecca and Jane gave me a clearer view of how to emerge as a leader of my own during these challenging times. I hope you can look up to these two for inspiration, just like I did.
No matter where you stand in faith, AAIV is always open to support you. To learn more about AAIV, click here.