So on Monday night we all trooped through the massive puddles to the Hmong Center on campus. Really, I had no idea what to expect, since the center hasn't really been mentioned a whole lot. I was pleasantly surprised when the center turned out to be an actual house. Lee Pao Xiong, the executive for the center, talked to us about the Hmong culture and his own journey from Laos to America. Overall I was very impressed with his story. Unlike other lectures I have heard on similar topics, Xiong's presentation was really quite interesting. I like how he first told us a little bit about the Hmong presence on campus, and then continued on to his own personal story, some of which included growing up with his dad on an army base, being rushed onto a waiting airplane in order to leave Laos, spending time in a refugee camp, moving to Minnesota, pursuing a career in politics and eventually ending up at CSP. One thing that was really surprising to me was actually how well known he is. He had jobs at both the Minnesota and the United States legislatures, as well as serving as an advisor to former President Bill Clinton. Despite his phenomenal success, Xiong chose to come back to the Twin Cities and become a staff member at CSP.
Oddly enough, Xiong reminded me of the AP statistic teacher at my high school, Mr. Peter Newland. Mr. Newland immigrated to the US from China, and like Xiong has made phenomenal progress in the states. Yet it wasn't their similar success that helped me draw the connection; it was their attitude toward life in general. Both of these men have an unexplicable drive for learning and growing; for Xiong, it is more in the way of politics rather than Mr. Newland, who prefers math. Even though both of them could be making millions, they both chose to teach kids. This might have something to do with the familial-centered cultures from which both of them came. Although Xiong did remark that it was mostly the women who passed down the Hmong traditions to their children, I think that the men also have that drive, deep down inside.
My high school math department...Mr. Newland is the one in the front row on the right. He is insanely crazy about math, and at least once a day said "Math gives me tingles!!" I think my favorite Newland-ism was: "Doing math is just like eating dessert, except no calories!!!" Oh Mr. Newland...
Although this maybe did not change me in any way, I still appriciated getting out of the classroom and actually "experiencing" Hmong culture rather than just reading about it. It was cool to see that the Hmong is an actual people, rather than just some obscure people group that we hear about in passing on the evening news. What I really admire about the Hmong people, and Lee Pao Xiong in particular, is their ability to adapt, grow, and thrive in their different environments. I would love to learn more about the Hmong culture, and experience it, rather than learn about it in a classroom as usual. I think that once we experience a culture, it makes it more meaningful.
Oddly enough, Xiong reminded me of the AP statistic teacher at my high school, Mr. Peter Newland. Mr. Newland immigrated to the US from China, and like Xiong has made phenomenal progress in the states. Yet it wasn't their similar success that helped me draw the connection; it was their attitude toward life in general. Both of these men have an unexplicable drive for learning and growing; for Xiong, it is more in the way of politics rather than Mr. Newland, who prefers math. Even though both of them could be making millions, they both chose to teach kids. This might have something to do with the familial-centered cultures from which both of them came. Although Xiong did remark that it was mostly the women who passed down the Hmong traditions to their children, I think that the men also have that drive, deep down inside.
My high school math department...Mr. Newland is the one in the front row on the right. He is insanely crazy about math, and at least once a day said "Math gives me tingles!!" I think my favorite Newland-ism was: "Doing math is just like eating dessert, except no calories!!!" Oh Mr. Newland...
Although this maybe did not change me in any way, I still appriciated getting out of the classroom and actually "experiencing" Hmong culture rather than just reading about it. It was cool to see that the Hmong is an actual people, rather than just some obscure people group that we hear about in passing on the evening news. What I really admire about the Hmong people, and Lee Pao Xiong in particular, is their ability to adapt, grow, and thrive in their different environments. I would love to learn more about the Hmong culture, and experience it, rather than learn about it in a classroom as usual. I think that once we experience a culture, it makes it more meaningful. 
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