Student Group Highlights AAPI Heritage Month

Thayer Academy’s Asian Student Association (ASA) welcomed alumnus Samson Lee ’92 back to campus May 11 for an informative Upper School assembly to celebrate Asian American and Pacific Islander (AAPI) Heritage Month. 

In a 10-minute discussion facilitated by ASA Co-President Isabella Kahn ’27 and incoming ASA Co-President Kristianna Masiello ’27, Lee discussed AAPI Heritage Month as a wonderful opportunity to recognize the important roles Asian Americans have played in United States history — among them the building of the Transcontinental Railroad — and the important roles they play today, including as members of the Boston area’s thriving business community. 

The Randolph native and current Quincy resident touched upon several changes from his days as a Thayer student. The biggest change, he said, was Quincy’s growth as a hub of Asian American culture, sometimes even rivaling Boston’s longstanding Chinatown neighborhood. 

“It’s really a strong community effect,” Lee said of Quincy, whose Asian American residents now make up roughly 30 percent of the city’s overall population.

Another change, Lee said, involved the variety of resources now available to the Asian American community, from support groups on college campuses to career mentoring to mental health services. 

Lee — an IT professional with more than 25 years of experience — said he takes the need to “pay it forward” seriously and mentioned his involvement in a number of nonprofits and volunteer efforts, including his work with the Boston chapter of the National Association of Asian American Professionals (NAAAP). The organization, he said, has provided well over $200,000 in scholarship funds to students seeking a college education. 

“The great thing is that these students come back,” said Lee, himself a graduate of Tufts University, who also made mention of his wife’s ongoing work with the Boston Asian American Film Festival. 

After the discussion with Lee, Kahn and Masiello showed the short film “One Small Step” to Upper School students. Following the assembly, Lee and ASA students met for an informal discussion over Asian pastries and coffee. 

AAPI Heritage Month celebrates the substantial contributions that Asian Americans and Pacific Islanders have made to American life, American culture, and the American workforce.