Linda Kue Aroonsavath
The rebel-turned-role model
by Laura Salinger
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electrical engineering. His journey was not without struggle. Like her father, Kue Aroonsavath has overcome many obstacles to
get to where she is today.
As a young person, Kue Aroonsavath struggled with the constant tension she felt between her Hmong roots and American
expectations. Her father strove to protect his children from discrimination, going as far as giving them typical American names
and promoting assimilation into the American culture.
"I think my father's experiences with discrimination really impacted the way he raised us," Kue Aroonsavath said.
While her father tried valiantly to protect his children, his efforts also created identity conflicts within his children.
"For the longest time, I struggled with the aspect of identity development," Kue Aroonsavath recalled. "There was always
conflicting expectations."
As a youngster, she described herself as "the black sheep of the family" and a "rebel." "I ran away from home a lot and hung
out with the wrong crowd," she said.
In part, this behavior stemmed from conflicts at home. "My parents, at the time, didn't know how to support us, being Hmong
children in America."
Kue Aroonsavath "straightened up a bit" when the family moved from the Dallas, Texas area, where they were among only a
handful of Hmong families, to the Chicago suburbs. While her home life improved, she continued to struggle with conflicting
expectations. Her father encouraged his children to go to college, while her mother encouraged her daughters to fulfill the
traditional role of a Hmong woman; namely, getting married, having children, and tending to the family.
Kue Aroonsavath married at the age of 18 and had her first child, a son, when she was just 19 years old. Yet, like her father,
she was determined to attend college. Her family moved to Sheboygan, where much of her extended family resides, and she
began undergraduate school at Lakeland College. It was here, among her family, that she began to further explore her Hmong
roots and embrace the traditional roles of Hmong wife and mother, while also pushing herself to defy "traditional" expectations
and finish college.
"I used to say that I was juggling between the two cultures -- being Hmong and being American," Kue Aroonsavath said. "Now,
I say that I no longer juggle, but I embrace both cultures and what they have to offer."
While a college junior, Kue Aroonsavath gave birth to her second child, a daughter. As a young mother, she constantly
balances the needs of her family with her career and educational pursuits.
"It's been stressful at times and very challenging," she said. "You have to make a lot of sacrifices."
Every decision Kue Aroonsavath makes is always with her family in mind. "I'm not going to school for my own individual
independence," she said. "I'm going to school to contribute to my family."
Kue Aroonsavath received a degree in psychology from Lakeland. But, she wasn't done yet. She was accepted to the Master's
program in counseling at UW-Madison and is set to graduate this May. She will then go on to pursue her Ph.D. at UW-Madison.
Kue Aroonsavath is currently doing her practicum at Madison Area Technical College (MATC) where she is a counseling intern.
She also wears another hat at MATC as a student advisor for transitioning services in Multicultural Services. It is here where she
works to retain ESL and GED students and encourage them to continue their education.
"We are not retaining our ESL and GED students," Kue Aroonsavath said. "My job is to figure out why and make sure we retain
these students. At MATC, there are approximately 40 percent minorities enrolled in ESL or Skill Building classes. There are only
11 percent minorities enrolled in college credit programs."
Kue Aroonsavath is focusing her graduate research on intergenerational family conflicts and how that relates to college
adjustment. She has focused mainly on the Hmong community. She hopes to discover how generation gaps, and varying
expectations, impact a Hmong student's success in their first year of college or determine if they even transition to college.
According to the 2000 Census of Population and Housing, the Hmong community has received only 126 doctorate degrees. In
1999, a little less than 30 percent of the men had schooling and over 50 percent of women had no education.
As the only Hmong advisor at MATC, Kue Aroonsavath hopes to be a resource for students, Hmong and others, who need help
determining their career path or overcoming obstacles in order to further their education. She is no stranger to facing obstacles
and is a valuable resource for others who are struggling to further their education.
Linda Kue Aroonsavath; with her family
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Linda Kue Aroonsavath is well on her way to becoming the first in her
family to receive a Ph.D. She is following in the footsteps of her father, a
Hmong immigrant who came to the United States in one of the first
waves of immigration in the 1970s. He, notably, was the first Hmong to
ever graduate from UW-Madison. Overcoming language and cultural
barriers, he received a degree in